ABC Family to Rebrand as Freeform in January

ABC Family is going away — or at least the channel’s name is. The cable channel has announced that they’re rebranding themselves as the Freeform channel in January 2016.

ABC Family president Tom Ascheim says that the name is intended to attract new viewers and cater to the channel’s target demo of 14-34 year olds, nicknamed “Becomers”. The channel’s marketing department sifted through thousands of names before testing a dozen finalists.

Of the new name, Ascheim tells THR, “It really spoke to these three core parts of our essence: the audience, this idea of becoming a Becomer… This moment in media, where it was not just a linear moment but a back and forth one between the audience and content maker, because they, too are content makers; and it seemed to evoke an emotional response in us and our creative selves and made us feel like we would be able to convey the spirit of Freeform to the audience — and they’d want to play along with us.”

What do you think? Do you like the new name? Is Freeform a better choice than ABC Family?