Disney Channel

**Disney Channel (also known as The Disney Channel and Disney)** is a American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by Walt Disney Television, a division of Disney Media Networks. The channel headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in Burbank, California. Disney Channel Worldwide is a global portfolio of 118 kid-driven, family inclusive entertainment channels and/or channel feeds available in over 164 countries and 34 languages.

## History

### 1983–1997: Early years

In 1983, Walt Disney Productions announced its launch of the family-oriented cable channel. The Disney Channel launched nationally on April 18, 1983 at 7am ET with Mickey Mouse pulling the switch, launching the network. The channel's programming during its run as a premium channel, carrying through to its transition to a basic cable channel, targeted children and teenagers during the daytime, families during primetime, and adults at night. At the time of its launch, Disney Channel was a premium channel that aired for 16 hours a day, from 7 a.m.-11 p.m. ET/PT (6 a.m.-10 p.m. CT, 8 a.m.-midnight MT). During its first full year, the channel was available to more than 532,000 subscribers in the U.S. In April 1984, the channel extended its programming day to 18 hours a day by adding two hours to its late night schedule (7 a.m.-1 a.m. ET/PT, 6 a.m.-midnight CT, 8 a.m.-2 a.m. MT).

Subscribers initially received a monthly program guide/magazine, though it was phased out by the time the channel began targeting itself as a commercial-free basic channel. Disney Channel received a special citation from the U.S. President Ronald Reagan in 1984[*citation needed*]. As a premium channel, The Disney Channel would air week-long previews four times a year, as well as two free preview weekends periodically (with ads targeted to non-subscribers), in the same manner as other premium channels, such as WarnerMedia's HBO and Cinemax and ViacomCBS's Showtime. On December 1, 1986, Disney Channel began broadcasting on a 24-hour-a-day schedule. Outside of daytime programs for children, the network also aired movies and original specials (largely concert specials), largely during the nighttime hours.

Early in 1986, the musical sitcom *Kids Incorporated*, about a preteen (and later teen-to-young adult) group of friends who formed a pop group, mixing their everyday situations with variety-show and music video style performances. It became a hit for the channel, spawning many future stars in both music and acting during its 10-year run, including Martika (who went by her real name of Marta Marrero in the show's first season), eventual *Party of Five* co-stars Scott Wolf and Jennifer Love Hewitt (billed as Love Hewitt), and Stacy Ferguson, nicknamed Fergie, of The Black Eyed Peas).

In 1988, *Good Morning, Miss Bliss*, a starring vehicle for Hayley Mills of *Polyanna* and *The Parent Trap* fame, made its debut; the series was cancelled after 13 episodes due to low ratings. NBC picked up the series in 1989, retooled as *Saved by the Bell*, with *Miss Bliss* actors Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Dennis Haskins, Lark Voorhies, and the late Dustin Diamond carried over to the new show; *Saved by the Bell* achieved major success on NBC's Saturday morning lineup (producing two spinoffs in the process).

In early 1989, the channel revived one of the company's early TV staples with *The Mickey Mouse Club*, which was an immediate hit that proved Disney's basic variety show formula could still work, unlike in the short-lived 1970s revival. The latest version contained many of the classic elements from "theme days" to updated mouseketeer jackets, but the scripted and musical segments were more contemporary. *MMC* had a stellar young cast, launching the careers of future stars Christina Aguilera, JC Chasez, Ryan Gosling, Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Keri Russell, and others.

By 1989, The Disney Channel had a total of about five million pay subscribers nationwide. In 1991, eight cable providers volunteered to move The Disney Channel to their expanded basic cable packages, instead of offering it as a premium channel; Jones Intercable was the first provider to carry the channel as a basic network, initially carried on the Basic Plus tier on its Fort Myers and Broward County, Florida systems as a test run. Soon after, other cable systems began to transition the channel to their basic tiers, either as an experiment or full-time. Even as larger multiple system operators, such as Cox Communications and Marcus Cable began to offer The Disney Channel on their basic tiers, Walt Disney Company executives continued to deny any plans to convert the channel to an ad-supported basic service, referring to the switches to basic on some systems as part of a five-year "hybrid" strategy; allowing providers to offer it as either a pay service or a basic service.

Also in 1991, The Disney Channel experimented with multiplexing its service, rather than broadcast three channels of its service like HBO did that same year, The Disney Channel instead tested a two-channel multiplex service to two cable systems. By 1992, Nielsen Media Research estimated that a third of its subscriber base were adults without children in the home; and by 1995, The Disney Channel's subscriber base had expanded to 15 million cable households.

### 1997-2002 transition to basic network

On April 6, 1997, Disney Channel transitioned to a premium network to a basic network and took on a revamped look and dropped the word "The" in the network's name (however, promos often referred to the channel as simply "Disney" and the logo often omitted the "Channel" in the network's name), and split the network into three programming blocks: Playhouse Disney, comprising shows aimed at preschoolers; Vault Disney, featuring classic Disney material, such as *Zorro*, *The Mickey Mouse Club*, the Walt Disney anthology television series, older television specials and features, such as *The Love Bug*; and the most distinct one, running from afternoon to late evening for teenagers, called *Zoog Disney*, which used anthropomorphic characters called "Zoogs", who resembled robots (but the Zoog characters were given human voices) as its hosts. The Zoog Disney block was introduced in August 1998, shortly after the Toon Disney cable channel was launched. From September 2000 to August 2002, the entire weekend lineup (except for the Vault Disney and Playhouse Disney lineups) was branded as "Zoog Weekendz".

The Zoogs' original looks were two-dimensional, though they were redesigned in 2000, with a more three-dimensional design and mature voices, but were phased out after less than a year. The original Disney Channel still airs between Playhouse Disney and Zoog Disney. A new channel logo (which featured a 1930s-era Mickey Mouse on a black Mickey ear-shaped TV), was also introduced in 1997. The channel also began to carry break interruptions (without any commercial advertisements, but promos for network programming and eventually promotions for Disney-produced feature film and home video releases); the reasons for the channel's decision not to include traditional advertising in its programming include the possible confusion to younger viewers as to the difference between its programming and advertisements, and to prevent increases in license fees for the channel to broadcast feature films (however while the channel does not air standard ads, Disney Channel does utilize underwriter sponsorship by companies, such as Best Western and Mattel for its programs). Disney Channel's original programming during this period began with *Flash Forward* in 1997 and continued with shows, like *The Famous Jett Jackson*, *So Weird*, *Lizzie McGuire*, *Even Stevens*, and *Kim Possible*, among others.

