Toon Disney to Relaunch as Disney XD, Channel will be Aimed at Boys Ages 6-14 - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Zoneboy · 08-06-2008, 07:43 PM

Link

Someday, Disney hopes its princes will come.

The entertainment giant, which has made billions catering to the princess fantasies of young girls, plans to relaunch Toon Disney as Disney XD as a cable channel targeting boys. The move, under wraps for more than a year, is an attempt by the company to capture a market that has long eluded it.

Starting in February, Disney XD will seek to become to young dudes what the Disney Channel, with its lineup of tweeny bopper programs such as "High School Musical," "Hannah Montana" and "Camp Rock" is to girls. Disney XD, aiming squarely at boys ages 6 to 14, will offer original action-adventure and comedy series, movies, animation and sports-themed shows developed with Walt Disney Co.-owned ESPN.

"What was clear to me, and clear to us, is we had a huge opportunity to create content that were boys' favorites," said Rich Ross, president of Disney Channels Worldwide.

Tween boys, ages 9 to 14, account for about $50 billion in spending worldwide, said Greg Kahn, senior vice president of strategic insights for media buying firm Optimedia International USA Inc.. Advertisers are eager to reach these young consumers, not just snag a portion of their disposable income, but to build a loyalty that they hope will extend into even more free-spending teen years, he said.

But the Disney Channel has struggled for years to find the right programming formula to lure boys, who tend to gravitate to Viacom's Nickelodeon and Time Warner's Cartoon Network -- that is, when they're not spending time playing video games. The Disney Channel's popular live-action shows, from its early tween phenomenon, "Lizzie McGuire," through its current pop-culture sensation, "Hannah Montana," mainly attract girls. Efforts to bring in more boys, through male-led series such as "Even Stevens" or "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody," still haven't succeeded enough to close the gender gap between female and male viewers. Animation, traditionally a draw for boys, has been a struggle for Disney Channel, although its newest series, "Phineas and Ferb," appears to be building a strong male following. But so far, the network has failed to produce a blockbuster to compete with Nickelodeon's "SpongeBob SquarePants;" or match the guy-centric focus of Cartoon Network, which one ad-buyer described as the "ESPN" of animation.

"You're fighting the brand perception, the very, very strong brand equity that's been in the marketplace for many, many years," Kahn said of the Disney Channel. "It would almost require a complelely separate effort to reach tween boys, with a completely different name somehow associated with the Disney property, to reach these tween males."

None of this is news to Ross, who, with his executive team, spent more than a yearwith focus groups pondering the eternal verities: "What do boys want?"

The answer, perhaps not surprisingly, is that boys want it all. "What we heard, loud and clear, is they expect from Disney this broad array," Ross said, with programs running the gamut from animation to action-adventure to comedy. "They expect from Disney the whole thing, including movies." In short, tween boys are looking for more than a show or two wedged in the midst of the musical theater-inspired programs that have come to define the Disney Channel. They want, Disney says, a channel they can call their own.

"They want a place, essentially a headquarters for them where their favorite content exists, that has this broad array of shapes and sizes and tenors and complexities, and treats them with the respect that Disney Channel treats all kids, and the girls are fanatical about," Ross said.

Instead of tinkering with what works -- The Disney Channel, which has spawned two billion-dollar creative franchises in High School Musical and Hannah -- Ross elected to relaunch a struggling cable asset, Toon Disney, into this destination for boys.

Toon Disney pulls only 10% to 15% of the viewers of Disney Channel, despite the cable network's reach into nearly 70 million U.S. households. The Nielsen ratings reflect its hodgepodge lineup of geriatric kids shows, such as as "Power Rangers Jungle Fury" and recycled animated offerings such as "Batman: The Animated Series," and "Jackie Chan Adventures," and movies.

As the rebranded Disney XD, the ad-supported cable network will boast original series, such as "Aaron Stone," a live-action show about a video game virtuoso who leads a secret double life as a crime fighter. The show boils down to a male fantasy version of "Hannah Montana," in which an ordinary teen leads a double life as a rock star.

Former "The Wonder Years" child star Fred Savage directed the pilot for "Mongoose & Luther," a mock documentary series about two best friends who set out to become the world's greatest skateboarders. The project was created by Matt Dearborn and Tom Burkhard, who worked on Disney Channel's "Even Stevens."

Established animated series, from "Phineas and Ferb," to "Batman: The Animated Series," will air on Disney XD alongside new offerings, such as RoboDz, a short-form series developed in partnership with Toei Animation Co. Ltd. of Japan, in which robotic life forms defend Earth from space invaders.

Plans for an online presence and mobile offerings are also in the works.

