• by Wayne Friedman , October 14, 2014

Amid a lackluster growing kids TV marketplace, Turner Broadcasting’s Boomerang network will expand its programming to include more family content.

Turner says the 14-year old network is being re-launched as a “global all-animation, youth-targeted network, repositioned with a line-up of timeless and contemporary cartoons programmed for family co-viewing.”

Christina Miller, president/general manager, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim and Boomerang (U.S.), stated: “We see this as a unique opportunity to not only redefine the family co-viewing experience, but to grow and leverage our overall global kids portfolio and position it across all platforms in conjunction with Cartoon Network.”

For many kids networks, family co-viewing has a promising growth business -- pulling in kids as well as more family/adult advertising. Earlier this year, Boomerang began selling commercial time to advertisers.

Boomerang’s schedule had consisted of classic cartoons -- anchored “Tom and Jerry,” “Looney Tunes,” “The Powerpuff Girls” and “Scooby-Doo”. Now for the first time, Boomerang will offer exclusive original content on the network across all its international versions of the channel.

Boomerang launched in the U.S. on April 1, 2000 a 24-hour, all-animation network.

In the third quarter of this year, Boomerang totaled 149,000 Nielsen total day viewers, good for 35th place.

Among kids/young viewers, Boomerang had 33,000 total day 6-11 viewers (10th place); 43,000 6- to-14-year-olds (9th place); 27,000 9- to-14-year-olds (9th place); and 66,000 2- to-11-year-olds (10th place).