End of an era: Cartoon Network website shut down
What's the story
Warner Bros. Discovery has taken the unexpected step of completely shutting down the Cartoon Network website, as part of its ongoing cost-cutting measures.
This move comes amid financial difficulties faced by the studio, which have resulted in various actions including selling off its animation successes to other streaming platforms and not releasing finished films.
The now-defunct website was a popular destination for fans of animated series, offering clips and full episodes from a wide variety of shows.
Content
Take a look at the list of shows it offered
The Cartoon Network website previously provided full episodes and video clips of its shows, including Adventure Time, Craig of the Creek, The Amazing World of Gumball, Teen Titans GO!, Steven Universe, We Bare Bears, and Clarence.
The site also featured free games, including those for Teen Titans GO!, Adventure Time, and Gumball.
New direction
Website visitors redirected to Max subscription page
As reported by Variety, visitors to the Cartoon Network website are now being redirected to a page promoting Max subscriptions.
The message on this page encourages users to sign up for Max and explore its content.
It also assures cable subscribers that they can continue enjoying their favorite Cartoon Network programming on their TVs and connected apps.
Content shift
Loss of beloved flash games and future plans
The Cartoon Network website was a hub for series content. It also hosted years of cherished flash games based on shows.
Despite many games being removed due to site redesigns over the years, some archives remain accessible via international versions of the website in regions where Max is currently unavailable.
This move follows Warner's recent decision to shatter Boomerang, its dedicated streaming service for classic animation, by September 30 and transfer its library and subscribers to Max's ad-free tier.
Previously
RIP Cartoon Network trends
Yesterday, the hashtag #RIPCartoonNetwork began trending on X.
This trend was sparked by a community-run account, Animation Workers Ignited, through a video discussing challenges in the animation industry.
The video features cartoon characters stating, "Cartoon Network is essentially dead! And other big animation studios are not far behind."
While the original post aimed to raise awareness using the alarming hashtag #RIPCartoonNetwork, it soon led to rumors about the animation giant, shutting down.