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Is Animation in Syndication DOOMED?

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jeremypatterson Since: Dec, 2010
#1: Sep 21st 2011 at 4:59:01 PM

It seems that Cookie Jar Entertainment is ending their syndicated programming package?

CJE (and its precursor, Di C Entertainment) was really the last animation house to provide toons for Syndication.

Most E/I shows availiable for Syndication nowadays are live-action, with only a scant few animated offerings (namely, Adventures In Odyssey and Monsters And Pirates ).

Is it gone?

Jeremy.

Buscemi I Am The Walrus from a log cabin Since: Jul, 2010
I Am The Walrus
#2: Sep 21st 2011 at 6:19:17 PM

It's been gone for a while. Bad time slots, lack of advertising and 24 hour networks specializing in cartoons killed it.

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InverurieJones '80s TV Action Hero from North of the Wall. Since: Jan, 2010 Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
'80s TV Action Hero
#3: Sep 21st 2011 at 7:09:53 PM

Must go and look up 'syndication'...

'All he needs is for somebody to throw handgrenades at him for the rest of his life...'
LostAnarchist Violence Is Necessary! from Neo Arcadia Itself Since: Sep, 2011
Violence Is Necessary!
#4: Sep 21st 2011 at 7:32:26 PM

It's been dead, son!

This is where I, the Vampire Mistress, proudly reside: http://liberal.nationstates.net/nation=nova_nacio
RavenWilder Since: Apr, 2009
#5: Sep 21st 2011 at 8:24:30 PM

Syndication as a whole is on the way out; DV Ds and online streaming/downloads are crowding it out of the market.

TacoWiz title from location Since: Jul, 2009
title
#6: Sep 21st 2011 at 11:11:47 PM

As far as I'm aware it no longer exists at all.

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Deboss I see the Awesomeness. from Awesomeville Texas Since: Aug, 2009
I see the Awesomeness.
#7: Sep 21st 2011 at 11:32:23 PM

And I'm cool with the death of syndication.

Fight smart, not fair.
MoeDantes cuter, cuddlier Edmond from the Land of Classics Since: Nov, 2010
cuter, cuddlier Edmond
#8: Sep 22nd 2011 at 1:47:55 AM

Must go and look up 'syndication'...

Syndication, in a nutshell, is when other channels start paying licenses to air shows on their networks. Usually, the model is one particular network (say NBC) creates a show and runs it exclusively on channels they own for awhile. Then, after a certain amount of episodes are made they offer up licenses which allow competitors (say, Universal or ABC or Turner) to play NBC's shows on channels they own.

Personally I don't see it going away any time soon.

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truteal animation elitist from the great southern land Since: Sep, 2009
animation elitist
#9: Sep 22nd 2011 at 2:25:38 AM

It will never die out thanks to animation made in countries other than the U.S of A

http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/ http://sagan4.com/forum/index.php
Buscemi I Am The Walrus from a log cabin Since: Jul, 2010
I Am The Walrus
#10: Sep 22nd 2011 at 2:59:13 AM

They can go to Hulu or Amazon.

More Buscemi at http://forum.reelsociety.com/
MoeDantes cuter, cuddlier Edmond from the Land of Classics Since: Nov, 2010
cuter, cuddlier Edmond
#11: Sep 22nd 2011 at 3:10:08 AM

I never understood this idea that online distribution is going to kill everything. I mean, I could buy every season of House on DVD, but I still watch it on TV. And not just the new episodes, but reruns too. People forget that TV has one great advantage: it's cheap and effortless. You just see when a show is coming on, and either adjust your schedule or else just tape the show (nowadays we have DVR so its even easier).

How many times have people predicted that new technology is going to kill old business models? And how many times has it actually happened? The answers are, in order: "Every time a new technology is introduced" and "zero." (Incidentally here's a pseudo-relevant Cracked article).

Syndication is going to be around. I'm not so sure about Animation—it almost died for awhile, seems to have had a resurgence, but you never know what the future holds.

