Bob Chapek nommé CEO de Disney, Bob Iger devient Executive Chairman

Why Disney's new CEO is good news for Walt Disney world Resort and Disneyland Resort :

https://amp.cinemablend.com/news/2490891/why-disneys-new-ceo-is-good-news-for-walt-disney-world-and-disneyland

Tant mieux pour eux, les parcs continueront de recevoir des nouveautés à la chaîne.

Sans vouloir être égocentrique, est-ce une bonne nouvelle pour DLP ?

Du vent cette article...

Sinon, j'aimerai tellement un retour de Tom Staggs à la direction de Parks & Resorts... (j'ai le droit de rêver non ? )

bof, en même temps; Tom Staggs c'est le gars qui a investi un milliard de dollars dans les magic band et tout ce qui va avec (notamment la multiplication stupide des attractions avec FP à Orlando)

Who is Bob Chapek ? dans le Los Angeles Times :

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2020-02-26/disney-ceo-bob-chapek-bob-iger%3f_amp=true

Un autre point de vue sur le personnage :

Cette brusque décision de quitter ses fonctions de la part d'Iger me laisse penser qu'il a senti le coup venir au tout début de l'épidémie; entrainant la fermeture au fur et à mesure des divers resorts Disney.

Cette crise mondiale avec la chute de l'action ouvrant carrément la porte à un rachat de la Walt Disney Company !

https://www.20minutes.fr/arts-stars/medias/2741895-20200317-apple-pourrait-chercher-acquerir-disney-contexte-chute-actions

Apple pourrait se permettre des exclusivité à leurs utilisateurs du genre appli pour les parcs ou Disney+

inside the magic vient de publier à l'instant un article avec exactement que je ressens également :
https://insidethemagic.net/2020/03/disneys-new-ceo-bob-chapek-tm1/


Iger a refilé la patate chaude.

The Walt Disney Company suit le mouvement emprunté par les dirigeants de Delta Airlines, Marriott, General Electric, United Airlines, Hyatt, Boeing etc...

Bob Iger renonce à son salaire, Bob Chapek réduit le sien de 50 %, les autres cadres de l'entreprise se voient imposer une réduction de 20 à 30 % à partir du 5 avril 2020 et ce jusqu'à une reprise substantielle des activités, réduites ou au point mort en pleine pandémie COVID-19 :  

Citation :

Dear Fellow Employee,

Our world is facing an unprecedented crisis that has fundamentally upended our lives, creating uncertainty and hardship – while, at the same time, spurring kindness and compassion. And although there are still many unknowns with respect to the impacts of COVID-19, our top priority remains your safety and well-being.

As we’ve seen, the coronavirus poses significant health risks and has exacted a grave toll on so many lives. As such, it’s more important than ever that all of us follow the guidance of health experts and take the necessary precautions, including continuing to work from home, wherever possible, and practicing social distancing. By doing so, we also help to protect our loved ones, neighbors, and friends.

This is a trying period for all of us and as we navigate these challenging times together and make adjustments in our daily lives, we’re grateful for everyone’s continued flexibility and understanding.

The pandemic is also having a devastating impact on the global and U.S. economies, and it’s hitting businesses like ours particularly hard. In a matter of weeks, we’ve experienced widespread disruption across our company, with our domestic parks and hotels closed indefinitely, our cruise line suspended, our film and TV production halted and theatrical distribution delayed both domestically and internationally, and our retail stores shut down. While I am confident we will get through this challenging period together and emerge even stronger, we must take necessary steps to manage the short- and long-term financial impact on our company.

In light of this, we are going to be implementing a variety of necessary measures designed to better position us to weather these extraordinary challenges. Among them, we will be asking our senior executives to help shoulder the burden by taking a reduction in pay – effective April 5, all VPs will have their salaries reduced by 20%, SVPs by 25%, and EVPs and above by 30%. I will be taking a 50% reduction in my salary. This temporary action will remain in effect until we foresee a substantive recovery in our business. Our executive chairman, Bob Iger, has chosen to forgo 100% of his salary.

As we navigate through these uncharted waters, we’re asking much of you and, as always, you are rising to the challenge and we appreciate your support. Your dedication and resilience during this difficult time are truly inspiring, and it gives me renewed confidence that we will come through this crisis even stronger than before, as we have so many times in our company’s history.

