Sunday, May 10, 2015

The Roller Coaster

TV animation studios ride it.

... Cartoon Network, available in 98 million homes in the United States and 194 overseas markets, has been a perennial force among boys 6 to 11, but that is about it. Nickelodeon, even in a diminished state, has remained the No. 1 children’s network over all. Disney Channel, which only sells limited sponsorships, has commanded the attention of girls 6 to 14.

Ratings at Cartoon Network plunged a few years ago as Disney introduced a new advertising-supported cable channel aimed at boys, Disney XD, and Turner focused more intently on Adult Swim, the highly profitable operation that takes over Cartoon Network’s channel space starting at 8 p.m. ...

But a turnaround — as evidenced by Nielsen data — may now be at hand. ...

Some years back, a Cartoon Network exec took me to lunch and bemoaned his network's weak ratings. Since then, Ted Turner's cartoon channel has enjoyed a a viewer rebound and now -- in some key time slots -- the kid channel to beat.

There has been something of a revolving door among animation execs the last few years, with reshuffles at Nick, changes (as stated) at Cartoon Network, and executives at other studios often exiting their jobs on a week's notice, with a terse announcement in the trades.

As animation has morphed into Big Business, the politics in the managers' suites have become (almost) as lethal as the live-action parts of the business. But then, the money in Cartoonland is now much bigger, so is anyone surprised?


1 comments:

Jared said...

So will Cartoon Network do adventure cartoons again, or are they done with that for the time being?

And do we know yet when Wabbitt and Be Cool Scooby Doo will premier.

Be Cool sounds horrible, but the sooner it starts the sooner it ends and we can get on with the next incarnation of Scooby Doo. And there is also the slight chance it won't suck.

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