In 1998, Disney Channel broadcast a Disneyland TV Special in Australia where various guests, including The Wiggles, were featured as their live appearance.

In 1999, Disney Channel began notifying the remaining cable operators who still offered the network as a premium service that they must begin carrying it on their basic cable tier or cease to carry it altogether, saying it would not renew re-transmission contracts with providers that would choose to carry the network as a pay service, this included Time Warner Cable and Comcast that were the last remaining major cable providers offering the channel as a premium service. By 2001, Disney Channel was available to approximately 70 million cable and satellite subscribers, largely consisting of those who already received the channel via a basic tier as well as what remained of the subscribers that paid an additional fee for the channel. By this time, the music videos and concert specials that the channel ran since the 1997, re-brand were dropped, citing the inability to receive a stake in the revenue from artists' CD sales and lack of exclusivity for the videos; soon after, the channel began to incorporate music videos from songs featured in Disney's feature films and performed by artists on Radio Disney and signed by Disney's in-house record companies Hollywood Records and Walt Disney Records.

### 2002–2007: Disney Channel relaunched

By 2002, Disney Channel was seen in 80 million cable homes nationwide. That September, Disney Channel was gradually remodeled once more. The "Zoog" brand name was phased out from on-air usage, though it continued under separate website until 2003, when it was merged with Disney Channel's main website. On September 9, 2002, the Vault Disney block was discontinued, primarily to contribute to the network's new "hip" image, in favor of same-day repeats of the channel's original programming and off-network series; as a result of Vault Disney's discontinuance, for the first time in the channel's history, Disney Channel did not feature any programming targeted at adult audience–with the only programming that intentionally targets the entire family being the channel's primetime feature films (as of June 2011, Disney Channel is the only one out of the four largest children's cable networks in the United States that does not target a dual audience: kids in the daytime, families and adults at night; Nickelodeon, The Hub (now Discovery Family), and Cartoon Network each feature program blocks that target such a dual audience).

Primetime movies were also cut to one each night (from two). The channel also stopped producing drama and reality series, shifting focus to live-action sitcoms and animated series. On October 7, 2002, Disney Channel introduced a new on-air appearance with a new logo designed by CA Square (using an outline of Mickey Mouse's head as its centerpiece) that was adopted by its international sister channels in May 2003, and unveiling a new graphics designed to fit the network's new look. After these changes, Playhouse Disney was the only one of the three blocks introduced in 1997 to continue airing; however, it was re-branded as Disney Junior in 2011. Around the same time, Disney Channel partnered with corporate sister ABC to run the channel's programming on ABC's Saturday morning block. Moreover, Disney Channel started a bumper which is still used today. Every actor must introduce themselves and most actor will say which series or movies are they from. After that, they will say: "You're watching Disney Channel!" (except for animated characters) and draw the Disney Channel logo, using a glow stick.

Anne Sweeney, a veteran cable executive, took control of Disney-ABC Television Group in 2004 and successfully remade Disney Channel into "the major profit driver in the company." By 2008, *Condé Nast Portfolio* was able to note that the Channel "has been adding a million viewers a month—every month—for the last five years," and also called the Channel "the greatest teen-star incubator since the NBA stopped drafting high schoolers." Sweeney's successful strategy was to discover, nurture, and aggressively cross-promote teen music stars whose style and image were carefully targeted to preteens and teenagers.

Around the same time, while Disney Channel's intended target audiences were preschoolers, preteens, and young adolescents, the channel began to make teen idols out of some of the channel's stars, gaining popularity outside the main target audience, as it created increased competition with ViacomCBS-owned Nickelodeon.

In 2003, Disney Channel released its first ever musical made-for-cable movie called *The Cheetah Girls*; it received 84 million viewers worldwide. The success of *The Cheetah Girls* led to the creation of other music-themed original programming, such as the original movie *High School Musical* and the original sitcom *Hannah Montana*. In 2005, *That's So Raven* became the network's highest-rated series since the network's move to basic cable, as well as being the first Disney Channel Original Series to beat the 65-episode limit becoming the channel's longest-running original series at the time, and became the first to spawn a spin-off (*Cory in the House*, which was cancelled midway through its second season). *The Suite Life of Zack & Cody* also debuted in 2005, becoming a hit for the channel. 2006 saw the debut of the hit original movie *High School Musical*; that year also saw the debut of *Hannah Montana*, which launched the career of its star Miley Cyrus, herself the daughter of popular 1990s country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, who co-stars in the series. On July 28 of that year, the channel saw the debut of the its first multiple-series crossover, *That's So Suite Life of Hannah Montana* (involving *That's So Raven*, *The Suite Life of Zack & Cody*, and *Hannah Montana*).

### 2007–2014: Disney Channel’s increasing popularity

In 2007, Disney Channel limited the number of original movie and series premieres to four movies and two series premiering over the course of the calendar year. The most successful Disney Channel Original Movie to date is *High School Musical 2* which premiered on August 17 of that year to 17.2 million viewers, the highest-rated scripted cable telecast ever. The channel abandoned its uniform schedules for weekday and weekend afternoons (with the exception of the 7–8 p.m. ET time period), to run a five-hour (at one point six-hour) schedule featuring hour-long blocks of various original series (and the off-network programming that remained on the channel) with the schedule changing each day. That year, the channel modified its on-air presentation. Its logo turned into a ribbon, swirling around the screen until forming the Disney Channel logo instead of bouncing around the screen. Promo cards and bumpers were changed to an abstract atmosphere with ribbon theming and themed to the programs, as opposed to abstract objects bouncing and moving in the screen. The font was changed from Digital to Placard MT Bold. Instead of the Disney Channel logo popping up into a bumper and delivering a message, the ribbon swirled up, formed the logo, and another ribbon swirled out with the message. Also, when Disney Channel's on-air presentation changed that year, the female announcer (voiced by Liza del Mundo) was removed entirely.