Please continue to take care of yourself and your loved ones, stay well, and know that we are here to support you.

Best,
Bob

C'est là qu'on se rend compte que Bob Iger a encore une fois eu une longueur d'avance. Il a fait nommer Bob Chapek juste avant que la vague arrive. Bob Chapek qui a la réputation de préférer faire des économies que d'être apprécié (il a même une licence microbiologie, en apprenant ça j'ai souri vu la situation). C'est typiquement le choix que Disney va avoir besoin en ces temps troublés.
D'autant que Disney+ n'est pas rentable actuellement malgré son succès (Disney espère que ce sera le cas d'ici 5ans (cf. Disney plus Expected to Be Profitable in Five Years)).

Flounder69 a écrit:

C'est là qu'on se rend compte que Bob Iger a encore une fois eu une longueur d'avance. Il a fait nommer Bob Chapek juste avant que la vague arrive. Bob Chapek qui a la réputation de préférer faire des économies que d'être apprécié (il a même une licence microbiologie, en apprenant ça j'ai souri vu la situation). C'est typiquement le choix que Disney va avoir besoin en ces temps troublés.
D'autant que Disney+ n'est pas rentable actuellement malgré son succès (Disney espère que ce sera le cas d'ici 5ans (cf. Disney plus Expected to Be Profitable in Five Years)).

Ou alors il y a l'autre lecture et le fait que Iger a senti le vent tourner et laisse le bateau dans une tempête jamais vue à ce jour dans les mains d'un nouveau capitaine qui va braver les intempéries.

Ah mais il est certain qu'il a quitté son poste pour éviter que cela entache son important palmarès de succès pour la compagnie Disney et de finir sur une mauvaise passe. Mais il n'a pas totalement quitté le navire non plus. Mais ainsi l'histoire retiendra que Bob Iger transformé et relancé l'entreprise Disney entre 2005 et 2020, tandis Bob Chapek sera celui qui, à peine nommé, a du faire face à la crise.

Aussi, le contrat d'Iger a déjà été renouvelé plusieurs fois, il souhaitait déjà quitter ses fonctions après l'ouverture de Shanghai Disneyland en 2016 (dont l'ouverture avait été marqué à la même période par la fusillade du 12 juin 2016 à Orlando). Stratégiquement, il était mieux pour lui et la compagnie de partir avant la tempête, que pendant ou durant l'"après" qui s'annonce compliqué.

Si Apple rachète Disney, je pense que ce ne serait pas une mauvaise chose mais je risque de vous choquer. Je pense que Tim Cook est plus compétent que Bob Chapek. Je sais que ça fait peur mais je crois que ce rachat pourrait donner un coup de boost à Disney qui a énormément manqué de créativité ces derniers temps (suites à répétition, films sans créativité, attractions qui ont un temps de retard sur Universal, etc).

Lol, la blague. Apple a plus aucune créativité depuis la mort de Jobs. Alors ce serait pas avec le rachat par la pomme que Disney risque de sortir de sa boulimie de remakes et suites.

Bob Iger reprend les commandes pour sauver l'entreprise en pleine crise de pandémie.

The Walt Disney Company perd actuellement 30 millions de dollars (et plus) par jour.

Premières mesures prises par le duo Chapek et Iger : un emprunt de 6 milliards de dollars, une mise en congé forcé sans salaire de dizaines de milliers de cast members et d'employés des Studios Marvel, Lucasfilm, Disney, Pixar, Searchlight, 20th Century, Walt Disney Animation Studios etc..., des réductions de coûts immédiates et un gel de l'ensemble (des budgets de développement aux sous-traitants en passant par les tournages de films et séries...).

EDIT : Un nouvel emprunt d'un montant de 5 milliards de dollars a été confirmé ce jour (14 avril 2020), ce qui porte le total à 11 milliards de dollars empruntés en trois bonnes semaines.

EDIT 2 : The Walt Disney Company a semble-t-il également contracté un emprunt de 1,3 milliards de dollars au Canada pour un total de 12,3 milliards de dollars en à peine un mois.

Citation :

Bob Iger Thought He Was Leaving on Top. Now, He’s Fighting for Disney’s Life.

