Case Study Worksheet: What WME’s Deal with The Orangery Teaches About IP Value

Hook: Turn a media deal headline into a classroom lab

Students and teachers struggle to find clear, step-by-step activities that bridge theory and real-world media deals. Use the recent WME–The Orangery signing as a live case study to teach how agencies value transmedia IP, why they sign boutique studios, and what dealmakers look for when packaging graphic novels into film, TV, games and merchandise.

What this worksheet does

This is a classroom-ready worksheet and lesson plan (2026 edition) that guides learners through a systematic analysis of a transmedia studio deal. It focuses on actionable skills: scouting IP, mapping rights, scoring IP attributes, estimating value, and drafting negotiation priorities. The exercises are modular: suitable for a 50-minute class, a two-hour lab, or a week-long project.

Quick case summary (context students need)

In January 2026, WME (William Morris Endeavor) announced representation of The Orangery, a European transmedia studio founded by Davide G.G. Caci in Turin. The Orangery holds strong graphic-novel IP such as Traveling to Mars (science fiction) and the adult-leaning Sweet Paprika. WME’s signing reflects larger 2025–2026 trends: global streaming expansion, renewed appetite for graphic-novel adaptations, and agencies moving upstream to secure IP-first relationships.

Why agencies sign transmedia studios: key concepts for students

Students should understand the strategic rationale behind agency representation of studios like The Orangery. Discuss these core motives:

• Rights aggregation: Agencies want consolidated rights that enable packaging for film, TV, games, merchandise and licensing—an important consideration when you study distribution ecosystems.
• Franchise potential: Serialized graphic novels provide built-in worlds and recurring characters—valuable for long-term revenue streams.
• Early-stage control: Representing creators early lets agencies influence adaptation strategy and capture backend upside.
• Cross-border reach: European studios with global English-language appeal help agencies target international streamers expanding in 2026.
• Data-led certainty: Agencies now use audience analytics and AI to validate IP traction before signing—teachers should review practical data preparation methods like concrete data engineering patterns.

2026 trends that shape the deal landscape (class discussion prompts)

• AI-assisted IP scouting: studios and agencies use machine learning to analyze social signals, readership growth and community engagement.
• Streaming consolidation & local content mandates: international streamers (post-2025 expansion) seek regionally originated IP with global scalability.
• Transmedia-first financing: investors increasingly prefer IP that can be monetized across games, live experiences and branded commerce—consider microfunding and platform signals as discussed in microgrants & monetisation playbooks.
• Creator-led studios: more founder-run transmedia shops offer packaged IP with creative control retained—affects deal structure. See parallels in creator economies and podcasting strategies at what podcasters can learn from Hollywood.
• Responsible adult content handling: adaptations of steamy or mature graphic novels require tailored platform and marketing strategies in 2026.

Classroom worksheet: How to analyze this deal (step-by-step)

Below is a reproducible worksheet. Teachers can print sections or assign digitally. Each step includes outcomes and time estimates.

Section A — Background & Context (15 minutes)

1. Task: Research The Orangery, Traveling to Mars, and Sweet Paprika. Note founding date, creator profile, publishing format, readership numbers and any collectible or merch activity.
2. Outcome: One-paragraph contextual summary with three facts about creator reputation, audience size, and content genre.

Section B — IP Attributes Checklist (20 minutes)

Score each attribute 0–5 (0 = weak, 5 = strong). Add scores for a total (max 50).

• World-building depth (characters, lore, spin-off potential)
• Serializability (ongoing storylines/series potential)
• Audience traction (sales, digital reads, social engagement)
• Visual distinctiveness (art style, market differentiation)
• Adaptability (fits film/TV/games/merch)
• Monetizable IP elements (names, logos, playable mechanics)
• Legal clarity (who owns what rights)
• Creator openness (willingness to collaborate with adaptation teams)
• International appeal (cultural universality or specific local hooks)
• Controversy risk (content that may limit platforms or territories)

Section C — Market Signals & KPIs (15 minutes)

Collect the following metrics where possible and interpret them:

• Monthly active readers / month-over-month growth
• Back-catalog sales and reprints
• Social mentions and engagement rate
• Fan creations (fan art, cosplay) as signal of community strength
• Merch sell-through rates (if available) or crowdfunding performance

Section D — Rights Map & Deal Terms (30 minutes)

Map the rights the studio currently controls versus rights they’ve licensed to others. Then draft a hypothetical representation term sheet that WME might pursue. Include:

• Scope: representation for film/TV/games/merch
• Territories: global vs. regional carve-outs
• Revenue splits and backend participation
• Creative approval and executive producer credits
• Option periods and reversion triggers

Section E — Valuation Exercise (30 minutes)

Students learn a practical, simplified valuation framework tailored for transmedia IP. This is not enterprise finance; it’s a decision-ready model to justify offers.

1. Identify revenue streams: adaptation licensing, publishing, merchandising, games, live experiences.
2. Estimate plausible earnings for each stream over 5 years (conservative/base/upside).
3. Assign probabilities of realization (e.g., 30% film adaptation success, 60% streaming series pickup).
4. Calculate expected value per stream: EV = projected revenue * probability.
5. Discount future EV using a simple discount rate (e.g., 12–20% for creative risk) to get net present value (NPV).
6. Add strategic premium for scarcity or franchise potential (10–50% depending on score).

Example (in-class): If a streaming series could generate $2M net over 5 years and probability is 40%, EV = $800k. Discount at 15% to get NPV ~ $620k. Add merchandising EV and game EV similarly, then sum and apply a 20% scarcity premium.