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Buscemi I Am The Walrus from a log cabin Since: Jul, 2010
I Am The Walrus
#12: Sep 22nd 2011 at 3:12:37 AM

First-run syndication is dead. Rerun syndication is still healthy.

Online won't kill DVD or TV any time soon but it's a good outlet to air material that the networks would pass on. A good example is Misfits. That show would have taken years to get an official American release had Hulu not picked it up.

More Buscemi at http://forum.reelsociety.com/
Sijo from Puerto Rico Since: Jan, 2001
#13: Sep 22nd 2011 at 6:34:42 AM

Here in Puerto Rico, animation has virtually disappeared from TV, except for The Simpsons (which is, let's face it, not made for kids anymore.) Oh sure there's PBS Kids, but all the shows there are Edutainment and probably would bore anyone older than 5. So unless you have cable, you are going to miss on a lot great animation. I feel sorry for kids here who never got to experience, say, Avatar The Last Airbender.

(And yes, they can probably watch them on the internet, but as Dante said, there's a certain factor to watching shows when they air, to be part of the experience rather than treating it as rummaging in someone's old collection. It doesn't help that most people here never learn good English.)

RavenWilder Since: Apr, 2009
#14: Sep 22nd 2011 at 5:58:12 PM

People forget that TV has one great advantage: it's cheap and effortless. You just see when a show is coming on, and either adjust your schedule or else just tape the show (nowadays we have DVR so its even easier).

How is that any cheaper or easier than just typing www.hulu.com into your computer's address box?

MoeDantes cuter, cuddlier Edmond from the Land of Classics Since: Nov, 2010
cuter, cuddlier Edmond
#15: Sep 22nd 2011 at 10:46:48 PM

There are lots of people who don't have high-speed connections (or do but they have some sort of limit) that can't watch internet videos.

There's also the issue of visibility: on a TV channel, you just have to channel hop until you find something interesting, then the commercials will tell you the rest (or looking later in the schedule). To find out if something is on Hulu you have to actively check. I personally find that scanning the channel guide is a lot more convenient than getting online since I don't have to turn a computer on, too.

Suffice to say, outside of anime I have never discovered a new favorite show via the internet... and honestly anime's reliance on the internet is probably half the reason I don't keep up with it. On the other hand I recently discovered Walker, Texas Ranger, entirely through random channel-hopping. On the internet I would've had to have been looking for it in the first place, then I'd have to wait for it to stream or a torrent to download, vs. just being there when its on (which is far more convenient for me). So I can't see these arguments that the internet somehow makes things easier when, going by experience, it doesn't.

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RavenWilder Since: Apr, 2009
#16: Sep 23rd 2011 at 3:26:38 AM

There are lots of people who don't have high-speed connections (or do but they have some sort of limit) that can't watch internet videos.

Which is why I said it is crowding out syndicated shows, not that it has crowded them all out.

There's also the issue of visibility: on a TV channel, you just have to channel hop until you find something interesting, then the commercials will tell you the rest (or looking later in the schedule). To find out if something is on Hulu you have to actively check. I personally find that scanning the channel guide is a lot more convenient than getting online since I don't have to turn a computer on, too.

There are links to various shows on Hulu's front page, there are banner ads on various sites throughout the Internet, You Tube clips, and so on. And I (and a lot of other people) just leave their computers turned on 24/7, so there's really no added hassle involved.

Suffice to say, outside of anime I have never discovered a new favorite show via the internet... and honestly anime's reliance on the internet is probably half the reason I don't keep up with it. On the other hand I recently discovered Walker, Texas Ranger, entirely through random channel-hopping. On the internet I would've had to have been looking for it in the first place, then I'd have to wait for it to stream or a torrent to download, vs. just being there when its on (which is far more convenient for me). So I can't see these arguments that the internet somehow makes things easier when, going by experience, it doesn't.

Or you could have gone to, let's say, ABC.com and click the link that says "Shows" to browse through every TV show they have available online. And if you have a fast Internet connection, waiting for something to stream really only amounts to sitting through the short "This video is brought to you by . . ." ad at the beginning.