The former C.E.O. thought he was riding into the sunset. Now he’s reasserting control and reimagining Disney as a company with fewer employees and more thermometers.

The Walt Disney Company turned franchises like Marvel and “Star Wars” into the biggest media business in the world, and last fall it was putting the finishing touches on the image of a storied character: its chief executive, Bob Iger.

In late September, Mr. Iger, 69, published “The Ride of a Lifetime,” an engaging work of self-hagiography. The handsome executive, who seriously considered running for president this year, spent the next month on the kind of media tour that Disney is known for: he reveled in the successful start of a streaming service that immediately rivaled Netflix, was hailed as “businessperson of the year” by Time and described as “Hollywood’s nicest C.E.O.” in an article in the The Times by Maureen Dowd. Even his friends wondered if the soft-focus Instagram ads produced for his MasterClass on leadership were a bit much.

It all went so well that Mr. Iger decided it was time to do something he had postponed four times since 2013: retire as C.E.O.

In early December, Disney executives say, he told his board that he was ready to leave. Around that time, a handful of people in Wuhan, China, began developing mysterious coughs.

At the end of January, a few days after Disney was forced to close its Shanghai theme park as the coronavirus spread, Mr. Iger and the board stuck with their plan, agreeing that he would step back to become executive chairman and that the low-profile head of the parks and cruise business, Bob Chapek, would take over immediately as chief executive. They finalized the arrangement even as the stock market began to shudder. And on Feb. 25, they shocked Hollywood with the news that Mr. Iger’s 15-year run had ended.

The seemingly abrupt announcement prompted intense speculation about the reasons for Mr. Iger’s exit. “Sex or health?” one media executive who knows him texted another that night. Two weeks later, a different question emerged: Had Mr. Iger, with his deep ties to China and legendary timing, seen the coronavirus about to devastate his global realm? Did he get out just in time?

Mr. Iger, who has always carefully managed his image, told me in an email, there was no more than met the eye

In fact, people close to Mr. Iger and the company said in interviews that the real question wasn’t whether he saw the crisis coming — but whether his focus on burnishing his own legacy and assuring a smooth succession left him distracted as the threats to the business grew. No big media company is more dependent on its customers’ social and physical proximity than Disney, with its theme parks and cruise lines. Few have been hit harder by the pandemic.

And now, Mr. Iger has effectively returned to running the company. After a few weeks of letting Mr. Chapek take charge, Mr. Iger smoothly reasserted control, BlueJeans video call by BlueJeans video call. (Disney does not use Zoom for its meetings for security reasons.)

The new, nominal chief executive is referred to, almost kindergarten style, as “Bob C,” while Mr. Iger is still just “Bob.” And his title is “executive chairman” — emphasis on the first word.

Mr. Iger is now intensely focused on remaking a company that will emerge, he believes, deeply changed by the crisis. The sketch he has drawn for associates offers a glimpse at the post-pandemic future: It’s a Disney with fewer employees, leading the new and uncertain business of how to gather people safely for entertainment.

“It’s a matter of great good fortune that he didn’t just leave,” said Richard Plepler, the former HBO chief. “This is a moment where people first and foremost are looking to an example of leadership that has proved itself over an extended period of time — and Bob personifies that.”

The story of the Walt Disney Company since Mr. Iger’s predecessor, Michael Eisner, took it over in 1984 is one of astonishing growth that has become the model for the modern, global media business. The company turned its tatty icons like Mickey Mouse into cash cows. Mr. Iger has spent more than 40 years working for companies that are now part of Disney, and has earned his reputation through bold acquisitions. He bought Pixar, then Marvel, then Lucasfilms, for single-digit billions, and quickly created many more billions in value with them. Mr. Iger had the greatest job on earth, ruling not just a company but a “nation-state,” as California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, described Disney recently.

But Disney’s much-imitated model was almost perfectly exposed to the pandemic. The shift from on-screen entertainment into in-person experiences helped Disney become the biggest media company in the world. But those business have been impossible to protect from the pandemic. The company’s largest division brought in more than $26 billion in the year ending last June by extending its brands to cruise ships and theme parks. Those are all shuttered now. It has three new cruise ships under construction in Germany, their futures unclear. The jewel in its second largest division, television, is ESPN, which in a sports-less world is now broadcasting athletes playing video games. The third group, studio, had expected to bring in most of its revenue from movie openings in theaters, which are now closed.

