Is Boomerang Dying?

ToonDude03

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I have to wonder, with the recent announcement of Boom LA becoming a Cartoonito channel, do you think Boomerang US is going to survive, or is it going to be time to say goodbye to Boomerang soon?
 

JMTV

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To answer your question, obviously yes. Their streaming service is no better either as they'll absorb all of their content to HBO Max.

Let's face it, Boomerang was pretty much a dead channel ever since it became autopilot. Once WarnerMedia trying to revitalized the brand back in 2015, it ended up falls flat on it's face.

I can guarantee you that once the WarnerMedia Discovery merger will be finalized by next year, Boomerang's days are numbered.
 
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TsWade2

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To answer your question, obviously yes. Their streaming service is no better either as they'll absorb all of their content to HBO Max.

Let's face it, Boomerang was pretty much a dead channel ever since it became autopilot. Once WarnerMedia trying to revitalized the brand back in 2015, it ended up falls flat on it's face.

I can guarantee you that once the WarnerMedia Discovery merger will be finalized by next year, Boomerang's days are numbered.
I guess it's probably for the best. Boomerang is losing it's touch anyway.
 

SpongieLoud

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Yeah I can’t see Boomerang lasting long. I do think that it could possibly still exist as a hub on HBO Max for classic cartoons. But I can see the app and channel closing down for good. The app hasn’t had anything new really since 2020 and the channel is on autopilot. Plus the remaining Xfinity providers and Optimum have dropped the channel from the lineup.
 

Asa

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Considering the fact that Boomerang continues to play the same commercials like Scooby Doo and Guess Who and the Boomerang Theater, it’s obvious the channel is dying.
 
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At the rate it’s going, there’s no way Boomerang will last another 5 years. I predict that it will be replaced with the Cartoonito 24/7 Channel. However, I have a compromise to keep the Boomerang brand alive.

They can not only integrate the Boomerang service into HBO Max, but they put it as a “weekend classics” block on Cartoon Network. That way, the brand can be more accessible to more people and they can air the classic Cartoon Cartoons on the main network.
 

Silverstar

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I guess it's probably for the best. Boomerang is losing it's touch anyway.

To say that Boomerang is losing its' touch implies that Boomerang ever had one to begin with.

The hard truth is that Boomerang has always been an afterthought to Cartoon Network. From its' inception, Boom was just a dumping ground for all of the older shows in CN's library that its' parent company wanted off of the main channel in order to make room for its' newer shows and acquisitions, then later it doubled as a ghetto where CN would exile the shows that the network had no faith in or were ratings clunkers that they wanted off of CN and just needed a place to stash them where they could burn off the remaining episodes and fulfill their contractual obligations without them taking up room on the main channel.

Cartoon Network never has really cared about Boomerang since it doesn't show anything new and it makes them no money beyond subscription fees. Around 2015 they attempted a rebrand for Boomerang promising original shows and appeal to a broader audience besides just baby boomers and fans of old CN, but for whatever reason those plans never came to fruition; Boomerang instead just became a treadmill channel that looped the same 5 shows and promos endlessly. WB eventually gave Boom a streaming platform, but with the launch of HBO Max, Boom's absorption into the latter seems inevitable.

SportyAnimates said:
I have a compromise to keep the Boomerang brand alive.

They can not only integrate the Boomerang service into HBO Max, but they put it as a “weekend classics” block on Cartoon Network. That way, the brand can be more accessible to more people and they can air the classic Cartoon Cartoons on the main network.

This isn't a bad idea, but it remains to be seen if The Powers That Be at CN would be willing to try it, especially now that there's only 8 hours of programming for CN on its' current schedule.
 

LinusFan303

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I think I'm going to say what I said about Discovery Family. A Channel dying is only if the channel is marked to close. Boomerang is probably doing what Turner wants it to do, it's there as a channel with low stakes, meaning it's cheaper to run and gets some money thanks to pay providers having it included with TCM, HLN, etc... (unless you have Comcast ). It might not be doing what we think it should be doing, but it's doing what they want it to do. Also they still seem invested in the app even with HBO Max, there's still stuff on the app that's not on HBO Max. When Discovery takes over it might stay status quo like Discovery Life, until it's not making them money.
 

Francisque

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It'll take a lot of time probably for these channels (like Disney XD is for Disney) to really die off, as long as they can milk the cow for advertising revenues, it'll probably stay in its place, also because cable agreements are rather "difficult" in the US.

But it'll definitely have a less important to unimportant role for them, same as Discovery Family
 

Markus Nelis

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I don't see Boomerang shutting down anytime soon. Instead it will still be in autopilot. One of the reasons I believe Boomerang is still surviving is most likely because of decent ratings for a channel that's not carried everywhere. Plus, like Francisque said: as long as they get money by airing ads, to them it isn't an issue to keep Boomerang for a little bit longer.

