Hasbro buys rights to Sunbow library, including MLP

[LadyMoondancer]

Okay, this isn't recent news.  It happened in 2008.  Still, I find it interesting as I didn't know this before!

It looks like the rights went like so:

199? to 2005 - Rhino - License expired in 2005, after which the license went to . . .
2005 - 2007 - SonyWonder, which closed in 2007, after which the license went to . . .
2007 - 2008 - TV Loonland (um, nice name.)

In 2008 Hasbro released a press release declaring it had "reacquired the worldwide distribution rights to the Sunbow Library of Hasbro Classics", including

Taken from: http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Transformers-Hasbro-Reacquires-Rights/9624#ixzz212cdBgPA

Both TV-Loonland and Hasbro have issued press releases today about this transaction. TV-Loonland's notice, posted first below, states that they will receive $7 Million US Dollars in this transaction, and Hasbro's statement notes that they in turn get "ownership of nearly 1,000 episodes of classic programming." Properties named on both include Transformers, G.I. Joe and My Little Pony.

I think we should start trying to get Hasbro to release COMPLETE versions of Rescue at Midnight Castle and Escape from Catrina on DVD.  They are in the "Complete First Season" that Rhino put out, but they have each had a song cut out of them.

[angela22]

I wannna know when we will ever have a decent DVD of MLP Tales! But sorry, off subject....

[RavenFeather]

This just further muddles the claim of 'We can't use the old G1 ponies'  Umm....You have the rights to the episodes, I think you can?  You made a trademark of Granny Smith, I think anything is possible at this time.

Oooh!  Idea!!!  G4 Brushie set of Twilight, Sparkler, Surprise, Posey, Firefly and maybe have Sundance in place of AJ, and since Hasbro has the rights...put a mini DVD with the first two specials in the box.  But don't name the ponies on the box.  Leave that for the kids to realize 'Oh wow! This pink pegasus with a blue mane and blue lightning bolt cutie mark looks just like Firefly!!!  I'll call her Firefly too!'

Win/Win  we get our collector set. the bronies get some awesome ponies (Guess what, a lot of them love Surprise and Firefly).  Kiddies get new ponies.  And Hasbro gets lots of money.  Make it part of the ToysRUs Collectors Line that the White Fashion Style Celestia and the Nightmare Moon set are part of and it will be golden!!

[StarlightGaze]

The more G4 playful ponies that aren't mane 6, the better. Hasbro, just make an ass load like G1 and G3! I want a legion of them to occupy my condo!

[Zenobiaa]

This just further muddles the claim of 'We can't use the old G1 ponies'  Umm....You have the rights to the episodes, I think you can?  You made a trademark of Granny Smith, I think anything is possible at this time.

Oooh!  Idea!!!  G4 Brushie set of Twilight, Sparkler, Surprise, Posey, Firefly and maybe have Sundance in place of AJ, and since Hasbro has the rights...put a mini DVD with the first two specials in the box.  But don't name the ponies on the box.  Leave that for the kids to realize 'Oh wow! This pink pegasus with a blue mane and blue lightning bolt cutie mark looks just like Firefly!!!  I'll call her Firefly too!'

Win/Win  we get our collector set. the bronies get some awesome ponies (Guess what, a lot of them love Surprise and Firefly).  Kiddies get new ponies.  And Hasbro gets lots of money.  Make it part of the ToysRUs Collectors Line that the White Fashion Style Celestia and the Nightmare Moon set are part of and it will be golden!!

I love this idea so much you have no idea. DO IT HASBRO DO IT. I'd love to have a set like that.

[Folly]

Oh man, it would be SO COOL if they brought back some G1 ponies.  Or heck, just more non-show ponies in general!!!  I feel like the odd one out of the bronies every time I say this, but all the show characters are starting to bore me T_T and the TRU exclusive line obviously focuses on bronies... so we get characters from the show.  I'd love to see them put out a buttload of different characters like in G1.

