Cookie Jar Group

Cookie Jar Group

Logo used from 2004 to 2014
Trade name	Cookie Jar Group
Formerly	CINAR (1976–2004) CINAR Films Inc. (1976–2001) CINAR Corporation (1997–2004) Cookie Jar Entertainment Inc. (2004–2012)
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Television production Animation
Predecessors	FilmFair DIC Entertainment
Founded	1976; 48 years ago (1976)
Founders	Micheline Charest Ronald A. Weinberg
Defunct	December 25, 2014; 9 years ago (2014-12-25)
Fate	Acquired by, merged with, and folded into DHX Media
Successor	DHX Media
Headquarters	Official office: Toronto, Ontario, Canada International offices: Montreal, Quebec, Canada Burbank, California, U.S.
Number of locations	3 (2006)
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Michael Hirsh (CEO) Lesley Taylor (President)
Parent	DHX Media (2012–2014)
Divisions	Cookie Jar Entertainment Cookie Jar Education Cookie Jar Consumer Products Horn Rims Productions KidsCo Copyright Promotions Licensing Group

The evolution of WildBrain

1968	FilmFair London is founded
1971	DIC Audiovisuel is founded
1972	Strawberry Shortcake brand is first developed
1974	CPLG is founded
1976	CINAR and Colossal Pictures are founded
1982	DIC Enterprises is founded
1984	Ragdoll Productions is founded
1987	DIC Audiovisuel closes
1988	Studio B Productions is founded
1992	Epitome Pictures is founded
1993	DIC Enterprises becomes DIC Entertainment
1994	Wild Brain is founded‚ and Red Rover Studios is founded, DIC Entertainment brands as The Incredible World of DIC
1995	Platinum Disc Corporation is founded
1996	CINAR buys FilmFair's library
1997	Decode Entertainment is founded
1999	Wild Brain acquires Colossal Pictures' employee base
2002	Nerd Corps Entertainment is founded
2004	Halifax Film Company is founded, CINAR rebrands as Cookie Jar Group
2005	Platinum Disc Corporation merge as Echo Bridge Home Entertainment
2006	Decode and Halifax Film merge as DHX Media, DIC acquires CPLG, and Ragdoll Worldwide is formed with BBC Worldwide
2007	DHX Media buys Studio B Productions and Wild Brain becomes Wildbrain Entertainment
2008	Cookie Jar Group absorbs DIC and House of Cool absorbs Red Rover Studios
2010	DHX Media buys Wildbrain Entertainment‚ and Peanuts Worldwide is founded
2011	Decode Entertainment and Red Rover Studios closes
2012	DHX Media buys Cookie Jar Group
2013	DHX Media buys Ragdoll Worldwide
2014	DHX Media buys Epitome Pictures, Nerd Corps, and Echo Bridge Home Entertainment's family content library; Cookie Jar Group is absorbed
2016	The WildBrain multi-channel network launches and Studio B and Nerd Corps merge as DHX Studios
2017	Wildbrain Entertainment closes; DHX Media buys Peanuts Worldwide and Strawberry Shortcake
2018	Halifax Film becomes Island of Misfits
2019	DHX Media rebrands as WildBrain, Epitome Pictures closes, and the WildBrain MCN becomes WildBrain Spark
2020	CPLG becomes WildBrain CPLG
2021	Echo Bridge Home Entertainment closes
2023	WildBrain acquires House of Cool
2024	WildBrain Spark merged into its parent company as WildBrain London
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DHX Cookie Jar Inc. (also known as Cookie Jar Group, originally known as CINAR, formerly known as Cookie Jar Entertainment Inc., or simply just Cookie Jar) was a Canadian media, production, animation studio, and distribution company owned by DHX Media. The company was first established in 1976 as CINAR Films Inc., a Montreal-based studio that was heavily involved in children's entertainment. The company's business model, which included the licensing of its properties into educational markets, had a significant impact on its success; by 1999, CINAR held CDN$1.5 billion of the overall children's television market.^[1]

In the 2000s, CINAR became the subject of multiple business scandals, including accusations that the company had used offshore accounts to transfer money out of the company, had plagiarized the concept of one of its series, and had obfuscated the involvement of U.S. screenwriters in its productions in order to continue receiving Canadian tax credits for domestic productions. Over a decade later, these scandals would result in criminal charges, convictions, and fines for four suspects, which included two executives at the company, co-founder Ronald A. Weinberg and chief financial officer Hasanain Panju.

CINAR was sold in 2004 for $190 million to a group led by Michael Hirsh, the founder of Nelvana, and changed its name to Cookie Jar Group. In 2008, they agreed to acquire DIC Entertainment, expanding its library. On August 20, 2012, DHX Media announced its intent to acquire Cookie Jar, in a deal that would make DHX the largest independent owner of children's television programming, and by December 25, 2014, Cookie Jar was folded into DHX Media.