Disney XD
| Disney XD | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Launched | February 13, 2009 |
| Owned by |
Disney Channels Worldwide (Disney–ABC Television Group) (Disney Media Networks) (The Walt Disney Company) |
| Picture format |
720p (HDTV) (480i center cut for SDTVs) |
| Slogan | "The Future Is Now!" |
| Country | United States |
| Language |
English Spanish (via SAP audio track) |
| Broadcast area |
Nationwide International |
| Headquarters | Burbank, California |
| Replaced |
Toon Disney Jetix |
| Sister channel(s) |
Disney Channel Disney Junior Freeform ESPN ABC |
| Website |
disneyxd |
Availability | |
| Satellite | |
| DirecTV |
292 (HD/SD) 1292 (VOD) |
| Dish Network | 174 (SD Only) |
| C band |
AMC 11 - Channel 45 (4DTV Digital) AMC 18 - Channel 13 (H2H 4DTV) |
| Cable | |
| Available on most U.S. cable systems | Consult your local cable provider for channel availability |
| IPTV | |
| Verizon FiOS |
781 (HD) 251 (SD) 1722 (Spanish feed) |
| AT&T U-verse |
1304 (HD) 304 (SD) 3052 (Spanish feed) |
| Google Fiber | 428 (HD/SD) |
| Streaming media | |
| Sling TV | Internet Protocol television |
| PlayStation Vue | Internet Protocol television |
Disney XD is an American digital cable and satellite television channel that is owned by the Disney Channels Worldwide unit of the Disney–ABC Television Group, itself a unit of the Disney Media Networks division of The Walt Disney Company. Aimed primarily at pre-teens and young teenagers, its programming consists of original first-run television series, current and former original series and made-for-cable films from sister network Disney Channel, theatrically-released films, and acquired programs from other distributors.
The channel offers an alternate Spanish language audio feed, either via a separate channel as part of a package of Spanish television networks sold by cable and satellite providers or a separate audio track accessible through the SAP option, depending on the provider.
As of February 2015, Disney XD is available to approximately 80,120,000 pay television households (68.8% of households with at least one television set) in the United States.[1]
History
Launching
Disney XD was launched on February 13, 2009 at 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time, with the Phineas and Ferb episode "Dude, We're Getting the Band Back Together!" as its first program. The channel debuted its first original series, Aaron Stone, at 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time that day; the first part of the two-part premiere episode aired simultaneously on Disney XD and Disney Channel. New animated series included in the channel's initial lineup were Kid vs. Kat and Jimmy Two-Shoes.[2]
The network took over the channel space of Toon Disney, an animation-focused channel that debuted on April 18, 1998, which eventually launched a live-action/animation block called Jetix in 2004; Jetix channels outside of the United States were relaunched under the Disney XD brand starting with the France-based service on April 1, 2009.[3] Many of the channel's programs – particularly animated series – previously aired on Toon Disney, mainly as part of the Jetix program block, which ran on Toon Disney until that channel's shutdown. Disney XD carries the same name as an unrelated mini-site and media player on Disney.com, which stood for Disney Xtreme Digital,[4] though it has been stated that the "XD" in the channel's name does not have an actual meaning.
The channel's first original television movie, Skyrunners, premiered on November 27, 2009.[5] On April 1, 2012, Disney XD launched a block called "Marvel Universe", as a result of Disney's 2009 acquisition of Marvel Entertainment.[6] In mid-2012, Disney created Disney Shows, a YouTube channel that hosts episodes of Disney Channel and Disney XD series and shorts (Disney XD series available on the channel include Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil, Kickin' It, Pair of Kings, and Zeke and Luther).[7]
Programming
Disney XD's schedule consists largely of animated and live-action programs aimed at pre-teens and young teenagers. Disney XD content is a mixture original series as well as programs inherited from sister network, The Disney Channel. In addition to full-length live-action and animated original series, the channel also debuts short series similar to those seen on Disney Channel during commercial breaks (such as Two More Eggs), which serve as filler for programs scheduled to end during the half-hour and last usually around one to three. The channel also airs a youth-oriented "plays of the week" countdown segment called SportsCenter High-5, which is produced by ESPN's SportsCenter and airs periodically between shows; it also airs a short series featuring edited segments of ABC's Wipeout. Often, these shows are televised in the last two minutes of the program, with the exception of the Disney XD Shortstop, or following the ending of a movie.