Promos for the next program began to only advertise the program airing afterwards and were moved from between shows to near the end of the last promo break of an episode, while a ribbon banner promoting the current program and the two programs afterwards now appeared on the bottom of the screen after the end of each promo break from 11 a.m.-8 p.m. ET. In September 2008, slightly modified versions of these graphics were introduced for high definition. The channel also moved its original series, mostly the live-action shows, from late afternoon to prime time on weekends from 8–9 p.m. ET. The Friday block is preempted when a Disney Channel Original Movie is scheduled to premiere that night. The Saturday block has aired on a periodic basis since the change and now serves as a block repeating past week's new episodes. The Sunday block was added in January 2008. In July 2009, Disney Channel extended its Friday lineup to two hours in primetime from 8–10 p.m. ET, dropping the primetime movie. A double-movie feature which was added on Saturday nights, which was mostly dropped in March 2010 and fully dropped by early 2011.

Two series debuted in 2007, the *That's So Raven* spin-off, *Cory in the House* which ended after two seasons (a possible casualty of the 2007 Writer's Guild strike, which caused freshman or sophomore series whose production was interrupted midway through the season to eventually be canceled), and the popular *Wizards of Waverly Place*, starring Selena Gomez, David Henrie, and Jake T. Austin. *Phineas and Ferb*, the first original animated series to broadcast in HD, and *The Suite Life of Zack & Cody* spin-off, *The Suite Life on Deck*, debuted in 2008, along with Disney Channel Original Movies, such as *Camp Rock*, *Minutemen*, and *The Cheetah Girls: One World*. *The Suite Life on Deck* became the number one series And Another "Pilot" In The Middle Starring Lateef Bowser in the respective categories in kids ages 6–12 and teens ages 9–14 in 2008.

Disney Channel launched two new series in 2009: *Sonny with a Chance* starring Demi Lovato in February, and *JONAS* starring the Jonas Brothers in May. New movies in 2009 included *Dadnapped*, *Hatching Pete*, *Princess Protection Program*, and *Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie*. The four original movies for 2009 each featured at least two stars from Disney Channel's original series. *Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie* also became the highest-rated cable program of 2009 (excluding sporting events), premiering to 11.4 million viewers and becoming the second highest-rated DCOM premiere in history. The premiere of the crossover special Wizards on Deck with Hannah Montana (involving *Wizards of Waverly Place*, *The Suite Life on Deck*, and *Hannah Montana*) also beat out its competition (both cable and broadcast network programming) on the night of its premiere with 9.1 million viewers (making it the highest-rated episodes of *Wizards* and *On Deck* to date). In October 2009, Disney Channel premiered a new short series, *Have a Laugh!*, which features 4 to 5-minute segments including re-dubbed versions of classic Disney cartoons.

The new logo, released May 2010, is the Disney Channel logo encased in a rounded box (which looks like a smartphone application icon); the point was so that Disney could put the logo more towards the middle of the screen (like they did with the 2008 logo), but with the 2002 logo. It came into use on May 7, 2010, though the logo was first seen in March 2010, and at the time, was exclusively used on the weekend evening lineup, with a slow roll-out of a new imaging campaign that was completed in that month's Memorial Day weekend. Disney also started their campaign "It's On!" in June as part of their Summer 2010 lineup. The 2002 logo is still used sometimes in old promos for shows (shows that started before the new logo), and bumpers in between shows.

In 2010, the channel launched its first original sitcom intentionally targeted at family audiences: *Good Luck Charlie*, starring Bridgit Mendler and Jason Dolley (*Cory in the House*), a series some have compared to the shows on sister network ABC's former TGIF comedy lineup of the 1990s. The final season of *Hannah Montana* premiered as Hannah Montana Forever for the final season. *Jonas* returned as *Jonas L.A.*, though it ended that October. That fall, the second animated series, *Fish Hooks*, and the buddy sitcom *Shake It Up* were introduced. Four original movies premiered: *Starstruck*, *Den Brother*, *Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam*, and *Avalon High*. Two other made-for-TV movies produced for Disney Channel in association with Canadian cable channels debuted as well: *Harriet the Spy: Blog Wars* (produced in association with pay services Movie Central and The Movie Network) and *16 Wishes* (produced in association with Family Channel).

In 2011, four popular original series are scheduled to end: *Sonny with a Chance* (later becoming *So Random!*), *Hannah Montana*, *The Suite Life on Deck*, and *Wizards of Waverly Place*. *Sonny with a Chance* was retooled due to Demi Lovato's announcement that she would not return to the series, in order to focus on her music career. Five series were announced to be added to the lineup in 2011: *So Random!*, *A.N.T. Farm*, *PrankStars*, *Jessie*, and *Austin & Ally*. Seven Disney Channel Original Movies were confirmed for 2011: *The Suite Life Movie*, *Lemonade Mouth*, *Sharpay's Fabulous Adventure*, *Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension*, *Geek Charming*, and *Good Luck Charlie, It's Christmas!*. The Canadian movie, *My Babysitter's a Vampire*, premiered on June 10, 2011 with its spin-off series, also called *My Babysitter's a Vampire*, that premiered June 27, 2011. As of mid-2011, Disney Channel no longer has its "Disney Channel Original Series" vanity card tagged onto the end of its series when aired on television.

In January 2012, Wizards of Waverly Place ended its run on the channel, becoming Disney Channel's longest-running original series with 106 episodes (the record for the channel's longest-running series was formerly held by That's So Raven, which ran for 100 episodes). In May 2012 it was indicated that *So Random!*, a spin-off of Sonny with a Chance, had been canceled after only one season. On February 27, 2012 Lab Rats debuted on Disney XD.

