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Channel Closure: WildEarth Will Stop Airing On DStv By The End Of April, Freeview And ROKU Might Follow Soon
WildEarth is an interactive wildlife channel which brings viewers closer to nature with live safaris within the hotspot of Africa. Founded i...
Thursday, February 29, 2024
Development Alert: Disney Junior To Close In Scandinavia By The End Of March, Merges With Disney Channel
Thursday, February 22, 2024
Development Alert: Moonbug's Morphle And The Magic Pets To Rollout On Disney Junior And Disney+ Internationally, Zeptolab's Om Nom Stories To Debut On Disney+
Thursday, February 8, 2024
Recap To Last Month: Disney Junior Trademark To Be Shortened To DJr
Sunday, February 4, 2024
Recap To The Decade: Disney Channel Remains As The Only Disney Branded Channel In Netherlands, Germany, Hungary, Brazil And Nordic Regions
Saturday, February 3, 2024
News Shorts: MultiChoice Silently Adds SuperSport La Liga To DStv Access Consumers, Eureka! Cancelled After One Season On Disney Junior And Telenovela Channel Phillipines To Close By The End Of February
Tuesday, January 30, 2024
Disney Shorts: Disney Enterprises Might Be Looking To Rebrand Disney Junior, Disney's Journey Alongside Dog And Frog Animated Series Rumoured To Be In Development For Disney Channel And Disney+
Monday, January 22, 2024
Development Alert: Disney Nordic Announce The Closure Of Disney Junior In Denmark While VH1 Is Being Replaced By NickMusic
Could Content Cuts Lead To The Closure/Merger Of Disney Channel And Disney Junior In Europe And Africa Alongside Disney XD In The United States?
Wednesday, January 3, 2024
DStv Without Disney Channel??? Wouldn't Seem Like A Far Fetched Idea At This Point
Tuesday, January 2, 2024
More Channel Closures As The Disney Channel Exits OSN In The Middle East And North Africa, Could More Regions Likely Follow?
Thursday, December 14, 2023
Enjoy Festive Favourite Shows Premieres Across Disney Channels These Holidays Including Brand New Series And Season Premiere In January Across Africa
Friday, November 17, 2023
Reminder: Disney Celebrates Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse Birthdays This November
Saturday, October 28, 2023
Disney Channel And Disney Junior's DISASTROUS 24 Hour Schedule Across Africa In November 2023
Tuesday, September 12, 2023
Schedule: Disney Channel And Disney Junior Across Africa In October 2023
Why The Disney Channel Could Be Shutting Down On DStv And NOT National Geographic And ESPN?
Tuesday, September 5, 2023
Recap To The Year: Disney EMEA Halts Original Programming For The Disney Channels, Further Content Being Distributed By Disney+
Sunday, August 13, 2023
Disney Junior Remains As The Only Disney Branded Television Channel In Turkey, Could This Be The Future For The Disney Channels In Africa?
Disney is set to close their remaining linear offering in Hong Kong, Southeast Asia and Korea before the current financial year ends with more channels seen in Europe set to join with rumours swirling about the potential demise of the Disney Junior channel seen in Turkey.
As mentioned sometime ago, the preschool brand home to shows like Alice's Wonderland Bakery, Mickey Mouse Funhouse, Sofia The First and PJ Masks remains as the only Disney branded channel in the region likely due to the ongoing demand for preschool content.
Disney Channel and Disney XD were sacrificed years prior with further content folded under Disney+. Although, there's not much confirmation on if Disney Junior would join the other Disney branded channels, several feeds for the brand had been closed down in other countries.
This is part of a global effort which has taken sometime for Disney to transition into particularly in parts of Europe where most of their linear offering reside at the moment.
Should Disney Junior remain on for another year what fate should await the feed in Africa as both are managed in the EMEA should Disney Channel get the boot as seen in most parts of the world including Turkey.
Similar to Turkey, Disney Junior has garnered a lot of popularity in Africa so much so that it happens to be the leading preschool brand with such content also in demand. Compared to Disney Channel, it covers more households in Africa as opposed to being catered to a premium audience.
Unlike the Disney Channel, the channel's lineup isn't bombarded with reruns or being used a hub to promote further content from Disney+. Much less had their shows and films taken away from them amidst a season finale as seen with another former channel, FOX.
But I can't say it's in the best position to live on for another couple of years as Bluey took over the channel kind of like how a group of superheroes took over a children's channel. I mean these are popular brands but with Warner streamlining some would think this is the end.
Sunday, August 6, 2023
Disney Channel And Junior Africa's Schedule Dated August 6, 2023
With speculation of a possible closure within the EMEA region, we've monitored their lineup on a month to month basis and compared to previous years it almost looks as if The Disney Channels are prepping for the inevitable.
