Warner Bros, SCi Sign Investment, Licensing Agreement (gamasutra)

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As part of a new investment and strategic partnership, UK publishing group SCi has gained rights to a number of classic Warner Bros properties, including Looney Tunes and a number of Hanna-Barbera titles.

The agreement to license and distribute classic Warner Bros. properties comes alongside news that Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. will be making an investment in SCi for 10.3 percent of its shares.

The full list of properties available to SCi include the comic book version of DC superhero Batman, and the Looney Tunes character library, including Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Road Runner and Speedy Gonzales, which Eidos currently plans to use for handheld games.

The deal also includes the Hanna-Barbera catalog, including Tom and Jerry, The Flintstones, Wacky Races, Yogi Bear and Huckleberry Hound, which Eidos plans to spread across up to 12 new games based on individual characters, and, in a non-animated deal, interactive rights to hit TV show The OC.

Also announced as part of the widening agreement between the two groups was an arrangement with SCi subsidiary Eidos (Tomb Raider franchise) to make Warner Bros. its primary U.S. distributor, providing warehousing, logistics, merchandising and media buying services, leaving Eidos to focus on manufacturing, sales, marketing and PR.

Said Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group president Kevin Tsujihara, "Investing in SCi further solidifies our commitment to the rapidly growing interactive and gaming space. This deal is consistent with our core strategy of delivering high quality entertainment based on some of the world’s best-loved brands for all formats and channels. We look forward to working with SCi to build games the fans of these brands will truly enjoy.”

Chief executive of SCi Jane Cavanagh added, “The partnership with Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group in the United States links us to the distribution network and buying power of one the world’s largest media companies. The additional investment provides us with the firepower to accelerate growth initiatives such as increasing our development capacity and our new media and online strategies.”