Move Over Mickey: A New Franchise at Disney

MOVE OVER MICKEY: A NEW FRANCHISE AT DISNEY
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Dave Itzkoff]
Disney Channel's "High School Musical 2," which debuted on Friday, drew an audience of 17.2 million viewers -- most staying up after their bed time to see it. The success of “High School Musical 2” is an indication of Disney’s long-term efforts to reposition its cable channel to appeal to the underserved 9-to-14 age group and to rope in youngsters for whom Mickey Mouse seems too babyish. For the time being at least, the movie has made a trio of fictional high school students named Troy, Gabriella and Sharpay as recognizably Disney as that 79-year-old mouse. sustaining interest in “High School Musical” required Disney and its promotional partners to bombard capricious young viewers with a relentless stream of merchandise and marketing in the 18 months between the first and second movies. And now some analysts wonder if Disney is risking the health of this budding franchise by expanding it too quickly.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/20/business/media/20disney.html?_r=1&ref=...
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