The Global Homerization

Chances are if you’ve watched TV anytime since the ‘90s, you’ve watched “The Simpsons.” Twentieth Century Fox’s animated TV series is now 26-years-old and has spawned a cottage licensing industry around it–from apparel, bedding and party supplies to innovative theme park destinations, a beer brand and even a standalone brick-and-mortar.

According to Fox, more than 10,000 “The Simpsons”- branded products are available in 100,000 retailers around the world each year, which makes sense–the global brand awareness of the property is powerful. The series is on-air every minute of every day somewhere among the 180 countries it is broadcast in. In the U.S. alone, the brand continues to grow with broadcast steady on the Fox network since the series’ inception. And now with added syndication on the FX and FXX networks, the demographic is continually expanding. “‘The Simpsons’ is as relevant today as it has ever been.

One of the reasons is the writing and the storytelling and the way the series has adapted to the culture,” says Peter Leeb, vice president, global brand management and strategy, Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products. “It’s not just an adult brand either–you have adults who have grown up with the brand and engage with it in many ways, but, as we’ve seen with broadcast on FX and FXX, the demographic is getting younger. We still have the 35- to 54-year-old viewer, but we now have younger audiences that are capturing ‘The Simpsons’ and engaging through non-linear platforms and through our different gaming mechanisms.”