The L.A. native was enjoying his first visit to Taiwan in between meetings and a press conference for the top children's TV network debut of "Phineas and Ferb" on Feb. 1, which Marsh says is "probably the funniest, smartest animated series to come out in the last five or 10 years."

"The creators were alumni of 'The Simpsons,' and it has the same wit and smarts of those shows, but with stories that are more appropriate for our audience in the 4-16 age group," he explained, adding that "we think parents will be equally engaged," and "at our weekly development meetings (at Disney in California), screenings of that show invariably get the loudest laughs."

The animated comedy series was the brainchild of Dan Povenmire of "Family Guy" fame, and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh ("The Simpsons" and "Rocko's Modern Life"). They had worked on the idea four years before pitching it to Marsh, who is in charge of the Disney Channel's original programming worldwide.

"Bells went off, and I got it completely," Marsh said of the meeting.

"Phineas and Ferbruary," as the series is called in Asia, is about two stepbrothers who decide to do something spectacular every day of their summer vacation -- in their backyard. A sister tries to "rat them out, but they just miss getting caught, every time," Marsh explains.

The series comes hot on the heels of halcyon days for the Disney Channel. With programming such as "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody," and "Hannah Montana," the Disney Channel has managed to jockey into the top spot for young viewership. In 2005-6, nine of the top 10 most-watched cable programs among 6- to 14-year-olds were from the Disney Channel, whereas five years ago Nickelodeon dominated the Top 10 for this age group, according to Nielsen Media Research.The cable channel's success has been steadily expanding worldwide, this year for the first time becoming basic cable's top draw in primetime viewership.

Times are good for Disney, thanks to the smash success of "High School Musical" in particular, a movie and musical likened to "Grease" that has "launched its characters into super-stardom status," as Marsh notes.

"It was a phenomenon, completely unexpected. I know it's hard to believe if you're outside of the States," Marsh said, "but roughly 10 million DVDs were sold in the U.S. alone, it was seen by 250 million viewers worldwide, it was No. 1 on the billboard charts, the No. 1 album of 2006, and the fastest-selling DVD of a TV movie ever. It even broke a record for having the most number of singles from an album -- nine -- on billboard charts," he added.

"High School Musical 2," which premiered in the U.S. in August 2007 was the highest-rated telecast ever on Disney Channel. "High School Musical 3" is set to premiere in October this year.

Taiwan presents an attractive market for the Disney Channel, as it has the highest cable penetration rate in Asia, estimated at 80 percent.

"We've had great success in Taiwan," Marsh says. "It's been the No. 1 channel for 10- to 14-year-olds, with 5.5 million viewers -- a good indicator to us that Disney can relate to smaller kids."

The expansion in Asia is part of a wider push into global markets. The Disney Channel also wants to "localize programming," tailoring shows for local viewerships, for example local Indian sitcoms. Disney is in discussions for a new animated series primarily for the Chinese market, although securing landing rights as a foreign television channel is far trickier than in "wired" Taiwan.

"We're trying to be a truly global network, with global vision and philosophy," he says. "Historically, the U.S. has been an exporter of programming, but we want to make it so that it can become an importer of programs, developed by our colleagues."

Marsh next heads to Shanghai for more meetings and a cultural visit.