A 24/7 channel Cartoonito should also not happen in the next couple of years to replace Boomerang since it just launched so it's either A) they wait until they have enough shows to launch a 24/7 Cartoonito to replace Boomerang or B) it will merge with Discovery Family. Not sure which name they'll keep but either way they will probably air Boomerang and DF shows mixed up all around the schedule.
 

parkersfan89

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I don't see Boomerang shutting down anytime soon. Instead it will still be in autopilot. One of the reasons I believe Boomerang is still surviving is most likely because of decent ratings for a channel that's not carried everywhere. Plus, like Francisque said: as long as they get money by airing ads, to them it isn't an issue to keep Boomerang for a little bit longer.

A 24/7 channel Cartoonito should also not happen in the next couple of years to replace Boomerang since it just launched so it's either A) they wait until they have enough shows to launch a 24/7 Cartoonito to replace Boomerang or B) it will merge with Discovery Family. Not sure which name they'll keep but either way they will probably air Boomerang and DF shows mixed up all around the schedule.
they should add more classic CN shows like Class of 3000, My Gym Partner's a Monkey, etc. Since, they're already playing a few shows from the same era as the shows i've mentioned. e.g Camp Lazlo, KND, etc.
 

Goldstar!

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they (Boomerang) should add more classic CN shows like Class of 3000, My Gym Partner's a Monkey, etc. Since, they're already playing a few shows from the same era as the shows i've mentioned. e.g Camp Lazlo, KND, etc.
WB can't add Class of 3000 to Boomerang for legal reasons, and it's looking like they won't be adding any more reruns to the channel's lineup, as Boom is likely to be shut down after the WB/Discovery merger is complete later this year. Boom's schedule hasn't been updated in months, so I don't see WB suddenly becoming interested in the channel again after the merger is finalized.

In response to the question asked in this thread's title, the short answer is yes, as Boomerang has been on life support for years.
 
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Moe

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I have to wonder, with the recent announcement of Boom LA becoming a Cartoonito channel, do you think Boomerang US is going to survive, or is it going to be time to say goodbye to Boomerang soon?
If WB decides to launch 24/7 Cartoonito in the US, they likely to launch new one rather than rebrand the Boomerang that isn't carried by most cable companies.

I'm not going to compare TV market in the US with TV market in LA because Boomerang in LA was duplicate because they have Tooncast to air retro cartoon shows, but Tooncast isn't exist in the US. More and more Americans are moving to streaming services and cable/satellite subscribers are dwindling, but may not case with LA market.

The decline of satellite/cable TV isn't going to help with new 24/7 Cartoonito, combined with strong competition from Nick Jr and Disney Junior that exist for decades (started as Nick Jr on Nick in 1988, unbranded from 1980 to 1988, and as for Disney, started as Playhouse on DC in 1997, unbranded from 1983 to 1997). CN didn't have preschool block when they first launched in 1992, so eventually they tried with two preschool blocks and it was unsuccessful. CN was originally retro channel, similar to TNT and TCM, so today, TCM is considered as retro channel as CN and TNT drifted away from retro channel after rebrand in late 90s and very early 2000s.
 

Silverstar

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I say: Absolutely not!
The channel's chronic inability to generate profit, months and months of stagnation in its' schedule, the fact that most of the international Boomerangs are dropping like flies and the fact that many cable, satellite and internet TV services don't even bother carrying it say different.

Face it, folks, if Boomerang isn't dead, it's terminal.
 
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homeofthebadguys

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I see this discussion and raise the people talking about this one point.
With the recent wave of boomer nostalgia broadcasters getting in on the classic cartoon game (Get After It started the trend with public domain toons starting their Saturday, but MeTV got the ball rolling quickly enough for Classic Reruns TV to start a cartoon show), Boomerang's existence on linear television has presumably become moot since freely accessible rerun farms are taking from the same libraries to package them into shows.
Let's not forget that linear ad-supported services have been rapidly expanding, too.
 

ToonDude03

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I see this discussion and raise the people talking about this one point.
With the recent wave of boomer nostalgia broadcasters getting in on the classic cartoon game (Get After It started the trend with public domain toons starting their Saturday, but MeTV got the ball rolling quickly enough for Classic Reruns TV to start a cartoon show), Boomerang's existence on linear television has presumably become moot since freely accessible rerun farms are taking from the same libraries to package them into shows.
Let's not forget that linear ad-supported services have been rapidly expanding, too.
So you're saying Boomerang wouldn't even work as an OTA digital sub-channel?
 

Moe

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So you're saying Boomerang wouldn't even work as an OTA digital sub-channel?
One network tried with kid friendly retro channel for OTA but failed and shutdown. Not many, especially baby boomers want to watch retro cartoon channel.
 

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