Section F — Risk Assessment & Negotiation Priorities (20 minutes)

Students list top 5 risks and propose contractual responses. Typical items include:

• Creator control vs. adaptation flexibility — use staged approval rights
• Territorial censorship or rating issues — carve-outs in distribution
• Revenue timing — minimum guarantees or advances
• IP fragmentation — require reversion on non-performance
• Brand safety for adult content — platform targeting and marketing boundaries

Section G — Packaging & Pitch (group activity, 45–90 minutes)

Groups create a 5-slide pitch for WME to take to a studio or streamer. Slides should cover:

1. Why the IP matters — core hook and audience evidence
2. Franchise plan — multi-year cross-media roadmap
3. Commercial model — revenue streams and NPV summary
4. Team & creators — why they can deliver
5. Deal ask — key terms and why they’re fair

Rubric & model answers for The Orangery (teacher's guide)

Below are model responses teachers can adapt. Use them to grade or seed discussion. Remember: these are illustrative — numbers are hypothetical.

Model IP Attribute scores (out of 50)

• World-building depth: 4
• Serializability: 5
• Audience traction: 3 (growing readership but niche)
• Visual distinctiveness: 5
• Adaptability: 4
• Monetizable elements: 4
• Legal clarity: 4
• Creator openness: 4
• International appeal: 4
• Controversy risk: 2 (some adult content adds platform constraints)

Total score ~ 39/50 — a strong transmedia candidate.

Model valuation sketch (teachers: show work live)

Hypothetical 5-year expected values (conservative base):

• Streaming series licensing EV: $800k
• Feature film EV: $300k
• Merchandising EV: $200k
• Game adaptation EV: $150k
• Publishing and back-catalog EV: $100k

Combined EV = $1.55M. Discount at 15% to NPV ~ $1.2M. Apply 20% strategic premium = $1.44M indicative IP value. Teachers should stress sensitivity analysis: small shifts in probability change value materially.

Practical classroom variations & assessment ideas

• Debate format: one team represents WME, another represents The Orangery — negotiate a term sheet on stage.
• Data lab: assign students to pull social metrics and feed into a simple model — compare teams’ valuations. Use lessons from data engineering best practices before modeling.
• Portfolio exercise: compare The Orangery to another transmedia studio and rank acquisition priorities.
• Ethics discussion: handle adult content and cultural sensitivity in adaptation decisions; include critical-practice frameworks such as the evolution of critical practice.

Advanced strategies for higher-level classes (2026 sophistication)

For senior students or media business courses, add these layers:

• AI-enabled forecast models: teach students to use basic ML signal inputs (engagement velocity, sentiment) to refine probabilities — practical micro-app tooling can be prototyped quickly; see shipping a micro-app with Claude/ChatGPT.
• Option pricing logic: value first-look and option windows as real options, not fixed costs — students can prototype option timing models using automated prompt chains from promptly.cloud.
• Co-creation economics: structure revenue pools for community-funded content and NFT-like ownership where legally applicable in 2026; pair this with microgrant and platform-signal strategies from microgrants playbooks.
• Global licensing stratagems: design staggered rollouts to maximize territorial bidding wars among streamers and plan festival or microcinema windows (see microcinema night markets for screening and live-experience ideas).

Common pitfalls and teaching points

• Over-reliance on anecdote: students must support claims with measurable KPIs.
• Ignoring legal encumbrances: IP value collapses if core rights are fragmented.
• Forgetting time-to-market: long adaptation timelines reduce present value, even for excellent IP.
• Platform fit: adult graphic novels may be wealthy in rights but limited in platform opportunities—teach platform-specific strategies and distribution risks such as those explored for torrent ecosystems (see analysis).

Actionable takeaways for students (what to hand in)

1. A one-page IP brief summarizing The Orangery’s top three monetization opportunities.
2. A scored IP attributes sheet with commentary on each score.
3. A short term-sheet (1 page) covering scope, territory, options and a headline economics proposal.
4. A 3-slide pitch for WME to present to a streamer showing why the IP should be licensed now.

“Teach the deal, not the headline.” Use real signings like WME–The Orangery to train students in practical, data-backed dealmaking.

Why this matters in 2026

By 2026, agencies are not only talent reps; they are IP strategists. The WME–The Orangery case reflects a broader evolution: agencies compete with studios to source and package IP that has cross-media potential. For learners, mastering this analysis means understanding where creative value converts to commercial value—and how to negotiate that conversion.

Final classroom checklist for teachers

• Prep: print worksheet or distribute digital copy; assign pre-reading on The Orangery and WME.
• Materials: KPI templates, sample term-sheet, scoring rubric and simple DCF spreadsheet.
• Assessment: grade IP brief, rubric scores, and pitch quality; include peer assessment for negotiation exercise.
• Outcome: students should be able to produce an evidence-based valuation and a one-page negotiation plan.

Call-to-action

Use this worksheet in your next media-business class. Download and adapt the printable version for your syllabus, run the negotiation lab, and share top student pitches for community feedback. Want a ready-to-print PDF and editable spreadsheets for the valuation exercises? Request the classroom pack from our lesson resources page and bring the WME–The Orangery deal to life for your students.

Related Reading

• Ship a micro-app in a week: a starter kit using Claude/ChatGPT
• Automating Cloud Workflows with Prompt Chains: Advanced Strategies for 2026
• Microgrants, Platform Signals, and Monetisation: A 2026 Playbook for Community Creators
• The Evolution of Critical Practice in 2026: Tools, Ethics, and Live Workflows
• Designing Pet-Friendly Restaurants: Lessons from Dog-Friendly Homes
• Social Templates for Sports Influencers: Capitalize on a New Signing in Minutes
• Why Meta’s Workrooms Shutdown Matters for VR Dates — And Where to Go Next
• From Star Wars Reboots to New Managers: What the Filoni Shake-Up Teaches West Ham About Big Change
• Preventing Process-Roulette Failures on Home Servers Running Smart Home Software