A major Disney Channel network has been shut down in North America after nearly 15 years of being on the air. As broadcast viewing habits continue to change in the modern era thanks to not only the increased availability of streaming, but the rise of short form media content, traditional television networks have been changing a great deal in the wake of those shifts. It’s meant that some channels have found new ways to survive the changes, and some others have unfortunately been shut down as networks change licenses or plans. That’s been especially true for children’s media related programs and networks.
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Following reports from earlier this Summer, Corus Entertainment has officially shut down Disney XD in Canada nearly 15 years since it aired in the territory. The previous report from the Summer teased that Corus Entertainment was going to be shutting down the channel in the region due to financial pressure, and that has unfortunately come to pass as of September 1st. @forever_gf618 on X even shared footage of the channel’s final moments in the region with a final airing of Milo Murphy’s Law. Check it out:
What Happened to Disney XD?
Disney XD has always been a surprising spinoff of the main Disney Channel brand. It’s had a few identities over the years, with the eventual Disney XD brand hoping to appeal more to teens with its programming and packaging. As for its Canadian counterpart, it first launched in the region back in 2011 and ran for four years before its broadcast rights were acquired by Corus Entertainment in 2015 along with the other Disney Channel brands. While Corus Entertainment will continue to broadcast Disney XD’s programming with their main Disney Channel, this is still a major loss of a dwindling brand around the world.
Disney XD is still available for broadcast in the United States, but now that this version of the channel has shut down in Canada, the only other international territory offering Disney XD is Poland. The final episode of Milo Murphy’s Law aired with the network was “Picture Day / Agee Ientee Diogee,” but then was quickly followed by dead air featuring the Corus Entertainment logo as the programming guide itself confirmed that the channel was no longer available.
Should Fans Be Worried About the Disney Channel?
With a major loss like this it might bring it some worry about the health for the Disney Channel overall. It’s likely not going to be in any real danger anytime soon, but this is a reflection of just how much broadcast television is changing around the world. Because younger viewers have especially moved onto more short form content or streaming platforms (Bluey was one of the most streamed shows of the last year, after all), it’s meant that broadcast networks are going to need to pare down their offerings and likely shuffle things around because of that decrease in overall revenue.
The Disney Channel is a very strong brand even with all of these changes, and it’s likely not going to go anywhere as long as broadcast and cable television continues to exist in some form. Streaming platforms have begun to even morph more to become like those cable offerings (with Disney+ itself kicking off 24/7 programmed livestreams to parallel flipping through channels), so habits seem to be even moving back the other way. It’s going to be a time of change, so animation fans just need to keep an eye out for just how much is going to change from now on.
HT – @forever_gf618
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