Mainly OT: Viacom to start new premium TV channel

[frizfrelengfan]

Viacom just announced a new premium and video-on-demand channel to compete with HBO and Showtime. In addition to Paramount films, films from MGM and Lionsgate will be shown.

The announcement promised films from the archives will be available. Could this mean Betty Boops and Terrytoons on demand?

Showtime used to belong to Viacom but CBS got custody with the CBS-Viacom divorce.

[Leviathan]

Don't count on It.

Short of a major management change like the one at Universal, I don't think we'll ever see any Fleicher or Terrytoons in official circulation again.

[Bugsy-Kun]

I'm not sure Viacom owned the Terrytoons and Fleischer cartoons rights yet even if it's sad that they don't.

[Jon Cooke]

It would be nice... but I wouldn't get your hopes up.

This sounds like it'll just be another HBO/Showtime/Starz clone. I doubt showing old Mighty Mouse cartoons is very high on their priority list.

[CyberFox]

unlike NBC Universal that did acknowledged us, Viacom (inspite of the CBS split) are a bunch of stubborn pricks whom care about money letalone the public

[Ray Pointer]

WHOAH! First of all, none of you people are in the posiion to know what is going on inside the company. On the one hand, the "powers that be" do not prevent the release these things for the reasons you "assume," but because their holdings are so vast and the market is already to glutted with product. The manufacturing of DVD releases is an extensive, and expensive process, especially if the releases are to meet the levels of perfection that audiences such as this demand. In order to meet that level of expectation, it costs money to do it right. If they don't and just release it for its own sake there will be an outcry to rival the state of the present economy. Therefore the managers have to be selective in what they predict will sell, espeically with the economy as it is at present.

This is not to say that these classic cartoons will not sell. But the fact is that the people in the Home Video Division do not know WHAT they have. Second, and this is the most unfortunate aspect that affects the entire businesss, they do not "think" there is a market for such old material. This is based on the personal biases of the individuals working at Paramount who 1) know nothing of the company's history, and 2) have a contempt for anything over 15 years old. The irony is that Parmount licesed these cartoons for a quick buck to a company, Lion's Gate, that had no intention of doing anything with them. So the question is why buy the license? But I understand that the licensing agreement will expire next year and the rights will return to Paramount.

There is the possibility that a new perspective on this material could result since there continues to be changing personnel at Paramount. So if you really want to see the cartoons come out, you need to continue to hope for the outcome, not generate negativity. After all, there was a time when everyone was lamenting about the lack of an official POPEYE DVD release.
Guess what? IT HAPPENED! So if you want to see the Terry/Fleishcer library released in some form, consider the "Power of Postive Thinking."