On June 5, 2012, Disney announced that by 2015, it would no longer advertise or promote any food or beverage that does not meet strict nutritional guidelines on any of its media properties aimed at children, which includes Disney Channel. Disney believes that it is the first media company to take such a stance on stopping the marketing of what they claim as "junk food" to children.

Since July 1, 2012, Disney Channel now presents an on-screen mark at the beginning of certain programming on their schedule to refer that the program has audio description for visually-impaired, in order to comply with the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010. Certain episodes of *Gravity Falls*, *Austin & Ally*, *Good Luck Charlie*, and *Phineas and Ferb* show the AD))) mark and a 2-tone sound repeated 3 times at the beginning of the episode to notice the audio description track available through the SAP feed. Disney Junior airs the AD)) mark and the intended SAP track on newer episodes of *Little Einsteins*. ABC airs this mark of the bottom-left corner of the screen and the extra track starting with the season premiere of *Modern Family* and the series premiere of *The Neighbors*. A schedule of visually-described programs can be found here.

Disney announced on July 14, 2012 its first television collaboration between Disney Channel and Marvel Entertainment, in which the company acquired in 2009. Expected to come to air in 2013, the characters of Phineas & Ferb and Marvel Universe characters, including Spider-Man and The Avengers, would be paired in a crossover special called "*Phineas and Ferb: Mission Marvel*", which would use the plot device of a "inator" device of Dr. Doofenshmitz removing the powers of the superheroes, and the characters of Phineas & Ferb helping them get their powers back while fighting against Marvel villains.

Disney confirmed four original movies in 2012, *Frenemies*, *Radio Rebel*, *Let It Shine*, and *Girl vs. Monster*. In June 2012, Disney premiered *Gravity Falls*, a series about twin brother and sister Dipper and Mabel Pines who move in with their Grunkle Stan for a summer, discovering the mysterious town of Gravity Falls. In October 2012, Disney aired the premiere of *Dog With a Blog*, exactly five years after the premiere of one of Disney's most popular shows, *Wizards of Waverly Place*.

In Late 2012, only one original movie was confirmed, *Teen Beach Movie*, which premiered on July 19 in that year. Two new series were also set to premiere. *Liv & Maddie* also premiered on July 19 of that year. A new animated series, *Wander Over Yonder*, previewed on August 16th, and officially premiered on September 13th. In March of 2013, Disney aired a one hour reunion special of *Wizards of Waverly Place*, entitled, *The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex*, a TV special that, when the idea was originally conceived, meant to be the film sequel. In October 2013 Mighty Med debuted on the 7th on Disney XD. 2014 *Girl Meets World* is confirmed to be a series, that started on July 11, 2014.

### 2014-2016: Removal of animated shows

On January 17, 2014, *I Didn't Do It* and *Win, Lose or Draw* premiered on Disney Channel. On February 15, Disney Channel revealed the future of its animated programs. It was announced that *Wander Over Yonder* and *Gravity Falls* will move to Disney XD, but still air on Disney Channel as part of a "Disney XD on Disney Channel" block and that *Phineas and Ferb* was to be put on an indefinite hiatus, with *Fish Hooks* being the only animated show to remain on Disney Channel until ending its run. Several of these shows have had first-run episodes on Disney Channel after moving to Disney XD. In summer 2014, *Teen Beach Movie* was confirmed to have a sequel, called *Teen Beach Movie 2*, which released June 26, 2015. In July on the 22nd Disney XD's two shows: Lab Rats and Mighty Med had a crossover called *Lab Rats vs. Mighty Med*. As part of *Monstober*, *Invisible Sister* came on the channel October 9, 2015.

In 2015, Disney Channel debuted a new show titled K.C. Undercover, starring former *Shake it Up* star Zendaya. On June 12, *Phineas and Ferb* aired its final episode after a nearly 8-year run on the channel. As of June 22, 2015, *Phineas and Ferb* reruns stopped airing on Disney Channel and is now exclusively airing on Disney XD, making the Mickey Mouse shorts and the Wednesday night *Kim Possible* reruns the only animated content to air on Disney Channel, though *Star vs. the Forces of Evil*, *Gravity Falls*, and *Wander Over Yonder* have also aired on the channel as well and outside the Disney XD on Disney Channel block. On June 26, *Teen Beach 2* and *Best Friends Whenever* premiered. July 31 had *Descendants* and the *Jessie* spin-off, *BUNK'D*. *JESSIE* and *I Didn't Do It* had its last episode on October 16, 2015. *Dog with a Blog* ended its 3 season run on September 25, 2015.

In 2016, *Austin & Ally* ended on January 10, with *Gravity Falls* airing its final episode on February 15 on both Disney XD and Disney Channel. The movie *Adventures in Babysitting* also premiered that year, with the TV show by the name of *Stuck in the Middle* premiering in the spring of 2016.

*Disney Replay*, Disney Channel's throwback block airing on Wednesday nights, was removed in May 2016, and was replaced by the *That's So Throwback* block on Freeform airing Monday through Friday.

### 2016-2017: return of animated and acquired shows schedule changes, spin-offs, and 100th DCOM celebration

In March on the 2nd *Lab Rats: Elite Force* debuted in 2016 airing one season ending on a cliffhanger making it the first spin-off on Disney to combine 2 shows because the crossover did so well. from May 27-30, 2016, Disney Channel began airing every single one of its original movies in a weekend marathon. The yet to presented movies aired every night at midnight leading up to June 24 where the 100th DCOM *Adventures in Babysitting* premiered.

On June 13, the Disney Junior block was shortened and long-running animated series *Phineas and Ferb* returned to the schedule.

In 2015, Disney announced a series with the characters from *Tangled*, being the first animated show to debut since *Wander Over Yonder* in September 2013.

At the last minute in May 2016, the Disney Junior series *Elena of Avalor*, was announced to air on Disney Channel instead, which premiered on July 22, 2016, and airs on its Friday night block.

By this time Disney Channel began returning to acquired shows, with Backstage and The ZhuZhus being their first acquired shows since 2007.