There has been a glimmer of good news in the introduction of Disney+. The company’s troubled share price jumped about 7 percent in after-hours trading last Wednesday on the news that the streaming service had attracted 50 million subscribers. But the project is still an investment, years away from generating revenue that could replace a big movie opening in theaters. And the service is desperate for new content — at a time when television and film production has ground to a halt.

This all means the company is losing as much as $30 million or more a day, the media industry analyst Hal Vogel estimated in an interview. The company borrowed $6 billion at the end of March, a sign both of its desperate plight and lenders’ confidence that it could rebound.

In an emergency like this, Mr. Iger said, he had no choice but to abandon his plan to pull back.

“A crisis of this magnitude, and its impact on Disney, would necessarily result in my actively helping Bob [Chapek] and the company contend with it, particularly since I ran the company for 15 years!” he said in his email.

That realization appears to have hit just after the company’s March 11 annual shareholder gathering in Raleigh, N.C., which served as Mr. Chapek’s debut and was staged as a carefully scripted handoff.

“I’ve watched Bob [Iger] lead this company to amazing new heights, and I’ve learned an enormous amount from that experience. I feel incredibly fortunate to be able to work closely with him during this transition,” Mr. Chapek said at the meeting. (A Disney spokeswoman declined to make Mr. Chapek available for an interview.)

The men flew from there to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., to meet executives worried about the effect of social distancing on their business; they announced the park’s closing the next day. Then, they flew back to Los Angeles and on the way, said a person familiar with their conversation, they discussed the depth of the crisis. Mr. Iger made clear that he would remain closely involved.

The next day, March 13, was their last in the office. In early April, Mr. Chapek sent a bleak internal email announcing a wave of furloughs. He pushed immediate cuts and freezes on everything from development budgets to contractors’ pay.

The company employed 223,000 as of last summer, and won’t say how many workers are furloughed, but the numbers are huge. It includes more than 30,000 workers  in the California resort business alone, according to the president of Workers United Local 50 that represents some of those workers, Chris Duarte. Another 43,000 workers in Florida will be furloughed, the company confirmed on Sunday. All the workers will keep their benefits, but their last paychecks come April 19.

The mood at Disney is “dire,” said a person who has done projects with the company. “They’re covering the mirrors and ripping clothes.”

Mr. Iger, meanwhile, is trying to figure out what the company will look like after the crisis. One central challenge is to establish best practices for the company and the industry on how to bring people back to the parks and rides while avoiding the virus’s spread — using measures like taking visitors’ temperatures.

Mr. Iger also sees this as a moment, he has told associates, to look across the business and permanently change how it operates. He’s told them that he anticipates ending expensive old-school television practices like advertising upfronts and producing pilots for programs that may never air. Disney is also likely to reopen with less office space. He’s also told two people that he anticipated the company having fewer employees. (Mr. Iger said in an email on Sunday evening that he had “no recollection of ever having said” that he expected a smaller work force. “Regardless, any decision about staff reductions will be made by my successor and not me,” he added.)

Mr. Iger’s own narrative had been written to a neat conclusion. Now, his legacy will probably be defined in the unexpected sequel of one of the great American companies fighting for its life.

And Disney’s endlessly troublesome question of succession — which had finally, for a couple of weeks, seemed settled — may be open again. One person close to the company said Mr. Iger assured Mr. Chapek that the extraordinary circumstances would be taken into consideration in the board’s evaluation of Mr. Chapek’s performance. But in reality, two hard, unpredictable years will determine if he can hold the job. Two other executives who were passed over for Mr. Chapek — Kevin Mayer and Peter Rice — remain at the company. Nobody knows when Americans will go to the movies again, much less get on cruise ships.

And nobody knows when — or whether — Mr. Iger will have another moment to leave on top.

New York Times - 12 Avril 2020.

Bob Chapek rejoint le conseil d'administration de The Walt Disney Company :

Citation :

Bob Chapek Elected To The Walt Disney Company Board of Directors

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) Board of Directors has elected Disney Chief Executive Officer Bob Chapek to the Board.

