Time Warner is expanding in the over-the-top market with a new subscription VOD service featuring Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, Scooby-Doo and others from the Hanna-Barbera, Looney Tunes and MGM cartoon library.
The ad-free service, dubbed Boomerang, will cost $4.99 per month or $39.99 annually and is a partnership between Time Warner's Turner Broadcasting and Warner Bros. units.
Turner will continue to distribute its Boomerang cable network, which features classic animation.
The move marks the latest by traditional media companies to enter the booming direct-to-consumer streaming market at a time when subscribers to the lucrative pay-TV business are steadily shrinking.
Time Warner's HBO Now was launched a year ago and Turner launched FilmStruck featuring classic films. CBS has more than a million subscribers each to its CBS All Access and Showtime OTT services. Viacom's Nickelodeon is in the kids space with a Noggin service.
Those entries compete with Netflix, Hulu and Amazon.
Related: Bewkes: HBO Now Tops 2M OTT Subscribers
Turner and Warner Bros. say Boomerang will launch in the spring with more than 5,000 titles in the bank. It will be the only place viewers will be able to see franchises including Tom and Jerry, The Jetsons and The Flintstones.
The Boomerang SVOD service will also be the exclusive home of new original series, including Warner Bros. Animation's Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz and an updated version of Wacky Races. New episodes of Scooby-Doo, Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry will also only be available over-the-top.
The service will have features including family profiles, personalized recommendations, downloadable content, Spanish-language audio and interactive elements.
"Boomerang is a beloved brand that has always had multi-generational appeal and some of the greatest animated shows ever created," said Christina Miller, president of Cartoon Network, Boomerang and Adult Swim. "Our on-going partnership with Warner Bros. around this new premium service continues our strategy of making sure our fans are engaged with fresh and fun content whenever and wherever they want it."
"We are bringing the best new and classic characters to kids, families and animation fans so they can now watch their favorites anywhere, anytime on any screen," said Craig Hunegs, president of business and strategy at Warner Bros. Television Group and president of Warner Bros. Digital Networks. "It's a whole new way to access Warner Bros.' storied legacy of laughs!"
Boomerang will launch on the web, iOS and Android. Versions for Amazon, Roku and Apple TV are in the works. Turner and Warner Bros. said they will explore additional distribution opportunities with both new and existing partners in the future.
The Boomerang OTT service will be powered by applications and technology developed by DramaFever, a Warner Bros. Digital Networks company.