More animation came in, in September 2016, with reruns of *Gravity Falls* and *Phineas and Ferb*, along with regular reruns of *Star vs. the Forces of Evil*, and regular episodes of *Mickey Mouse* and *Elena of Avalor* airing every weekday from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm. But on October 24, 2016, the block began airing later and mainly consisted of reruns of *Elena of Avalor*, and *Milo Murphy's Law*, before changing again to reruns of *Phineas and Ferb*, *Star vs. the Forces of Evil*, and *Tangled: The Series* on March 19, 2017.

On January 1, 2017, Disney Channel aired the first episode of 30 of their most popular series, it included all of their live-action programming since 2000, and *Phineas and Ferb*, *The Proud Family*, *Kim Possible*, and *Gravity Falls*.

A new weekend animation block, titled Disney Channel Weekend Mornings, launched on January 7, 2017. It airs *Elena of Avalor*, *Gravity Falls*, and *Star vs. the Forces of Evil* respectively starting at 9am ET/PT and ending at 11am ET/PT. On March 25, 2017, the line-up was changed, with *Tangled: The Series* (which just premiered on the network the day prior) and *Milo Murphy's Law* replacing *Gravity Falls*.

Disney Channel also made changes to the Friday premieres, moving them from primetime to evenings, similar to what they did in the mid-2000's.

### 2017-2018

The series finale of *Liv and Maddie* aired on March 24, 2017. To tie-in with the event, the network aired a marathon of the series from March 17 and 18, 2017, replacing all the normal shows in the weekend line-up, except for the Disney Junior shows and *Elena of Avalor*, that week.

*Andi Mack* premiered on Disney Channel on April 7, 2017.

Disney Channel aired another movie spin-off on June 25, 2017 called *Hotel Transylvania: The Series* which is based on the Sony film *Hotel Transylvania*.

On July 21, 2017, Disney Channel premiered the sequel to *Descendants*, *Descendants 2*, which was followed by the new series premiere of *Raven's Home*, the second spin-off of *That's So Raven*. With some "Ways to be Wicked" and single mother Raven living with her best friend and kids, Disney Channel may have gained back the feeling of a classic touch.

### 2017-present: 35th Anniversary and the big move of Disney XD Series

On April 17, 2018, Disney Channel celebrated its 35th anniversary, and the special event block, *Disney Channel GO!* was started in this July instead of the Disney Channel Summer block.

Also in 2018, 5 Disney XD Original Series, *Star vs. the Forces of Evil*, *Big City Greens*, *DuckTales*, *Milo Murphy's Law*, and *Big Hero 6: The Series*, moved their premieres over to Disney Channel.

On October 12, 2018, *Coop & Cami Ask the World* premiered on Disney Channel.

On January 25, 2019, *Sydney to the Max* premiered on Disney Channel.

On October 11, 2019, *Gabby Duran & the Unsittables* premiered on Disney Channel.

On January 15, 2021 *Bunk'd* aired the fifth-season premiere making it the first Disney show to have the most seasons and *Secrets of Sulphur Springs*, which premiered on Disney Channel.

## Programming blocks

### Current

* **Disney Junior** – Disney Channel currently features shows targeted at preschool-age children on Monday through Fridays from 6 a.m.-2 p.m. and weekends from 6–9 a.m. ET/PT, called Disney Junior, which debuted on February 14, 2011. During the summer months, the block ends at 10 am ET/PT on weekdays. The only programming featuring classic Disney characters, as of 2012 is *Mickey Mouse Clubhouse* on Disney Junior, and the *Mickey Mouse* short cartoons on the network itself. Programming in this block includes *Jake and the Never Land Pirates*, *Mickey Mouse Clubhouse*, *Chuggington*, *Henry Hugglemonster*, *Sofia the First*, and *Doc McStuffins*. Disney Junior is the successor to Playhouse Disney, another preschool-targeted block which debuted in September 1997. Disney Junior became a channel on March 23, 2012, replacing SOAPnet. Disney Junior is a direct competitor to ViacomCBS's Nick Jr., NBCUniversal's Sprout (now Universal Kids), and Ion Media's former Qubo channel.

### Seasonal

* **Disney Channel Summer** – The network runs summer programming blocks every year with differing themes. First introduced in 2011 and last aired in 2016. Disney Channel has branded its summer programming lineup as "Disney Channel Summer". Generally most of the network's series run new episodes through the summer and original movies premiere in these months to take advantage of the largest possible children's audience, as do most children's networks in Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day. In 2018, the block as "Disney Channel GO!" for 35th anniversary.
* **October/Halloween** – In October, Disney Channel airs Halloween-themed programming in an annual event, titled "Monstober", a brand used from 2011 to 2016, "31 Nights of Halloween" Since 2017 with Disney XD, Disney Junior, and ABC, and "Halloween House Party" in 2020. Halloween films, such as the *Halloweentown* series have premiered during this month, alongside *Twitches*, *Twitches Too*, *The Scream Team*, *Mostly Ghostly*, *Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie*, *Avalon High*, and *Girl vs. Monster*, as well as Halloween episodes of the network's original series.
* **December/Christmas** – The network's December schedule usually focuses on Christmas programming, with the title of the branding changing every year. Since 2011, Disney Channel has branded its holiday season programming lineup as "Fa-la-la-lidays" a brand used from 2011 to 2015, "Dis The Season" in 2016, and "25 Days of Christmas" from 2017-2018 with Disney XD, Disney Junior, and ABC. Christmas films, such as the *The Christmas Visitor*, *The Ultimate Christmas Present*, *Twas the Night*, *Beethoven's Christmas Adventure*, and *Good Luck Charlie, It's Christmas!* have premiered during this month, along with Christmas episodes of the network's original series, such as *Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation*. A Christmas in July week with encores of Christmas-themed programming is featured in that summer month.
* **New Year's Eve** – A New Year's Eve tradition dating back to the Zoog Disney days in 2000, the network airs a marathon into the early morning of New Year's Day featuring programs, films, and moments selected by viewer vote on the channel's website, followed by an original series or movie marathon on New Year's Day (no such event occurred in 2011, due to New Year's Eve falling on a Saturday that year). This sometimes leads into a month-long lineup of new episodes of the channel's original programs that air each weekend during that month.

