How much better/different would MLP:FiM be if it didn't depend on toy sales?

[Azureth 687]

As great as this show is, it is still primarily a show meant to sell toys/merchandise which has dictated how it must go, albeit it still has retained good quality. However, if it didn't and they had a great budget but didn't have to worry at all about selling merchandise and toys how different or better do you think it would be?

[Jeric 46,870]

The only way this discussion works is if it became a massive ratings and ad-buy success early on, otherwise it would follow non-merchandised animated properties and have been cancelled after a few seasons. The show would also be completely different than it is now (since the hypothetical removes or changes Hasbro from the equation). 

[cmarston1 5,960]

It wouldn't exist.

MLP as a brand has been always based around selling toys and if FIM wasn't reliant on toy sales, it wouldn't be an MLP show.

[Jackie Snack 1,498]

Season 4 finale wouldn't have sucked.

[Wind Chaser 4,768]

On the plus side, the show would have been allowed to be more experimental with its plots and structure and maybe would have taken on more serious issues. It also would have likely been better at continuity and story development as well.

 

However, its financial viability would have been a big question mark. Would it still be able to pull in viewers, despite not being tied to a large franchise and airing on a smaller cable network like the Hub/DiscFam, which has had problems with weak distribution and poor promotion?

 

MLP, at its peak, pulled in about 780000 viewers, which is huge compared to other Hub/DiscFam shows but not as much as their larger rivals that usually rank in the millions. MLP had the benefit of being tied to a name-brand franchise to gain attention, as well as Lauren Faust's name recognition bringing in a niche audience of older cartoon fans. It truly depends on how strong an alternative brand would be to determine how attractive the show would have been otherwise, but that's something we won't know for sure.