Development Alert: More Boomerang Coming Soon To Cartoon Network Africa With Mr. Magoo

Mr. Magoo follows the eponymous kind-hearted fellow who is always happy to lend a hand—but often causes disasters instead, as without his glasses he makes all kinds of chaotic mix-ups. Despite this, his only enemy is Fizz, a megalomaniacal hamster who is somehow always accidentally thwarted by Magoo. 

Produced by Xilam (Zig & Sharko), the first season was broadcast on Boomerang across EMEA in 2019. Since March 2023, the channel is known as Cartoonito in which Warner Bros. Discovery at the time mentioned that all Boomerang shows would be retained on the brand.

If anything, Warner Bros. Discovery blantly lied as Mr. Magoo is listed as a "channel premiere" for August. Weird is how shows like Looney Tunes Cartoons and Mr. Bean which some viewers may find inappropriate for preschool television be transmitted on Cartoonito.

Take to account, Cartoonito hasn't been around for that long so consumers probably won't realise it's a preschool brand especially the above-mentioned forming part of the lineup. Interesting to note, Mr. Magoo was phased out from Boomerang once it switched to Cartoonito.

Other shows also phased out at the time included Legend Of Spark, Lamput and Ninja Express. Curious on what led to the axing particularly with Mr. Magoo as Boomerang had used it for their Mr. Vs. Mr. stunt earlier in the year.

Looking at this development, could it be possible that more shows once seen on Boomerang will be added on Cartoon Network. For Looney Tunes and Mr. Beans case I honestly doubt it but for Ninja Express probably as the latter weren't really big on Boomerang.

Schedule Update: Ouma Sarie And The First Lady Roll Out On e.tv And Novelas E Plus

e.tv hits a new low with Ouma Sarie

After debuting on eExtra last month, eMedia Investments is scooping up the sitcom once again but this time for e.tv probably after what happened to The Goldbergs or the fact that most of their local endeavours are given the e.tv treatment meaning more exposure.

Straight talking no nonsense Ouma Sarie, a stalwart of the Karoo community, is a grandmother everyone should have. Not a day passes without drama, and in her unique way she does and says what she wants - and gets away with it.

Ouma Sarie broadcasts every Saturday at 18:30 on e.tv with the latest episodes broadcast almost a day later on eExtra every Sunday at 19:00.

More Caracol on the tele

During the week, it was learnt by sources that StarTimes acquired rights to the Colombian drama, Living Love. But that's not the only Caracol original to be seen on African screens as The First Lady (Primera Dama) formerly seen on Via and Wazobia TV is now seen on Novelas E Plus.

Paloma is a humble young woman who has a dream that must be fulfilled no matter the consequences: becoming the First Lady of Colombia . But in order to achieve this, she must leave aside the love she feels for Mariano, win the future president Leonardo Santander and, most important, win the trust of his wife, who unknowingly will open the doors of her house to the woman who will end her marriage, completely destroying the life of her family and make her husband become President, so Paloma becomes the First Lady.

The series airs weekdays at 19:00.

Could National Geographic And The Disney Channel Also Be Shutting Down Across Africa By The End Of 2023?

Last month, it was reported that The Walt Disney Company plans to shutter the remaining linear offering in Hong Kong, Southeast Asia and Korea by the fourth quarter of the year with several content being integrated to Disney+ as the streaming service becomes their top priority.

During the week, it was learnt by Bob Iger, the current CEO of The Walt Disney Company that a possible restructure could be underway for their linear offering which could see some brands under their care being sold to foreign companies if not closed down as seen internationally.

MultiChoice extended their agreement with them for their remaining linear offering through 2024 and this included factual brands National Geographic and National Geographic Wild, sports brands ESPN 1 & ESPN 2 and children's channels Disney Channel and Disney Junior.

It's likely that these channels might be going dark by the end of the year if not later in 2024. Taking to account, the previous terminations: Disney XD closed September 2020 which coincides with the UK's Disney Channels followed by the FOX feeds in Africa, Germany and Asia in 2021.

Another thing, although MultiChoice states these channels will be carried through 2024 it's clearly stated in their 2021 press release that these channels stick around for "another two years" possibly hinting at a December 2023 closure which coincides with Asia.

Although not much has been confirmed on an end date, the blue brands favourite months for such escapades are January, February, June, September and December - kind of seasonal when you look at it.

In the past months, Disney Channel has been promoting a bulk of Disney+ content as well aired rebroadcasts of Walk The Prank and Lab Rats. Disney Junior schedules on the other hand is overcrowded by Bluey with some repeat variety in between.

Marketing for these brands had been downsized with further feeds seen internationally being merged as seen with Disney XD before it's demise.

Disney Branded Television Could Be Put Up For Sale

Disney CEO Bob Iger sat down with CNBC's David Faber at Allen & Co.'s annual conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, on Thursday.

Disney announced Wednesday that it was extending Iger's contract by two years through 2026. Iger returned to the helm of Disney late last year. The company has since undergone thousands of layoffs and cut billions of dollars in spending, including from content.

Disney CEO Bob Iger on media landscape: Challenges are greater than I had anticipated

DisneynhhCEO Bob Iger opened the door to selling the company's linear TV assets as the business struggles during the media industry's transition to streaming and digital offerings.

Iger appeared Thursday on, the morning after the company announced it would extend his contract by two years through 2026. He returned to the helm of the company in November after Disney's board ousted Bob Chapek with a two-year contract through 2024 and plans to find a next successor.