"We know we have a huge opportunity to take that asset and make it every bit as powerful as Disney Channel or Playhouse Disney," Ross said.

PrettyinPink55 · 08-07-2008, 01:35 AM

I hope they still run Recess and start airing Pepper Ann again, although Pepper Ann may be more of a girl show?

Chelsea · 08-07-2008, 03:04 AM

Toon Disney's suffered a slow and painful decline in watchability for years. This is just throwing what's left into the woodchipper.

PrettyinPink55 · 08-07-2008, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Seth

Toon Disney's suffered a slow and painful decline in watchability for years. This is just throwing what's left into the woodchipper.

That doesn't surprise me. I only watch it for Recess. I wish they'd put back Pepper Ann.

GolfDude · 08-07-2008, 11:48 AM

they need to have the classics like ducktales and chip and dale full time again as well..

MrCleveland · 08-07-2008, 03:50 PM

Let us write a Petition to Disney and have a Classic Disney TV and Movie Channel.

DSfan · 08-07-2008, 04:27 PM

That is a great idea!^^

When I was younger I always thought that Pepper Ann was a guy lol

wew3 · 08-07-2008, 07:53 PM

They should just ditch the idea of catering exclusively to boys. They make a bazillion dollars anyway on the girl shows. Anyway the ratings reflect millions of people watching things like Hannah Montana and High School Musical and boys are definitely in that bracket along with parents and creepy old dudes

MrCleveland · 08-08-2008, 12:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DSfan

That is a great idea!^^

When I was younger I always thought that Pepper Ann was a guy lol

I thought her sister was a guy.

That would be a great mash-up, Austin Powers dates Pepper Ann's mom. He sees Moose, punches her, and says "That isn't a girl, it's a man, man".

PrettyinPink55 · 08-08-2008, 02:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrCleveland

I thought her sister was a guy.

That would be a great mash-up, Austin Powers dates Pepper Ann's mom. He sees Moose, punches her, and says "That isn't a girl, it's a man, man".

Moose definetly looks like a guy!!!