“Bob Chapek has demonstrated remarkable leadership in the face of unprecedented challenges that were unimaginable when he became CEO just seven weeks ago, and we’ve watched him navigate this very complex situation with decisiveness and compassion. We are pleased to add Bob to the Board, as we stated we would when he was named CEO,” said Susan Arnold, independent Lead Director of the Disney Board, and Robert A. Iger, Executive Chairman and Chairman of the Board.

Prior to becoming CEO, Mr. Chapek served as Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products. During his tenure at Parks, Mr. Chapek oversaw the opening of Disney’s first theme park and resort in mainland China, Shanghai Disney Resort, and the addition of numerous guest offerings across Disney’s six resort destinations in the U.S., Europe and Asia, including the creation of the new Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge lands at Disneyland and Walt Disney World. From 2011 to 2015, Mr. Chapek was President of the former Disney Consumer Products segment, where he drove a technology-led transformation of the business. He also served as President of Distribution for The Walt Disney Studios, and was President of Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, where he spearheaded the successful “vault strategy” for the Company’s iconic films.

Before joining Disney in 1993, Mr. Chapek worked in brand management at H.J. Heinz Company and in advertising at J. Walter Thompson. He earned a B.S. in Microbiology at Indiana University Bloomington and an MBA from Michigan State University.

The Walt Disney Company - 15 avril 2020.

Suite à la nomination de Chapek à la tête de TWDC, Josh d'Amaro devient le nouveau Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products. Il était auparavant le président de Walt Disney World.

https://www.wdwinfo.com/news-stories/new-leadership-team-announced-for-disney-parks-including-josh-damaro-as-chairman/?fbclid=IwAR2jSv9L_exvwoGu77YI_9HbwdLSW-75GD5EMgnK8VhVuXJdk_InTIJBoPU

Colglazier reste à la tête des parcs internationaux (DLP, TDR, HKDL et SDL).

Effet collatéral : Kevin Mayer, un temps envisagé comme nouveau CEO de TWDC, quitte la compagnie pour rejoindre la plateforme TikTok.

Le communiqué de presse de The Walt Disney Company :

Citation :

Josh D’Amaro Named Chairman Of Disney Parks, Experiences And Products And Rebecca Campbell Named Chairman Of Disney’s Direct-To-Consumer And International

Bob Chapek, Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS), today announced that Josh D’Amaro has been named Chairman, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, and Rebecca Campbell has been named Chairman, Direct-to-Consumer and International. Mr. D’Amaro and Ms. Campbell will report to Mr. Chapek.

“Our company is very fortunate to have a deep bench of talent and we’re extremely pleased to welcome these two exceptionally qualified Disney veterans to our senior management team,” Mr. Chapek said. “Both Josh and Rebecca have more than two decades of leadership experience with the Company, a keen understanding of our brands and businesses, and a shared passion and vision for delivering extraordinary entertainment and one-of-a-kind experiences.”

Mr. D’Amaro, who most recently served as President, Walt Disney World Resort, succeeds Mr. Chapek as Chairman, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products. In his new role, Mr. D’Amaro will oversee Disney’s iconic travel and leisure businesses, which include six theme park-resort destinations in the United States, Europe and Asia; a top-rated cruise line; a popular vacation ownership program; and an award-winning guided family adventure business. Disney’s global consumer products operations include the world’s leading licensing business across toys, apparel, home goods, digital games and apps; the world’s largest children’s print publisher; Disney store locations around the world; and the shopDisney e-commerce platform.

“Josh is an exceptionally talented, enthusiastic and innovative leader, consistently delivering strong results while demonstrating his unwavering commitment and care for our cast members, and a genuine appreciation for the importance of the Disney Difference to our guests,” said Mr. Chapek. “I am certain he will take Disney’s Parks, Experiences and Products segment – home to some of our company’s most iconic and beloved businesses – to exciting new heights in the years to come.”

Said Mr. D’Amaro: “I want to thank Bob for giving me this opportunity and I look forward to following his record of driving innovation, value and growth as we deliver unforgettable experiences for our guests. It is an incredible honor to lead our team of talented and dedicated cast members around the globe, who go above-and-beyond every single day. Even during this challenging time, their enthusiasm for what we do is unwavering, and my goal is to bring our cast members back to work as soon as possible so they can continue to create that magic.”