### Former

* **Disney Channel Saturday Mornings** – is an animation block that debuted on June 18, 2011 as "Toonin' Saturdays", which was re-branded with its current name in 2012. The lineup – which airs most Saturdays from 9-10 a.m. Eastern/Pacific, and is sometimes preempted in favor of other Disney Channel original programs – primarily consists of double-episode airings of Disney Channel original animated series *Phineas and Ferb*, *Fish Hooks*, and *Gravity Falls*. Occasionally, new first-run episodes of either series were be featured in the block, though new episodes may also sometimes air in their original Friday night timeslots. This ended in 2013.
* **Disney Nighttime** – From 1983 to 1997, Disney Channel, during the premium channel era featured programming aimed at adult audiences, during the nighttime hours under the banner name "Disney Nighttime"; unlike the nighttime content aired on the channel's then-competitor premium channels at the time of its launch, the "adult" programming featured on Disney Channel was devoid of sexual and violent content. Disney Nighttime featured older feature films (similar to those seen at the time on AMC, and eventually Turner Classic Movies, with both Disney and non-Disney titles mixed in) and the traditional premium channel fare of original concert specials from artists ranging from Rick Springfield to Elton John.
* **Block Party** – From October 2, 1995 to the summer of 1996, four animated series that previously aired on *The Disney Afternoon* (*Darkwing Duck*, *TaleSpin*, *DuckTales*, and *Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers*) were rerun on the Disney Channel as a two-hour programming block called "Block Party" which aired on weekdays in the late-afternoon/early-evening.
* **Zoog Disney** – Launched in August 1998, Zoog Disney was a program block that aired on weekend afternoons. The hosts for the block were "Zoogs", animated anthropomorphic characters resembling robots, but given human voices, with most of the Zoog characters acting like teenagers. The block tied television and the Internet together, allowing viewer comments and scores from players of ZoogDisney.com's online games to be aired on the channel during regular programming in a ticker format (which the channel continued to use after the block was discontinued, and is used in a significantly decreased capacity as of May 2010). The Zoogs were given a more three-dimensional redesign and mature voices in September 2000, but were phased out after less than a year. With the entire block phased out by September 2002. From June 2000 to August 2002, the entire Friday, Saturday, and Sunday afternoon and primetime lineup was branded as "Zoog Weekendz".
* **Vault Disney** – Disney Nighttime was reworked into "Vault Disney" in September 1997, upon Disney Channel's first major rebrand. Originally a Sunday-only block, Vault Disney expanded to seven nights a week by 1999, and aired late nights from midnight to 6 ;am ET (except on Sunday nights from 1997 to 1999, when the block had a 9 ;pm ET start time on Sundays). The classic programming changed to feature only Disney-produced television series and specials, such as *Zorro*, *Spin and Marty*, *The Mickey Mouse Club*, and the Walt Disney anthology television series, along with older Disney television specials; older Disney feature films also were part of the lineup from 1997 to 2000, but aired in a reduced capacity. The block also featured *The Ink and Paint Club*, featuring classic Disney animated shorts, which became the only remaining program on the channel to feature these shorts by 1999, upon the removal of *Donald's Quack Attack* from the schedule.
* **Disney Replay** – "Disney Replay" is a block that debuted on April 17, 2013, featuring episodes of former Disney Channel Original Series that premiered between 2000 and 2007 (such as *Even Stevens*, *Lizzie McGuire*, *That's So Raven*, and *Cory in the House*). Airing Wednesday nights/early Thursday mornings (as a nod to the popular social media trend "Throwback Thursday"), originally from 12:00 to 1:00 a.m. Eastern and Pacific Time, the block expanded to six hours (running until 6:00 a.m. Eastern/Pacific) on August 14, 2014. Programs featured on Disney Replay were added to the WATCH Disney Channel service on August 16, 2014. The block was discontinued on April 28, 2016 and moved to Freeform on May 2, 2016 called That's So Throwback.
* **Disney XD on Disney Channel** – "Disney XD on Disney Channel" is the defunct branding of two blocks airing on Friday and Saturday nights; an animated block airing Fridays from 9:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., showing series mainly exclusive to Disney XD, such as *Star vs. the Forces of Evil*, *Milo Murphy's Law*, and *DuckTales*, and a live-action block airing Saturdays from 10:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m., airing series, such as *MECH-X4* and *Walk the Prank*. It was discontinued as Disney XD's carriage became equivalent to that of Disney Channel.

## Ratings

In the May 2010 Nielsen ratings, Disney Channel ranked No.1 for the 63rd consecutive month in the Kids 6–11 demographic and for the 62nd straight month among Tweens 9–14. Disney Channel is ranked as the second most watched cable channel among total viewers during primetime, behind USA Network in first place with an average of 2.8 million people.

According to Nielsen Media Research, the month of February 2011 had finished as Disney Channel’s most-watched February sweeps period in Total Day ratings in the network's history ever, earning an average of 1.7 million viewers among Total Viewers, along with 590,000 viewers with a 2.1 rating share among Kids 6–11 and 459,000 viewers with a 1.9 rating share among Tweens 6–9; 9–15; among the first two demos, the channel posted its 14th consecutive month of year-to-year gains in both demos. First-run episodes of *Shake It Up*, *Wizards of Waverly Place*, and *Good Luck Charlie* earned six of television’s top 10 telecasts that month in key child demographics, with *Phineas and Ferb* ranked as the No.1 animated series on TV among Kids 6–11 and tweens 9–14 for that month and *Mickey Mouse Clubhouse* ranked among TV’s top 10 programs for that month in Playhouse Disney's Kids 2–5 target demographic.

