SANTA MONICA, Calif., April 29, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The top-rated Japanese comedy-adventure TV show – YO-Kai Watch -- will be represented by Dentsu Entertainment USA, Inc. throughout the Americas, it was announced today by Mr. Yuma Sakata, President and Chief Executive Officer, Dentsu Entertainment USA, Inc.  The company is currently seeking both broadcast and merchandising partners in these geographic markets.

In January of 2014, YO-Kai Watch debuted on TV Tokyo, appealing to both boys and girls and achieving instant success in the station's primetime programming, consistently ranked as the top-rated show in its time block.  The property, which adds a strong dose of comedy to the adventure theme, had originally been an extremely popular manga comic in the Shogakukan Monthly CoroCoro Comic Magazine (circulation: 1,000,000) as a serial story, and continues to be published there.  On the heels of the story's publishing and subsequent broadcast success, a robust licensing program also emerged.

"YO-Kai Watch is high quality story-telling and animation at its very best," said Sakata.  "YO-Kai Watch is truly kid-focused entertainment at its best.  We are excited to bring this universally-themed comedic tale to North, Central and South American broadcasters."

Marc Harrington, Senior Vice President, Global Strategy and Development for Dentsu Entertainment USA, said, "Several American companies that keep their eye on Japanese content and ratings success have already expressed interest in the title.  We look forward to presenting this property, repackaged suitably for the Americas, to broadcasters this Spring."

The yo-kai are a category of spirit entities in Japanese folklore, ranging from friendly to malevolent.  The YO-Kai Watch tale begins as a curious ten-year-old boy frees Whisper, a ghost-butler yo-kai, from 190 years of imprisonment.  In gratitude, Whisper pledges to protect the boy from supernatural challenges, and gifts him with a magical tool, which allows the youth to see other yo-kai.  The young boy and Whisper, together with another yo-kai spirit, Jibanyan the twin-tailed cat, engage with some of the yo-kai spirits, in this ongoing comedic adventure.

About Dentsu Entertainment USA, Inc.

Dentsu Entertainment USA, Inc. was formed in 2010 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Dentsu Inc. (Tokyo Stock Exchange, Code 4324).  Dentsu Inc. is the world's largest advertising agency brand, and a leading producer of Japanese animation, with over 37,000 full-time employees and more than 700 subsidiaries and affiliates worldwide.  Dentsu Entertainment USA develops original animation programming and media content for domestic and international markets, and manages licensing programs for new and existing properties.  Current projects include Chub City®, featuring evolved vehicles and savvy young drivers, currently in development as an animated series; LBX™ (a.k.a. "The Little Battlers eXperience"), a highly successful animation, video game and toy franchise, based on miniature customizable robots;  Deltora Quest®, a 52-episode animated series airing globally, and based on the international top-selling fantasy-adventure book series of the same name; and Monsuno®, an innovative toy line and animated boys action adventure series currently airing on Nickelodeon, Nicktoons and free-to-air channels in more than 150 countries.  Dentsu Entertainment USA is headquartered in Santa Monica, CA.  For more information, please visit www.DentsuEntertainment.com.

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SOURCE Dentsu Entertainment USA, Inc.