It's no secret that Disney has been prioritising their direct-to-consumer market or in this case, Disney+. As there's been a decline in households to have viewed their content so Disney+ is one way to keep these consumers onboard.
Of course, it has led to closure of Disney Channels in the UK, Italy, Australia and Asia as they're funneling content away from Disney+ and this has angered consumers so you see where they're getting at in removing these channels.
Below is a weekday schedule for Disney Channel and Disney Junior:
" bold means shows are ending soon or had been cancelled
00:00 The Owl House
00:25 The Owl House
00:50 Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug And Catnoir
01:15 Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug And Catnoir
01:40 Lab Rats: Elite Force
02:05 Walk The Prank
02:30 Walk The Prank
02:55 Vikingskool
03:20 Vikingskool
03:45 Sydney to the Max
04:10 Sydney to the Max
04:35 Walk The Prank
05:00 Lab Rats: Elite Force
05:25 Lab Rats: Elite Force
05:50 Descendants Wicked World
06:00 Vikingskool
06:25 Vikingskool
06:51 Hamster & Gretel
07:15 Hamster & Gretel
07:40 The Owl House
08:05 The Owl House
08:30 Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug And Catnoir
08:55 Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug And Catnoir
09:20 Lab Rats
09:45 Lab Rats
10:10 Sydney to the Max
10:35 Sydney to the Max
11:00 Descendants Wicked World
11:05 Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug And Catnoir
11:30 Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug And Catnoir
11:55 The Ghost and Molly McGee
12:20 The Ghost and Molly McGee
12:45 Big City Greens
13:10 Just Roll with It
13:35 Just Roll with It
14:00 The Ghost and Molly McGee
14:25 The Ghost and Molly McGee
14:50 Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug And Catnoir
15:15 Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug And Catnoir
15:40 The Ghost and Molly McGee
16:05 Lab Rats: Elite Force
16:30 Lab Rats: Elite Force
16:55 Descendants Wicked World
17:00 Big City Greens
17:25 Big City Greens
17:50 Just Roll with It
18:15 Just Roll with It
18:41 Lab Rats
19:06 Lab Rats
19:30 Lab Rats
19:55 Sydney to the Max
20:20 Sydney to the Max
20:45 Bunk'd: Learning The Ropes
21:10 Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug And Catnoir
21:35 Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug And Catnoir
22:00 Lab Rats: Elite Force
22:25 Lab Rats: Elite Force
22:50 Just Roll with It
23:10 Just Roll with It
23:35 Bunk'd: Learning The Ropes
The longest I've watched Disney Channel they've always been nostalgic repeating their shows from the early 2000s but when it came to newer originals those use to take up majority of the daytime if you count catch-up timeslots now it's only 36,7% and that small stake is used to air their most popular show, Miraculous alongside The Ghost And Molly McGee that there isn't much space to include more from their other shows.
Reruns which takes up 63,3% I mean almost 70% has in some stature very little content but it's amazing how such little can actually get this much airtime compared to Cartoon Network which may come with less variety but have shows like Teen Titans GO! and Power Rangers fill up the daytime which can make up that 63,3%.
00:00 Gigantosaurus
00:25 Gigantosaurus
00:50 Gigantosaurus
01:15 Henry Hugglemonster
01:40 Henry Hugglemonster
02:05 Henry Hugglemonster
02:30 Henry Hugglemonster
02:55 Henry Hugglemonster
03:20 Henry Hugglemonster
03:45 Gigantosaurus
04:10 Gigantosaurus
04:35 Henry Hugglemonster
05:00 Henry Hugglemonster
05:30 Henry Hugglemonster
06:00 Gigantosaurus
06:30 Gigantosaurus
07:00 Bluey
07:30 Bluey
08:00 Superkitties
08:30 Mickey Mouse Funhouse
09:00 Spidey and His Amazing Friends
09:30 Firebuds
10:00 Bluey
10:30 Bluey
11:00 Superkitties
11:30 Mickey Mouse Funhouse
12:00 Alice's Wonderland Bakery
12:30 Bluey
13:00 Bluey
13:30 Firebuds
14:00 Firebuds
14:30 Mickey Mouse Funhouse
15:00 Sofia The First
15:30 Superkitties
16:00 Superkitties
16:30 Alice's Wonderland Bakery
17:00 Bluey
17:30 Bluey
18:00 Spidey and His Amazing Friends
18:30 Spidey and His Amazing Friends
19:00 Mickey Mouse Funhouse
19:30 Bluey
20:00 Bluey
20:30 Firebuds
21:00 Superkitties
21:30 Sofia The First
22:00 Sofia The First
22:30 Mickey Mouse Funhouse
23:00 Gigantosaurus
23:30 Gigantosaurus
Disney Junior's current format reacts to what's already been the norm of Cartoon Network which means having their most popular show take over the channel or in this case, Bluey. Similar to CN, you're mostly seeing their current shows which is very little take up the channel.