...but first, better poses.  C'mon Hasbro

[karrie91]

The more G4 playful ponies that aren't mane 6, the better. Hasbro, just make an ass load like G1 and G3! I want a legion of them to occupy my condo!

This!!! Agree so much! I'm tired of seeing piles of Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy everywhere I go! I want more G4's for my collection without buying the same main 6!

[hathorcat]

Lol! I thought I was going silly because I read the title of the thread and thought "didnt that happen years ago" and then decided no it must be a new thing - thank goodness you mentioned when it happened LadyM or I would have thought I had been going daft!

Its a shame because Hasbro have now licensed out loads of this back catalogue to the likes of Netflix - G1 Transformers and G1 Joe episodes but either they havent offered or Netflix have decided against taking the MLP episodes!

[Al-1701]

It would be nice if Hasbro let Shout Factory make a DVD of the first two specials unedited as well as the series as it was originally seen with the "To Be Continued" at the cliffhangers and in the episode blurbs.

[Gingerbread]

This just further muddles the claim of 'We can't use the old G1 ponies'  Umm....You have the rights to the episodes, I think you can?  You made a trademark of Granny Smith, I think anything is possible at this time.

Oooh!  Idea!!!  G4 Brushie set of Twilight, Sparkler, Surprise, Posey, Firefly and maybe have Sundance in place of AJ, and since Hasbro has the rights...put a mini DVD with the first two specials in the box.  But don't name the ponies on the box.  Leave that for the kids to realize 'Oh wow! This pink pegasus with a blue mane and blue lightning bolt cutie mark looks just like Firefly!!!  I'll call her Firefly too!'

Win/Win  we get our collector set. the bronies get some awesome ponies (Guess what, a lot of them love Surprise and Firefly).  Kiddies get new ponies.  And Hasbro gets lots of money.  Make it part of the ToysRUs Collectors Line that the White Fashion Style Celestia and the Nightmare Moon set are part of and it will be golden!!

I love this idea so much you have no idea. DO IT HASBRO DO IT. I'd love to have a set like that.

A milliontrilliongazillion times yes! Would be awesomer than awesome.

[Nerdfins]

I just really want them to rerelease the episodes on DVD or put them on iTunes.  Has Hasbro given any reason for why they haven't done so since getting the rights?

[Elisto]

Huh, interesting. I hope they do something good with this.

Although I do want to add that I'm pretty sure that just because they have the rights to the old episodes again doesn't mean the trademarks on the characters in it are restored to Hasbro. I *think* all this means is that they can potentially re-release episodes, but can't make new ones or toys involving those characters.

[Moonracer]

Yeah, I've read this somewhere before. I think it mainly has to do with the fact that, since Hasbro has created their Hub channel, they've had plans to broadcast the old cartoons along with all the new stuff, but since the publishing rights have been so widely distributed they didn't get the chance to do so.

It's actually quite interesting, and I'm happy that they finally managed to collect all the missing pieces of the proverbial puzzle.

I'd be really happy if they decided to finally make a decent DVD, or heck, even a Blue-ray release of the old cartoons. Or better yet - they should make a complete box set of all the old Hasbro cartoons (called "Back to the Old School" ), which would have special features: commercials, gallery showcasing some of the production designs, short documentaries, commentaries, interviews etc. This would be totally awesome in my opinion.

Maybe, once they have those episodes, they could also even restore them properly: like fixing some of the animation errors maybe?

Ahhh... I got so dreamy... :]

[LadyMoondancer]

They have broadcast old school Transformers, G.I. Joe, and Jem on the Hub . . . we should try to convince them to broadcast MLP & Friends too!

I presume they got "MLP Tales" in this deal too . . . surely it was a Sunbow cartoon, since they sometimes would play the Tales intro but then have MLP & Friends episodes playing after the theme song.

[Moonracer]

That would be great if they did this. Just because "Friendship is Magic" is so popular, doesn't mean that other MLP shows need to be neglected and forgotten.

I only fear what may the reaction be...