VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES NEW LICENSING AGREEMENTS FOR NARUTO IN KEY LATIN AMERICAN MARKETS

VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES NEW LICENSING AGREEMENTS FOR NARUTO IN KEY LATIN AMERICAN MARKETS San Francisco, CA, May 5, 2011 - VIZ Media, the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in the North America, continues to expand its bestselling NARUTO brand internationally with the announcement of several new agents and licensees that will develop a variety of NARUTO products and lifestyle accessories for the burgeoning Latin American market. IMC Licensing & Merchandising will manage markets in Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay. Creative Licensing will manage the Brazilian market, while Tycoon Enterprises will license NARUTO products for Mexico.

IMC Licensing & Merchandising is a leading full-service licensing agency specializing in consumer product brands. More information on the company is available at: www.imclicensing.com. The company will work with the following manufactures:

Sticker Design for NARUTO Trading Cards

Azale SA for NARUTO Socks and Stickers

Sueno Fueguino for NARUTO Bedding and Towels

Creative Licensing Brazil has operated successfully in Latin Americas largest market since 1999. The company has a highly skilled professional team that allows it to act not only in Brazil, but also in Latin America with a qualified portfolio, innovative marketing, and creative support and brand management. More information on the company is available at: www.creativelicensing.com.br/default.aspx?ln=en. The company will work with the following manufactures:

Festcolor for NARUTO Party Goods

Pacific for NARUTO School Supplies

Distribuidora Sulamericana Imp. Exp. Ltd. For NARUTO Costumes

Bignardi for NARUTO Notebooks

Tycoon Enterprises is a leading independent licensing and merchandising agency that represents some of the most relevant brands in contemporary entertainment. The company and has represented properties from film, television, sports and lifestyle, covering all demographics with brands of proven international success and significance. More information on the company is available at: www.tycoon.mx. The company will work with the following manufacturer:

Doobalo S.A. for NARUTO Socks And Apparel

NARUTO enjoys a massive following throughout Latin America where the property has captivated millions of fans of all ages, says Aadil Tayouga, Licensing Manager and Brand Analyst. The agreements we have forged with several leading licensing agents will bring a variety of fun and high quality consumer products based on the bestselling action series to markets across multiple territories. We look forward to working closely with all of these licensing companies as we continue to develop NARUTO as a global brand.

Created by Masashi Kishimoto, NARUTO was first introduced in Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in Japan in 1999 and quickly became that country's most popular ninja manga targeting tweens and teens and has sold more than 85 million copies to-date. The manga series (rated T' for Teens) and animated counterpart (NARUTO rated T' for Teens, and NARUTO SHIPPUDEN rated T+' for Older Teens) are among VIZ Media's most successful properties and have captivated millions of fans across North America, Europe and South America.

For more information on NARUTO please visit the official website at www.Naruto.com.

About VIZ Media

Headquartered in San Francisco, CA, VIZ Media distributes, markets and licenses the best anime and manga titles direct from Japan. Owned by three of Japans largest manga and animation companies, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions, Co., Ltd., VIZ Media has the most extensive library of anime and manga for English speaking audiences in North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and South Africa. With its popular monthly manga anthology SHONEN JUMP magazine, and blockbuster properties like NARUTO, BLEACH and INUYASHA, VIZ Media offers cutting-edge action, romance, and family friendly properties for anime, manga, science fiction and fantasy fans of all ages. VIZ Media properties are available as graphic novels, DVDs, animated television series, feature films, downloadable and streaming video and a variety of consumer products. Learn more about VIZ Media, anime and manga at www.VIZ.com.

LINK:	http://www.viz.com/node/1004919...
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