Ms. Campbell is a 23-year Disney veteran who has held leadership roles across the Company’s media, international and parks businesses and most recently served as President of Disneyland Resort. As Chairman, Direct-to-Consumer and International, Ms. Campbell will oversee the Company’s streaming businesses globally, including Disney+—which this month reached 54.5 million paid subscribers less than six months after its launch—as well as ESPN+, Hulu and Hotstar. Ms. Campbell’s portfolio also includes the Company’s international businesses, including Disney’s International Channels, Fox Networks International and Star India. Prior to becoming President of Disneyland Resort last year, Ms. Campbell was a member of the Direct-to-Consumer and International leadership team as President, The Walt Disney Company—Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), where she oversaw the Disney+ launch strategy and direct-to-consumer roadmap for the region.

“As we look to grow our direct-to-consumer business and continue to expand into new markets, I can think of no one better suited to lead this effort than Rebecca,” Mr. Chapek said. “She is an exceptionally talented and dedicated leader with a wealth of experience in media, operations and international businesses.  She played a critical role in the launch of Disney+ globally while overseeing the EMEA region, and her strong business acumen and creative vision will be invaluable in taking our successful and well-established streaming services into the future.”

Said Ms. Campbell: “Having been a part of the Direct-to-Consumer and International leadership team, I know what a stellar group it is, and I’m honored to be able to lead the organization during this dynamic and exciting time. Armed with the best creative content engines and technology teams in the industry, I am extremely confident in our ability to continue growing the business around the globe.”

Ms. Campbell succeeds longtime Disney executive Kevin Mayer, who is leaving the Company to become Chief Operating Officer of ByteDance and Chief Executive Officer of TikTok, ByteDance’s popular mobile video platform. Mr. Mayer led Disney’s Direct-to-Consumer and International segment since its founding in 2018 and oversaw the successful launches of ESPN+ and Disney+ and the integration of Hulu. During his career at Disney, Mr. Mayer also served as the Company’s Chief Strategy Officer and was instrumental in facilitating a number of strategic acquisitions, including the acquisition of 21st Century Fox.

“Kevin has had an extraordinary impact on our company over the years, most recently as head of our direct-to-consumer business,” said Mr. Chapek. “He has done a masterful job of overseeing and growing our portfolio of streaming services, while bringing together the creative and technological assets required to launch the hugely successful Disney+ globally. Having worked alongside Kevin for many years on the senior management team, I am enormously grateful to him for his support and friendship and wish him tremendous success going forward.”

Mr. Mayer said: “I am very proud of what our extraordinarily talented Direct-to-Consumer and International team has accomplished in creating and delivering a world-class portfolio of streaming services, particularly Disney+. Rebecca was a critical member of the DTCI team from its inception, and I am certain the business is in great hands and will continue to expand and thrive under her expert leadership. It’s truly been a privilege for me to be part of the iconic Walt Disney Company, and I am enormously grateful to Bob Iger for his trust and confidence, and to Bob Chapek and his senior management team for their collaboration and support over the years.”

Rebecca Campbell, Chairman, Direct-to-Consumer and International

As Chairman of DTCI, Ms. Campbell will drive the next phase of Disney+’s growth as the service rolls out in new markets around the globe. Following launches in Western Europe and India this spring, Disney+ will debut in Japan in June, followed by the Nordics, Belgium, Luxembourg and Portugal in September, and Latin America later in the year.

Ms. Campbell will also oversee the expansion of Disney+’s robust collection of library and original content, which has continued to grow since the service launched last November. New additions to Disney+ include the blockbuster Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and the behind-the-scenes documentary about the making of Disney+’s most successful series, The Mandalorian on May 4, to be followed later in the year by season two of The Mandalorian; a filmed version of the original Broadway production of Hamilton, debuting on July 3; and the fall premiere of a new Disney+ original series from National Geographic, The Right Stuff, based on the Tom Wolfe book about NASA’s Project Mercury.

In addition to leading Disney’s streaming services and the technology organization that supports them, Ms. Campbell will be in charge of regional teams stretching from Europe to Asia to Latin America.