A notable aspect of Disney XD's original series is that they tend to feature predominately male casts, and as such, its original programs feature very few females as main characters (with most live-action originals typically featuring only one female in its main cast, an exception to this was the upcoming new show Mech-X4, which didn't feature any females in its main cast and the 2012-2014 sitcom Crash & Bernstein, Kirby Buckets, & Lab Rats: Elite Force, which featured a predominately female cast) in comparison to Disney Channel's original programs, which tend to feature female leads in most of their series and generally balanced casts.
New episodes of animated original series are usually aired on Monday nights, while new episodes of live-action original series air on Wednesday nights. In addition, Disney XD airs original made-for-TV movies from Disney Channel and theatrically released feature films, but unlike Disney Channel, Disney XD typically does not air these movies in prime time; instead, films generally air during the late afternoon hours at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time with double features airing a few times a week.
Unlike Disney Channel (and similarly, fellow sister network Disney Junior) – whose advertising comes in the form of program promotions, underwriter sponsorships, and interstitials for Disney films, home video and game releases produced by the channel[8] – Disney XD operates as an advertiser-supported service running traditional television commercials in addition to promotions for the channel's shows.
Programming blocks
Current
|
|
Former
- Randomation Animation – Randomation Animation was a morning animation block on Saturdays from 8:30 to 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time, which debuted on July 13, 2013. Programs featured in the block include Packages from Planet X, Camp Lakebottom, Max Steel, Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja, and Phineas and Ferb Musical Cliptastic Countdown.[12]
Related services
| Service | Description |
|---|---|
 | Disney XD HD is a high definition simulcast of the Disney XD channel that broadcasts in the 720p resolution format (the recommended HD format for the Disney-ABC Television Group's broadcast and cable properties); the HD feed launched with the standard definition feed of the channel on February 13, 2009. Disney XD's original programming is produced and broadcast in HD, along with feature films, Disney Channel original movies made after 2005 and select episodes, films and series produced before 2009. The HD feed is carried regionally on most cable providers (such as Time Warner Cable, Cablevision, Cox Communications and Comcast Xfinity), IPTV providers Verizon FiOS, AT&T U-verse and Google Fiber, and nationally on satellite provider DirecTV. |
| Disney XD On Demand | Disney XD On Demand is the channel's video-on-demand service, offering select episodes of Disney XD's original series and certain acquired programs to digital cable and IPTV providers. |
| Disney XD App | Formerly known as "WATCH Disney XD" until a June 2016 rebranding, the mobile app and digital media player apps for Disney XD offer live and on-demand streaming of Disney XD content online. These apps require users to authenticate with a login from a participating television service provider for access to live video or the newest episodes of a series, though a limited selection of free episodes also are available without a login. |
International channels
Disney XD, similarly born of a merger between Jetix and Toon Disney, is available around the world.
See also
References
- ↑ Seidman, Robert (February 22, 2015). "List of how many homes each cable network is in as of February 2015". TV by the Numbers. Zap2it. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
- ↑ Haugsted, Linda (January 7, 2009). "Disney XD Unwraps on Friday the 13th (Archive)". MultiChannel News. Archived from the original on June 16, 2011. Retrieved 2013-12-02.
- ↑ "French Jetix becomes Disney XD". Broadband TV News. 2009-02-16.
- ↑ Disney to offer safe social site for kids, Chicago Tribune (via HighBeam Research), January 17, 2007.
- ↑ Moody, Annemarie (April 7, 2009). "Production Begins on Disney XD's Skyrunners, Weta Handles Creatures". Animation World Network. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
- 1 2 3 Truitt, Brian (March 7, 2012). "'Ultimate Spider-Man' leads Disney XD's new superhero series". AZ Central. Gannett. USA TODAY. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
- ↑ "Disney Shows". YouTube. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
- ↑ Now that Duff's had enough...: is it time for Disney Channel to cash in and rethink no-ads strategy?, Daily Variety, June 6, 2003. Retrieved April 15, 2013.
- ↑ "Marvel Calls "Avengers Assemble" On DisneyXD". May 23, 2013. Retrieved June 9, 2013.
- ↑ White, Peter (June 26, 2012). "Disney XD launches Marvel block across EMEA". TBI Vision. Informa Telecoms & Media. Retrieved August 5, 2014.
- ↑ Ng, Philiana (October 10, 2014). "'Guardians of the Galaxy' Animated TV Series Coming in 2015". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on October 10, 2014. Retrieved October 10, 2014.
- ↑ Wolfe, Jennifer (July 12, 2013). "Disney XD Kicks Off 'Randomation' Block". Animation World Network. Retrieved August 5, 2014.