The interview by official China Licensing Expo website——Vikram Sharma at Warner Bros. Discovery

Vikram Sharma

SVP and Head of APAC Consumer Products at Warner Bros. Discovery

1. From an APAC and China market perspective, how have you seen the licensing and consumer products industry evolve in recent years, and what key trends are shaping its future?

 

Across APAC, licensing has evolved well beyond a product-led model. It is now a broader platform for driving consumer engagement, brand relevance and partner growth. Consumers are no longer connecting with IP only through content; that connection now extends across retail, lifestyle products, digital platforms, offline experiences, collectibles and fan communities.

 

For us, that means our role is not simply to license our well-loved characters and stories. It is to help partners leverage our IP to reach new audiences, move into new categories, expand distribution and create more meaningful consumer connections. China is a powerful example of this shift. Its scale, pace of development and mature digital commerce ecosystem make it an important lens through which to understand how the consumer products business is evolving across APAC.

 

2. Across different Asia Pacific markets, the licensing industry is at varying stages of development, with different levels of partner understanding and consumer demand. What common opportunities and market differences have you observed?

 

The opportunity across APAC is to bring local market trends, category expansion and fan connection more closely together. While each market is evolving at its own pace, one common theme reshaping the industry: the role of IP is expanding and consumers are showing a real affinity for nostalgia and fandom.

 

Partners are increasingly leveraging entertainment IP as a platform for growth, innovation and consumer engagement. Success today is no longer defined by how effectively a character appears on a product, but by how authentically an IP can create cultural relevance, deepen consumer affinity and generate sustained business value across multiple touchpoints.

 

The differences lie in how those opportunities are brought to life in each market. China has clear advantages in scale, speed and digital commerce; Japan has a deep-rooted fan culture and strong demand for collectibles; India offers long-term potential for category development, especially among younger consumers and in emerging lifestyle occasions; Southeast Asia’s opportunities are shaped by youth culture, family audiences, social commerce and festive consumption; and Australia and New Zealand are more mature retail and fan markets, where omnichannel engagement, collectibles and community experiences can help translate fan passion into everyday consumer behavior.

 

3. Around long-standing franchises such as Harry Potter and Tom & Jerry, how can APAC markets build a more complete consumer products ecosystem?

 

For long-running franchises, our focus is to protect their core values and emotional foundation while continuing to expand the ways fans connect with the stories. Fans want to interact  with our beloved IPs across multiple touchpoints and our partners across multiple categories from Toys and Collectibles,Fashion,Home, Food, Heath and Beauty,Stationary helps bring this to life.

 

Different markets and categories require different forms of expression. When content builds awareness, products provide accessible emotional connection, retail and digital platforms create opportunities for discovery, and experiences deepen participation, a more complete consumer products ecosystem begins to take shape.

 

For partners, this kind of ecosystem represents a commercial opportunity that goes beyond individual product licensing. It allows consumers to return to the distinctive worlds of our IP across different occasions and moments, creating longer-term opportunities for fan engagement, category extension and business growth.

 

4. As Warner Bros. Discovery continues to expand across APAC and China, what are the most important factors you look for in potential partners?

 

A strong partnership starts with a clear shared understanding of business objectives, including a joint view of the commercial challenge the IP can help the brand address — whether that means entering a new category, reaching new consumer groups, driving retail momentum or building long-term brand affinity. Category expertise, product quality, channel capabilities and speed of execution are all important, but strategic fit is equally critical.

 

Across APAC, we work with both established category leaders and emerging local brands, because different types of partners help our IP enter richer local consumption occasions and continue to expand the ways fans connect with the stories. We serve our fans wherever they are. The value we create for partners comes from combining world-class storytelling, disciplined brand management and local market insight, turning each IP collaboration into a platform for sustainable growth rather than a short-term marketing campaign.

 

5. As entertainment IP extends beyond traditional categories, which consumer product sectors in APAC and China offer the greatest potential to deepen fan engagement while driving sustainable business growth?

While entertainment IP has opportunities across a wide range of categories, I believe some of the most exciting growth ahead will come from collectibles and the communities that form around them. Whether through trading cards, artist collaborations, premium collectibles, or limited-edition releases, these formats transform a single purchase into an ongoing relationship. Fans don't just buy, they collect, trade, compete, showcase, and share, creating deeper engagement and stronger emotional connections with the brands they love.

 

China is a great example of how global franchises can evolve through local creativity and cultural relevance. Whether through Harry Potter trading cards, Batman-themed AR glasses, or fashion collections inspired by The Powerpuff Girls and Gotham City’s iconic dark aesthetic from the Batman universe showcased at Shanghai Fashion Week, we are seeing IP expressed in ways that feel increasingly local, personal and relevant to consumers. 

 

6. As consumers increasingly seek experiences rather than just products, how is Warner Bros. Discovery leveraging themed retail, pop-ups, location-based entertainment, and digital engagement to build a connected fan ecosystem?

 

Consumer expectations are shifting from simply buying products to participating in experiences that can be shared and remembered. Across APAC, social retail, fan communities, themed spaces and offline events are bringing IP more naturally into everyday life. For the consumer products business, when these touchpoints connect product discovery, retail traffic, partner participation and social sharing, they create a more complete IP experience.

 

Tom and Jerry Cheese Day is a strong example. As part of the global celebration, we brought together multiple consumer products licensees in China for a themed retail promotion, covering more than 90 offline stores nationwide and showcasing over 150 products from 12 licensees at the limited-time pop-up. The collaboration with the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) was also a highlight, tapping into the growing popularity of sports and active lifestyles among younger consumers in China. By connecting products, retail, content platforms, KOL engagement and offline fan experiences, this themed offline activation not only drove momentum for the co-branded products and strengthened fans’ emotional connection but also created greater value for partners.

 

7. At this year’s CLE China Licensing Expo, what new highlights and opportunities will Warner Bros. Discovery be showcasing to industry partners?

 

This is a highly valuable platform because it enables us to engage in deeper conversations with partners who are helping drive the next stage of China’s licensing market. We will showcase where we believe the industry is heading next. For us, that starts with the evolution of fandom. Categories such as collectibles and trading card games are transforming licensing from a transactional business into a community-driven one, where fans collect, trade, share and participate over time. We also see significant opportunities created by major franchise moments such as the Harry Potter HBO series and Shanghai Studio Tour, which allow us to connect content, products and experiences in new ways.

 

Looking ahead, the future of licensing will belong to companies that can build ecosystems around their brands, bringing together content, commerce and community to create lasting consumer relationships.