## Sister channels

### Current networks

#### Disney XD

Main article: Disney XD

Disney XD is a digital cable and satellite television channel in the United States, which is aimed at males aged 7–14. The channel was launched on February 13, 2009, replacing predecessor Toon Disney, carrying action and comedy programming from Disney Channel and the former Jetix block from Toon Disney along with some first-run original programming and off-network syndicated shows. Like its predecessor Toon Disney and unlike parent network Disney Channel, Disney XD is ad-supported. The channel carries the same name as an unrelated mini-site and media player on Disney.com, which stood for Disney Xtreme Digital, though the "XD" in the channel's name is stated to not have an actual meaning.

#### Disney Junior

Main article: Disney Junior

On May 26, 2010, Disney-ABC Television Group announced the launch of a new 24-hour preschool-targeted digital cable and satellite channel as Disney Junior, which launched on March 23, 2012; the Disney Junior channel (which will be commercial-free, like parent network Disney Channel but unlike SOAPnet, which is replaced, and Disney XD) will compete with other preschooler-skewing cable channels, such as Nick Jr. and PBS Kids Sprout (now Universal Kids). The channel will feature programs from Disney Channel's existing library of preschool programs and movies from the Walt Disney Pictures film library.

Disney Junior will take over the channel space currently held by Disney-ABC Television Group-owned SOAPnet (a channel airing soap operas), with the closure of SOAPnet citing the continued decrease in popularity of the soap opera genre on broadcast television and the growth of video on demand (including the online streaming availability for soap operas) and digital video recorders negating the need for a linear channel devoted to the format. The former Playhouse Disney block on Disney Channel was re-branded as Disney Junior on February 14, 2011, followed by the 22 existing cable channels and program blocks bearing the Playhouse Disney name outside the United States also being re-branded to Disney Junior, concluding with the re-branding of Playhouse Disney in Russia on September 1, 2013. Disney had recently announced plans for a preschool-targeted network in the United States in 2001, however the planned Playhouse Disney Channel did never come to fruition, though dedicated Playhouse Disney Channels did launch internationally.

### Former networks

#### Toon Disney

Main article: Toon Disney

This television channel, that launched on April 18, 1998, was aimed at children ages 6–12; the network's main competition were WarnerMedia's Cartoon Network and Boomerang, and ViacomCBS's Nicktoons. Unlike Disney Channel, Toon Disney was an advertiser-supported cable channel. The channel carried a format of reruns of Walt Disney Television Animation and Disney Channel-produced animated programming, along with some third-party programming, animated films, and original programming. In 2002, the channel debuted a nighttime program block aimed at children ages 7–14 called Jetix, which featured action-oriented animated and live-action series. During Toon Disney's first year on the air, Disney Channel ran a sampler block of Toon Disney programming on Sunday nights for interested subscribers. The network ceased operations and was relaunched as the preteen male-oriented Disney XD, featuring a broader array of programming, on February 13, 2009.

### Other services

##### Current

* **Disney Channel HD** is a high definition simulcast feed, broadcasting a moderate amount of Disney Channel's programming in 720p HD (Disney/ABC Television Group's standard resolution format for its HD simulcast channels); it began broadcasting on March 19, 2008. Most of the channel's post-2009 program content is broadcast in high definition, along with feature films produced by Walt Disney Pictures and other film studios, Disney Channel original movies made after 2005 and select episodes, films, and series produced before 2009. Many cable providers carry the HD simulcast feed, along with DirecTV, AT&T U-verse, and Verizon FiOS. Dish Network currently does not carry the Disney/ABC Cable Networks' HD simulcast channels due to a re-transmission consent dispute with the Walt Disney Company.
* **Disney Channel On Demand** is the channel's video-on-demand service, offering select episodes of the channel's original series and Disney Junior programming, along with select original movies and behind-the-scenes features to digital cable and IPTV providers.
* **Watch Disney Channel** is a website for desktop computers, as well as an application for smartphones and tablet computers that allows subscribers of participating cable and satellite providers (such as Comcast Xfinity and Cox Communications) to watch live streams of Disney Channel's programming on computers and mobile devices via their TV Everywhere log in provided by their cable provider; the service is also available through Apple TV and Roku streaming players. Individual episodes of the channel's series, along with additional content, such as behind-the-scenes features also are available. Unlike the "WATCH" app for sister network Freeform (which since January 7, 2014, no longer allows streaming access to any of that channel's programming by anyone that does not subscribe to a participating cable or satellite provider that supports the service), non-Disney Channel subscribers are able to access a limited inventory of episodes of the channel's original series without requiring a login code to view. In 2017, the mobile app was merged with Watch Disney XD and Watch Disney Junior into DisneyNOW.
* **DisneyNOW** is a TV Everywhere service app for iOS and Android. The app allows users to watch the content from Disney Channel, Junior, XD, and Radio Disney.
* **Disney+** is a subscription video on-demand streaming service owned and operated by the Direct-to-Consumer & International (DTCI) division of The Walt Disney Company. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced by The Walt Disney Studios and Walt Disney Television, with the service advertising content from Disney's Marvel, National Geographic, Pixar, and *Star Wars* brands in particular.

##### Former

* **Disney Family Movies** is a defunct subscription video-on-demand service that launched on December 10, 2008. The service offers a limited selection of movies and short films from the Walt Disney Pictures film catalog for a fee of about $5 to $10 per month, making it similar in structure to Disney Channel's original model as a premium service. Disney Family Movies was discontinued on October 31, 2019, prior to the launch of the video on-demand streaming service Disney+, which offers a wider film selection and is not confined to cable on-demand providers.