If it's any consolation, Disney Channel looks better in comparison as there's more variety despite the latter being bombarded with shows once offered by Disney XD.
Thursday, July 20, 2023
What's Happening To The Disney Channel On DStv?
During the year, The Walt Disney Company had been strengthening the reach of Disney+ by using their a vast majority of Disney Channel and Disney Junior to promote a variety of content and this includes Chip'n'Dale: Park Life, Lady And The Tramp and Phineas And Ferb: Candice Against The Universe.
As seen in June, Chip'n'Dale: Park Life had been phased out from Disney Channel for more Miraculous Ladybug. If that doesn't get any worse apparently new episodes were slatted to be broadcast this month alongside The Owl House but due to some restructuring within the Disney stable those were delayed.
Similar to Disney XD, The House Of Mouse merged several feeds of The Disney Channel alongside the preschool component, Disney Junior. It's possible that Chip'n'Dale: Park Life was only removed as consumers hadn't viewed the content as yet similar to Marvel's Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur in Africa.
As to whether these channels are on the verge of closing down, MultiChoice will carry them through (presumably early) 2024 for consumers in Africa but it's unknown whether all the upcoming content such as Zombies: The Re-Animated Series, Primo and even The Little Mermaid will be accessible before that happens.
Another theory is that these channels could live on for a couple more years presumably to just create hype about this content. But I don't think these brands have much of a future as the company hasn't tried distributing their brand to new territories and have other companies manage their content.
I mean if the goal was to keep the linear business alive why not get this content out there, why burden remaining consumers with this offering if you're only intention is to rip it away and divide linear consumers from streaming.
Disney Channel has shaped a lot of childhoods when it launched in 2008 with shows like That's So Raven, Hannah Montana and Phineas And Ferb alongside Disney Channel Original Films like Camp Rock, High School Musical, Cheetah Girls and Teen Beach.
Since it's rollout in 2011, Disney Junior had become the leading destination in preschool entertainment with shows like Doc McStuffins, Sofia The First, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Jake And The Neverland Pirates.
MultiChoice being the distributor of these channels would have to look at possible replacements some brands that come to mind include Kartoon Channel, WildBrain, ZooMoo and hopefully not repeat tainted channels like Nicktoons as seen in some parts of the world.
Another thing that some readers addressed was the backlash on replacements. My idea would be that the Disney Channels discontinuation would be treated as a rebrand sort of get another brand to occupy the space or have some of their content added to the lineup before the swap.
But I'm not expecting that although it would make sense consumer wise. The best option when looking at replacements is to take these brands to account Disney Channel was too mature for their current demographic while as Disney Junior was more entertaining something MultiChoice should look into when deciding replacements.
Sky launched a dedicated kids channel in the UK licencing content from NBCUniversal and featuring original productions. It wouldn't be far fetched if MultiChoice did something similar for consumers in Africa.
Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery aren't really looking to consolidate the content to streaming services but the moment your DStv becomes a VCR or a typewriter they're likely to pull the plug on their channels and get consumers onboard their own platforms.
MultiChoice aligning themselves closer to the kids market wouldn't seem far fetched as the last was with K-TV and Koowee both were handled by M-Net. This channel doesn't necessarily have to be M-Net based but come from another local provider like Ngwato Nkosi Group (Movie Room).
Monday, July 17, 2023
RUMOUR: End Of An Era, Disney Junior To Cease Transmission In Turkey By 2024, Could Africa's Be Next Alongside The Disney Channel?
During the week, it was reported that Disney is looking to sell several linear channels which are no longer core to their business. On top of that, they're looking to close their remaining linear channels in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast Asia by the end of 2023.
According to sources, Disney Junior would cease to exist in Turkey by 2024 and this was the last brand under Disney Branded Television following the closures of Disney Channel and Disney XD as further content from all these brands is allocated to Disney+.
Disney Junior launched as Playhouse Disney in 2007 and since then he proven to be a popular addition amongst consumers featuring shows like Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Sofia The First, Doc McStuffins, Spidey And His Friends and PJ Masks.
MultiChoice, an outlet seen in Africa to package Disney Junior alongside Disney Channel, National Geographic, National Geographic Wild, ESPN 1 and ESPN 2 had mentioned in 2021 that these brands were extended through 2024.
With Disney Junior in Turkey set to shut down by the end of 2023 around the time other parts of Asia would be losing their feeds. Could it be possible that the Disney Channels in Africa will join Turkey seeing as they're both operated by Disney EMEA alongside other regions.
Another thing, despite MultiChoice and Disney promise to retain them through 2024. It had mentioned that these channels would stick around for "another two years" bringing up that possible December 2023 closure if not early 2024 presumably before March.