"After coming back, I realized the company is facing a lot of challenges, some of them self-inflicted," Iger told David Faber at Allen & Co.'s annual conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, noting he's accomplished a lot of work in seven months but there's more to be done.

At the top of the list is assessing the traditional TV business, Iger said. Disney owns a portfolio of TV networks, from broadcast station ABC to cable TV channels like ESPN. 

Disney is going to be "expansive" in its thinking about the traditional TV business, leaving the door open to a possible sale of the networks. "They may not be core to Disney," Iger said, adding the creativity that has come from those networks has been key for Disney. 

On Thursday, ABC News President Kim Godwin to employees expressed support for Iger's contract extension, according to a person familiar with the matter. Godwin encouraged ABC staffers to focus on their work and audience, the person added.

Cable TV channel ESPN is in a different bucket, however. On that front, Iger said Disney is open to finding a strategic partner, which could take the form of a joint venture or offloading an ownership stake. 

Iger said when he had left the company he had predicted the future of traditional TV and had been "very pessimistic," and has found since his return that he was right in his thinking, adding it's worse than he expected. 

When Iger last spoke with Faber in February, soon after announcing a major restructuring at the company, he said that he felt "a sense of obligation" to return to Disney and that his preference was to stay for his two-year contract.

"We've gotten a lot done very quickly, significant cost reductions and significant realignment of the company," Iger said. "But dealing head on with some of our biggest challenges."

The appearance in February came shortly after Disney announced a sweeping restructuring that included thousands of layoffs and billions of dollars cut in spending.

The reorganization warded off a potential proxy fight with activist investor Nelson Peltz.

Disney reorganized into three segments: Disney Entertainment, which includes most of its streaming and media operations; an ESPN division; and a parks, experiences and product unit.

These were some of Iger's most significant actions in the months after his return. Disney revealed it would cut $5.5 billion in costs, consisting of $3 billion from content, excluding sports, and the remaining amount from noncontent costs. The company earmarked 7,000 layoffs.

In addition to looking for his next successor, Iger has been tasked with bringing Disney's streaming business to profitability. In the last year, media executives across all companies have focused on how to make streaming profitable, particularly after behemoth Netflix lost subscribers early last year and since instituted an ad-supported tier and a crackdown on password sharing to drive revenue.

While the company posted revenue and profit in line with Wall Street estimates last quarter, it saw a loss of 4 million subscribers at its flagship streamer Disney+.

Those subscriber losses were offset by price increases, which Iger said in May weren't to blame for the lower numbers. Instead, he said it showed room for further increases when it comes to streaming, and pushing customers toward the ad-supported tier, with the aim of reaching profitability.

In an effort to bulk up Disney+ and attract more subscribers to its cheaper, ad-supported tier – which it launched last year – the company announced last quarter it would add Hulu content to Disney+.

Disney has been weighing whether it should buy all of Hulu, as it owns 66% and Comcast

 owns the rest. It's likely Comcast will sell its Hulu stake to Disney at the beginning of 2024, CNBC previously reported.

Iger said Thursday that since he returned to Disney, he ultimately concluded the company is "better off having Hulu." 

He added the combined Hulu and Disney+ offering would be available by the end of the calendar year, and the upcoming negotiations with Comcast over valuation wouldn't prevent that. 

"The combination of those apps is designed to obviously help the [streaming] business become profitable," Iger said.

Disney Exploring Possible Sale Of Indian Business Home To Star Life And Star Select

Walt Disney (DIS.N) is exploring options to sell or find a joint venture partner for its India digital and TV business, a source with direct knowledge said on Wednesday.

The talks are in a "very, very nascent" stage and no potential buyer or partner has been approached so far, and it remains unclear how the process will pan out, the person added.

"Talks have begun internally (on) what makes sense to do," said the source, adding discussions were being driven by executives at Disney headquarters in the U.S.

Disney did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. The company's shares closed up 1.6% on Tuesday.

The Wall Street Journal was first to report news of Disney's talks and said the company had reached out to at least one bank about ways to help the India business grow, while sharing some of the costs.

The discussions come at a time when Disney has faced increasing pressure due to the emergence of Reliance Industries' (RELI.NS) streaming platform JioCinema, run by Asia's richest man, Mukesh Ambani. He has been marketing his streaming platform by offering free access to Indian Premier League cricket tournament, digital rights of which were earlier with Disney.

Research firm CLSA has estimated Disney+ Hotstar's subscriber base shrank by nearly 5 million users in India after it lost the digital rights for IPL.

Reliance's broadcast venture Viacom18, which runs JioCinema, also struck a deal with Warner Bros in April for HBO and other popular content such as Succession. Several of these top rated shows earlier aired in India on the Disney platform.

Viacom18's shareholders include Reliance, Paramount Global (PARA.O) as well as Bodhi Tree, which is a joint venture between James Murdoch and a former Star India executive, Uday Shankar.

Disney's India business comprises the Disney+ Hotstar streaming service and Star India, which it took over when it acquired the entertainment assets of 21st Century Fox in 2019.

The source, who declined to be named as the talks are confidential, said it will be difficult to find an outright buyer in India as the enterprise value of the India business was seen around $15-16 billion when Disney took over Fox's business.

Star India, which was rebranded as Disney Star last year, encompasses dozens of TV channels and a stake in a movie production company.

Disney, like its peers in streaming and the wider media industry, is cutting costs as macro economic headwinds weigh on its advertising revenue and subscriber growth.

In February, the company said it would cut 7,000 jobs as part of an effort to save $5.5 billion in costs in a sweeping restructuring of the company.