08-06-2008, 07:43 PM	#1
Zoneboy RIP, I'LL NEVER FORGET YOU :( Moderator Forum Superstar Join Date: Jul 13, 2003 Location: AT HOME WISHING ALL THIS WAS JUST A DREAM AND THAT I'LL WAKE UP FROM THIS NIGHTMARE. Posts: 34,416	Toon Disney to Relaunch as Disney XD, Channel will be Aimed at Boys Ages 6-14 Link Someday, Disney hopes its princes will come. The entertainment giant, which has made billions catering to the princess fantasies of young girls, plans to relaunch Toon Disney as Disney XD as a cable channel targeting boys. The move, under wraps for more than a year, is an attempt by the company to capture a market that has long eluded it. Starting in February, Disney XD will seek to become to young dudes what the Disney Channel, with its lineup of tweeny bopper programs such as "High School Musical," "Hannah Montana" and "Camp Rock" is to girls. Disney XD, aiming squarely at boys ages 6 to 14, will offer original action-adventure and comedy series, movies, animation and sports-themed shows developed with Walt Disney Co.-owned ESPN. "What was clear to me, and clear to us, is we had a huge opportunity to create content that were boys' favorites," said Rich Ross, president of Disney Channels Worldwide. Tween boys, ages 9 to 14, account for about $50 billion in spending worldwide, said Greg Kahn, senior vice president of strategic insights for media buying firm Optimedia International USA Inc.. Advertisers are eager to reach these young consumers, not just snag a portion of their disposable income, but to build a loyalty that they hope will extend into even more free-spending teen years, he said. But the Disney Channel has struggled for years to find the right programming formula to lure boys, who tend to gravitate to Viacom's Nickelodeon and Time Warner's Cartoon Network -- that is, when they're not spending time playing video games. The Disney Channel's popular live-action shows, from its early tween phenomenon, "Lizzie McGuire," through its current pop-culture sensation, "Hannah Montana," mainly attract girls. Efforts to bring in more boys, through male-led series such as "Even Stevens" or "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody," still haven't succeeded enough to close the gender gap between female and male viewers. Animation, traditionally a draw for boys, has been a struggle for Disney Channel, although its newest series, "Phineas and Ferb," appears to be building a strong male following. But so far, the network has failed to produce a blockbuster to compete with Nickelodeon's "SpongeBob SquarePants;" or match the guy-centric focus of Cartoon Network, which one ad-buyer described as the "ESPN" of animation. "You're fighting the brand perception, the very, very strong brand equity that's been in the marketplace for many, many years," Kahn said of the Disney Channel. "It would almost require a complelely separate effort to reach tween boys, with a completely different name somehow associated with the Disney property, to reach these tween males." None of this is news to Ross, who, with his executive team, spent more than a yearwith focus groups pondering the eternal verities: "What do boys want?" The answer, perhaps not surprisingly, is that boys want it all. "What we heard, loud and clear, is they expect from Disney this broad array," Ross said, with programs running the gamut from animation to action-adventure to comedy. "They expect from Disney the whole thing, including movies." In short, tween boys are looking for more than a show or two wedged in the midst of the musical theater-inspired programs that have come to define the Disney Channel. They want, Disney says, a channel they can call their own. "They want a place, essentially a headquarters for them where their favorite content exists, that has this broad array of shapes and sizes and tenors and complexities, and treats them with the respect that Disney Channel treats all kids, and the girls are fanatical about," Ross said. Instead of tinkering with what works -- The Disney Channel, which has spawned two billion-dollar creative franchises in High School Musical and Hannah -- Ross elected to relaunch a struggling cable asset, Toon Disney, into this destination for boys. Toon Disney pulls only 10% to 15% of the viewers of Disney Channel, despite the cable network's reach into nearly 70 million U.S. households. The Nielsen ratings reflect its hodgepodge lineup of geriatric kids shows, such as as "Power Rangers Jungle Fury" and recycled animated offerings such as "Batman: The Animated Series," and "Jackie Chan Adventures," and movies. As the rebranded Disney XD, the ad-supported cable network will boast original series, such as "Aaron Stone," a live-action show about a video game virtuoso who leads a secret double life as a crime fighter. The show boils down to a male fantasy version of "Hannah Montana," in which an ordinary teen leads a double life as a rock star. Former "The Wonder Years" child star Fred Savage directed the pilot for "Mongoose & Luther," a mock documentary series about two best friends who set out to become the world's greatest skateboarders. The project was created by Matt Dearborn and Tom Burkhard, who worked on Disney Channel's "Even Stevens." Established animated series, from "Phineas and Ferb," to "Batman: The Animated Series," will air on Disney XD alongside new offerings, such as RoboDz, a short-form series developed in partnership with Toei Animation Co. Ltd. of Japan, in which robotic life forms defend Earth from space invaders. Plans for an online presence and mobile offerings are also in the works. "We know we have a huge opportunity to take that asset and make it every bit as powerful as Disney Channel or Playhouse Disney," Ross said.
	__________________ 'Twas The Night Before Christmas And All Through The Full House Not A Creature Was Stirring, Not Even Mighty Mouse. All My Children We're Nestled All Snug In Their Beds While Visions Of Sugarbakers Danced In Their Heads.

08-07-2008, 01:35 AM	#2
PrettyinPink55 Member Forum Celebrity Join Date: Feb 11, 2005 Location: Texas Posts: 24,601	I hope they still run Recess and start airing Pepper Ann again, although Pepper Ann may be more of a girl show?
	__________________ ♥♥♥

08-07-2008, 03:04 AM	#3
Chelsea Semi-retired Forum Veteran Join Date: Jan 07, 2001 Location: Washington Posts: 5,727	Toon Disney's suffered a slow and painful decline in watchability for years. This is just throwing what's left into the woodchipper.
	__________________ Chelsea Former Administrator, 2005-2012 Former Member, DVD Review Team, 2004-2010.

08-07-2008, 03:50 PM	#6
MrCleveland Drew Carey from Hell Forum Star Join Date: Nov 10, 2007 Location: The City of Cleveland, in The State of Cleveland, in The United States of Cleveland Posts: 14,232	Let us write a Petition to Disney and have a Classic Disney TV and Movie Channel.
	__________________ Thank God for kids that love Obscure Things. Lee Hazlewood (1929-2007) You ARE Special to God! Rev. Ernest Angely (August 1921-May 2021)

08-07-2008, 11:48 AM	#5
GolfDude Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Oct 24, 2006 Posts: 118	they need to have the classics like ducktales and chip and dale full time again as well..

08-07-2008, 04:27 PM	#7
DSfan Member Senior Member Join Date: Sep 15, 2006 Location: Canada Posts: 1,204	That is a great idea!^^ When I was younger I always thought that Pepper Ann was a guy lol

08-07-2008, 07:53 PM	#8
wew3 Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Mar 03, 2003 Posts: 166	They should just ditch the idea of catering exclusively to boys. They make a bazillion dollars anyway on the girl shows. Anyway the ratings reflect millions of people watching things like Hannah Montana and High School Musical and boys are definitely in that bracket along with parents and creepy old dudes