Ms. Campbell comes to her new role from Disneyland Resort, where as President she oversaw two iconic theme parks—Disneyland and Disney California Adventure—three resort hotels and Downtown Disney, and a workforce of 31,000 cast members. Prior to that, as President of The Walt Disney Company—EMEA in London for nearly two years, Ms. Campbell was in charge of Disney’s media, motion pictures, and all other operations across EMEA (excluding Disneyland Paris), and was responsible for a diverse team of over 5,000 employees operating in 59 markets with offices in 25 countries. Ms. Campbell played a role in securing the first major distribution deal for Disney+ in EMEA and also led the integration of 21st Century Fox’s businesses with Disney’s operations across the region.

From 2010 through 2017, Ms. Campbell served as President, ABC Owned Television Stations, responsible for the Company’s eight local TV stations and their digital assets in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Houston, Raleigh-Durham and Fresno.  In addition, Ms. Campbell oversaw ABC National Television sales and ABC Daytime. Under her leadership, the ABC station group strategically evolved itself from a traditional television business into a vibrant, fully integrated broadcast operation focused on the future. The stations launched data-driven, mobile-first video strategies and obtained market leadership in on-platform video metrics as well as social reach and engagement.

From 2007 to 2010, Ms. Campbell served as President and General Manager of WABC-TV – New York, the group’s flagship station in the nation’s largest television market, where she was responsible for WABC-TV and all of its ancillary businesses, including two additional digital platforms and “Live with Regis and Kelly.”

Ms. Campbell joined The Walt Disney Company in 1997 as Vice President of Programming at WPVI-TV in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 2003, she was named President and General Manager of 6ABC. Prior to her Disney tenure, Ms. Campbell held several programming and production positions at various television stations in Allentown and Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Ms. Campbell is a magna cum laude graduate of Bloomsburg University with a dual major in journalism and political science.

Josh D’Amaro, Chairman, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products

As Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, Mr. D’Amaro will be responsible for driving innovation and enhancing the guest experience across the segment’s theme parks, cruise line, retail and other operations. Mr. D’Amaro continues his focus on leading teams whose unique culture, relentless focus on excellence, and passion for the brand delivers the “Disney Difference” to guests around the world.

In conjunction with Mr. D’Amaro’s promotion to Chairman of the segment, several key appointments to the senior leadership team were announced. Jeff Vahle, formerly President, Disney Signature Experiences, assumes the role of President, Walt Disney World Resort. Ken Potrock, who had served as President, Consumer Products, becomes President, Disneyland Resort. Kareem Daniel, formerly President, Walt Disney Imagineering Operations/Product Creation/Publishing/Games, has been named President, Consumer Products, Games and Publishing. Thomas Mazloum, who was Senior Vice President of Resort and Transportation Operations at Walt Disney World Resort, becomes President, Disney Signature Experiences. (See press release from Disney Parks, Experiences and Products for more information).

In his former role as President of Walt Disney World Resort, Mr. D’Amaro led a cast of more than 75,000—America’s largest single-site workforce—and was responsible for all facets of business for the resort, including its four theme parks, two water parks, 28 resort hotels, four golf courses, ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, and the Disney Springs entertainment-shopping-dining complex.

Before being named President of Walt Disney World Resort in 2019, Mr. D’Amaro was president of the Disneyland Resort, where he opened Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland Park and helped initiate development of the upcoming Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure.

Mr. D’Amaro joined Disney in 1998 at the Disneyland Resort and held a number of leadership positions across the company. He served as Senior Vice President of Commercial Strategy for Walt Disney World Resort and also led the sites’ Resorts & Transportation Operations. He served as Vice President of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park as it underwent the largest expansion in its history. His other roles included Adventures by Disney; Sales and Travel Operations at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort; Finance for the Global Licensing division of Disney Consumer Products; and Business Planning and Strategy Development for the Disneyland Resort.

Mr. D’Amaro earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Georgetown University.

About The Walt Disney Company

The Walt Disney Company, together with its subsidiaries, is a diversified worldwide entertainment company with operations in four business segments: Media Networks; Studio Entertainment; Parks, Experiences and Products; and Direct-to-Consumer and International. Disney is a Dow 30 company.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding our business prospects, growth, expansion, performance, strategy or plans; business leadership or structure; the anticipated availability, timing or nature of our products or services; future resumption of operations; and other statements that are not historical in nature as well as statements identified by words such as “will,” “certain,” “look forward to,” “look to,” “confident in,” “continue,” “goal” and similar words and expressions. These statements are made on the basis of management’s views and assumptions regarding future events and business performance as of the time the statements are made. Management does not undertake any obligation to update these statements. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied. Such differences may result from actions taken by the Company, including restructuring or strategic initiatives (including capital investments and asset acquisitions or dispositions) or other business decisions, as well as from developments beyond the Company’s control, including:

•changes in domestic and global economic conditions, competitive conditions and consumer preferences;

•adverse weather conditions or natural disasters;

•health concerns;

•international, regulatory, political, or military developments;

•technological developments;

•labor markets and activities; and

each such risk includes the current and future impacts of, and is amplified by, COVID-19 and related mitigation efforts.

