Merging the realms of blockbuster Hollywood movies and gaming could well be a match made in heaven, with Sean O’Kelly and Richard Clarke identifying what they call “a gap in the market”.
Establishing Skyrocket Entertainment at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, UK film producer O’Kelly and the gaming industry’s Clarke migrate Hollywood feature films and branded intellectual property rights into the gambling and social gaming sectors.
As a result world-renowned stories and characters, established with audiences worldwide, are transformed into new gaming content and products for social and real money gaming, such as slots, instant games, bingo and lotto, via licensed operators in legal jurisdictions.
Skyrocket recently bolstered its portfolio with the acquisition of the international rights to 75 iconic feature films including Rambo 4, The Expendables and The Fallen franchise, and has optioned the exclusive worldwide gaming rights to a further 100 major studio films.
With a steady stream of ‘blockbuster titles’ starting to be seen, O’Kelly discusses what benefits titles related to iconic films both old and new could bring to the industry: “Blockbuster films and branded content bring proven and established audiences worldwide and, with the rights that Skyrocket acquires, we ensure that we get the utmost from the film’s assets enabling the production of deeply immersive games, which means more time is spent playing the games – ultimately yielding much bigger revenues.
“We have found that rights owners need a clear and fair bridge into the gaming industry”
“With our franchises such as Expendables, Rambo and Fallen – each time there’s a new film in the franchise we ride the coattails of the multi-million-dollar marketing campaigns around the film’s worldwide release.
“A good example of this would be Angel Has Fallen, released last month and reaching #1 at North American Box Office – hence the studio invested heavily into a global marketing campaign.”
Before moving on to discuss potential difficulties that could be encountered, particularly regarding a potential reluctance to enter gaming/gambling: “Skyrocket is uniquely positioned – we are between movie studios (from whom we acquire movie rights) and game studios and platforms. Skyrocket, with over 20 years’ experience in licensing and IP rights, successfully navigates this often-complex process to acquire and deliver exclusive game-ready assets to the gaming industry,” he says.
“Making sure that everything is fully approved for games use. We have found that rights owners need a clear and fair bridge into the gaming industry which is what we strive to provide – and likewise so does the gaming industry.
“So we are positioning ourselves as a conduit, a rights store if you like, where all the complex legalities surrounding IP rights acquisitions and usage have already been neatly negotiated and ready to be made into games.”
“Our aim is to provide a one-stop-shop for them and for the gaming industry alike”
Adding on how such issues can be mitigated: “Because Skyrocket operates on a fee percentage from income basis and owns all its gaming IP, we are rendered risk-free.
“There is tremendous demand for new content from gaming operators which Skyrocket, with its valuable and rapidly growing film library, intends to galvanise. We are creating a vast bank of tradable assets with our film IP.
“Transparency with rights holders is key. Our aim is to provide a one-stop-shop for them and for the gaming industry alike – for licencing, media and IP rights.”
Skyrocket has also aligned with the upcoming CasinoBeats Summit as a premium sponsor, with the event welcoming up to 1,000 senior industry executives to Olympia London on September 17-20.
“We’re enormously excited to be collaborating as a premium sponsor with CasinoBeats,” commented O’Kelly. “We instinctively felt that there was a great synergy and joining forces will not only provide great exposure for Skyrocket, but also give us an opportunity to meet with respected industry leaders and learn from the impressive roster of speakers and seminars showcased at the event.”
Skyrocket will be exhibiting at the CasinoBeats Summit – say hello at stand E1 opposite the Casino Bar, or drop an email at: [email protected].
The conference takes place at Olympia London on September 17-20, alongside Betting on Sports – learn more and buy tickets for the CasinoBeats Summit here.
To find out more about sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities at the Summit, please contact [email protected].