Sijo from Puerto Rico Since: Jan, 2001
#17: Sep 23rd 2011 at 6:21:51 AM

There's also the problem of there being. Too. Much. STUFF online. With broadcast, you watch what's on this season. With the net, there's that, plus EVERYTHING that came before, plus EVERYTHING in other countries, plus original content... it makes it harder to decide what you want to see at a time, especially in the case of series with many seasons. I've loved what I've seen of Bleach, for instance. But I just can't start watching it regularly; I want to see everything, and that's literally HUNDREDS of episodes to catch up to. One of the reasons I got into Tiger And Bunny was because it was a brand new show. And that feeling of discovering each episode as it airs along everybody else, definitely added to the experience. :)

Enzeru icon by implodingoracle from Orlando, FL ¬ôχಠ♥¯ Since: Mar, 2011
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#18: Sep 23rd 2011 at 8:07:45 AM

Syndication, in a nutshell, is when other channels start paying licenses to air shows on their networks. Usually, the model is one particular network (say NBC) creates a show and runs it exclusively on channels they own for awhile. Then, after a certain amount of episodes are made they offer up licenses which allow competitors (say, Universal or ABC or Turner) to play NBC's shows on channels they own.

So basically, if a series shows on a channel that's not the one it aired on first, it counts as a syndicated show?

kyun Since: Dec, 2010
#19: Sep 23rd 2011 at 8:09:45 AM

Not if the second channel is under the same company (Disney, ABC, and ABC Family are all under the Disney Company, and its the same for MTV, Comedy Central, and Nickelodeon). Syndication would be if a show began on Disney, but VIACOM paid to air it on Nickelodeon.

fifimcfeef A friend of Padraic from California Since: Jul, 2011
A friend of Padraic
#20: Sep 23rd 2011 at 5:55:56 PM

I remember when Pokemon aired on UPN in Los Angeles at 7 AM. Followed by Mummies Alive. Those were the days.

Yeah, Jason Kreis ain't exactly a soccer star.
Enzeru icon by implodingoracle from Orlando, FL ¬ôχಠ♥¯ Since: Mar, 2011
icon by implodingoracle
#21: Sep 23rd 2011 at 7:30:56 PM

[up]

Why couldn't my animation schedules be more like that? sad

formingbabby look ma no hands from your own dojo Since: Jul, 2009
look ma no hands
#22: Sep 23rd 2011 at 7:46:50 PM

Regarding ease of TV versus ease of internet- I am way more likely to watch a show on TV than on the internet. I know I don't speak for everybody, but this is my reasoning.

I rarely sit down to watch shows with purpose. I have maybe one show each season that I HAVE to watch, but other than that I rarely seek things out. When you give me all of the shows ever that are available online, and I can pick whichever episode I want to watch, I won't bother because I have to pick a show and then pick an episode. With TV, I just sit down, scroll through the channels, see what's on, Oh look, its the SVU marathon, let me sit here and watch this for an hour and a half, okay I'm bored, turn off television. There is very little required thought on my part and when I watch TV it's because I want to be a lazy fuck.

I'm also one of those people where if you give me two or three choices, I'm fine, but once you give me too many choices I just shut down and decide to go do something else. So for me, watching on TV > watching online.

"You got a match?" "Uh, yeah, my butt and your... uh... butt."
Enzeru icon by implodingoracle from Orlando, FL ¬ôχಠ♥¯ Since: Mar, 2011
icon by implodingoracle
#23: Sep 23rd 2011 at 8:11:16 PM

Continuing on what [up]you said, I'm equal on the whole ease of TV/Internet. I have several shows I've gotta catch up on. Since most of them are with my sister, she's usually picking the show feels like watching at the time, so the problem of picking the show and episode are pretty much resolved. There's pretty much only cable in the living room, so when the parents are occupying it when we want to watch a new episode, we wait for it to come online or repeat on TV as we watch a show online that we can't watch on TV. For example, we watch Drawn Together online if the 'rents are using the TV when Phineas And Ferb is showing a new episode.

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