## Criticism

Disney Channel has received some criticism for their current programming direction. Experts criticize the company for programming that has pulled away from the characters that the network's parent company, the Walt Disney Company was based on: Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy, and thus some of Disney's most loyal fans have gone so far to say that the network is no longer truly a *Disney* Channel. Other critics disapprove of the marketing strategy made by Anne Sweeney, the President of ABC-Disney Television Group, which makes the programs on Disney Channel geared mainly toward pre-teen girls and teenage girls. Sweeney had also said that the main goal of the programming on Disney Channel was not solely to entertain, but to also make money, officially stating that Disney Channel would be "the major profit driver for the (Walt Disney) Company." Template:Citation needed

Most fans criticized the channel's ack of animated programs and its overreliance on sitcoms, particularly during the early-to-mid 2010s when most animated programs were transferred to Disney XD, forcing viewers to get the premium channel to access this type of programs, when other networks, like Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon simply have animated programs on their main channels without the need to access their respective extra channels, Boomerang and Nicktoons. This however has began to change towards the end of the decade, as most animated programs, such as *Star vs. the Forces of Evil* Season 4, *DuckTales* Season 2, and *Amphibia* began to premiere their episodes on Disney Channel rather than Disney XD, most likely due to the declining ratings on both channels and televisions shows in general, with people tending to favor online streaming services, like Netflix, rather than television cable.

The channel has also pulled episodes (even once having to re-shoot an episode) that featured subject matter either deemed inappropriate due to its humor, the timing of the episode's airing with real-life events or subject matter considered inappropriate for Disney Channel's target audience. In December 2008, the *Hannah Montana* episode "No Sugar, Sugar" (which was intended as the finale of the show's second season) was pulled before its originally scheduled broadcast date after complaints from parents who saw an on-demand version of the episode over misconceptions about Type I diabetes the Mitchel Musso character of Oliver Oken is revealed to have been diagnosed with in the episode.

Portions of the original episode were subsequently rewritten and re-filmed to become the season three episode "Uptight (Oliver's Alright)", which aired 10 months later in September 2009. In December 2011, Disney Channel has pulled an episode from its original series *Shake It Up*, titled "Party It Up". The network had also pulled an episode from its other original series *So Random!*, titled "Colbie Caillat". They both were pulled from the network's airing cycle due to eating disorder references. On May 17, 2013, a new episode of *Jessie*, titled "Quitting Cold Koala" was pulled due to a gluten free diet reference. Like the *Hannah Montana* episode, an on-demand preview was seen, parents were mad, and the episode was pulled from its airing schedule. On July 5, 2013, the episode aired, with the gluten free diet references edited out.

## Branding

From 1983 to 1997, Disney Channel's logo involves a Mickey Mouse head inside a TV screen. When the network split in 1997, a new logo was launched, with a 1930s Mickey Mouse inside a Mickey Mouse-shaped TV. The logo was slightly modified in 1999. In October 2002, a logo that was designed by CA Square was adopted in the US and in 2003 internationally, which continued until 2010. In 2010, the logo was altered to look better in HD Widescreen format, the original 2002 logo was encased inside a rounded box. On May 23, 2014, a new logo was given for the channel that removed the box, and the mouse ears were used on top of the title of the "i" in "Disney" instead of being encased in it.

## Video Games

### Dance Dance Revolution Disney Channel Edition

Main article: Dance Dance Revolution Disney Channel Edition

Dance Dance Revolution Disney Channel Edition is the first game based on the Disney Channel shows. Core gameplay remains mostly the same on *Disney Channel Edition*, until the song list consists mostly of songs from Disney Channel programming, including songs from *Hannah Montana*, *The Cheetah Girls*, *High School Musical*, *That's So Raven*, *Kim Possible*, and *The Suite Life of Zack & Cody*.

### Disney Channel All Star Party

Main article: Disney Channel All Star Party

Disney Channel All Star Party is a mascot treasure hunt party game that brings together several characters from the Disney Channel Multiverse in one epic roundup that plays very similarly to Nintendo's *Mario Party* video game series. Players can experience places from Disney Channel shows in a board game style. They can also play up to 30 minigames based on the Disney Channel shows. They can choose any of the Disney Channel character they like.

### Disney Channel All Star House Party

Main article: Disney Channel All Star House Party

Disney Channel All Star House Party is a party game which plays very similarly to Nintendo's *WarioWare* video game series. The game focuses on House Party Games, which are short games that last for about five seconds. The game is broken up into stages, each represented by a *Disney Channel* character and loosely connected by a story, with the House Party Games divided among the stages based on the Disney Channel shows.

## International

Main article: Disney Channels Worldwide

Disney Channel has established its channels in various countries worldwide including Canada, South Africa, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, India, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, Scandinavia, the Baltic states, United Kingdom, Ireland, the Caribbean, the Netherlands, Israel, and Flanders. Disney Channel also licenses its programming to air on certain other broadcast and cable channels outside the United States (previously like Family Channel in Canada), regardless as to whether an international version of Disney Channel exists in the country.

## Announcers

* Cam Brainard (2001 - 2016)
* Liza del Mundo (2001 - 2007)
* Mandy Kaplan (2004-2007)
* Jarrad Hewett (2015 - 2018)
* Jim Pratt (2009 - present)
* Jim Cutler (2020 - present)

## Network slogans

* *Everything You've Ever Imagined. And More.* (April 18, 1983–September 1983)
* *Family Entertainment You Can Trust.* (September 1983 – 1985)
* *For the Family. All of It.* (1985–1986)
* *Disney's Our Channel* (1986–1987)
* *America's Family Network* (1987–1997)
* *Our Stars, Your Place. Everyday.* (1997–2002)
* *Express Yourself* (2001–2007; January 1, 2012 - May 26, 2016)
* *Made Just for You* (2002–2009; January 1, 2012 – March 30, 2016)
* *You're Watching Disney Channel!* (June 1, 2003 – present)
* *Dreams Come True* (2009; January 1, 2012 – May 26, 2016)
* *Believe in Yourself* (2001-September 13, 2006; January 1–February 2, 2010; January 1, 2012 – May 26, 2016)
* *Follow Your Dreams* (2001-September 13, 2006; February 2–May 28, 2010; January 1, 2012 – May 26, 2016)
* *It's On!* (May 28–September 7, 2010; for summer programming campaign)
* *The Best Place To Be.* (September 7, 2010–present)
* *Sizzling Summer* (June 2011–September 5, 2011 for summer programming campaign)
* *It's Monstober!* (October 1, 2011–October 31, 2016, for Halloween programming campaign)
* *Celebrate Family* (2001-September 4, 2006: January 1, 2012 – 2016)