Such developments may further affect entertainment, travel and leisure businesses generally and may, among other things, affect (or further affect):

•the performance of the Company’s theatrical and home entertainment releases;

•the advertising market for broadcast and cable television programming;

•demand for our products and services;

•construction;

•expenses of providing medical and pension benefits;

•income tax expense;

•performance of some or all company businesses either directly or through their impact on those who distribute our products; and

•achievement of anticipated benefits of the TFCF transaction.

Additional factors are set forth in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 28, 2019 under Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” Item 7, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis,” Item 1, “Business,” and subsequent reports, including, among others, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Forms 8-K, which factors should be read together with this press release.

The Walt Disney Compnay - 18 mai 2020.

Le communiqué de presse de la division Disney Parks, Experiences and Products :

Citation :

NEW LEADERSHIP TEAM ANNOUNCED AT DISNEY PARKS, EXPERIENCES AND PRODUCTS

•Josh D’Amaro Named Chairman, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products

•Jeff Vahle Named President, Walt Disney World Resort

•Ken Potrock Named President, Disneyland Resort

•Kareem Daniel Named President, Consumer Products, Games and Publishing

•Thomas Mazloum Named President, Disney Signature Experiences

Bob Chapek, Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS), today announced a new Disney Parks, Experiences and Products leadership team that will be led by Josh D’Amaro, who has been named Chairman, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products.

“I’m incredibly proud of the new leadership team at Parks, beginning with the segment’s Chairman, longtime Disney veteran Josh D’Amaro, and his newly announced team of Jeff Vahle, Ken Potrock, Kareem Daniel and Thomas Mazloum,” said Mr. Chapek. “These talented executives played pivotal roles while leading our exceptional cast members during the largest period of growth in the segment’s history, which included the expansion of our parks and resorts around the world, the addition of new attractions including two highly acclaimed Star Wars-themed lands, and a shift to more personalized experiences for guests. And I am confident that as they assume even greater responsibility and pursue new opportunities, these proven leaders will have an even bigger impact on the future of our company.”

Mr. D’Amaro, who most recently served as President, Walt Disney World Resort, succeeds Mr. Chapek as Chairman, Parks, Experiences and Products. In his new role, Mr. D’Amaro will oversee Disney’s iconic travel and leisure businesses, which include six theme park-resort destinations in the United States, Europe and Asia; a top-rated cruise line; a popular vacation ownership program; and an award-winning guided family adventure business; and Disney’s global consumer products operations, which include the world’s leading licensing business across toys, apparel, home goods, digital games and apps; the world’s largest children’s print publisher; Disney store locations around the world; and the shopDisney e-commerce platform.

“I want to thank Bob for giving me this opportunity, and I look forward to following his record of driving innovation, value and growth at Parks,” Mr. D’Amaro said. “I am honored to be able to lead this newly announced team of exceptional senior leaders as we assume our new roles and continue to deliver unforgettable experiences for our guests. Even during this challenging time, the enthusiasm of our dedicated cast members for what we do is unwavering, and my goal is to bring them back to work as soon as possible so they can continue to create that magic.”

Before being named President of Walt Disney World Resort in 2019, Mr. D’Amaro was President of the Disneyland Resort. Mr. D’Amaro joined Disney in 1998 at the Disneyland Resort and held a number of leadership positions across the company. He served as Senior Vice President of Commercial Strategy for Walt Disney World Resort and also led the sites’ Resorts & Transportation Operations. He served as Vice President of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park as it underwent the largest expansion in its history. His other roles included Adventures by Disney; Sales and Travel Operations at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort; Finance for the Global Licensing division of Disney Consumer Products; and Business Planning and Strategy Development for the Disneyland Resort.

Mr. D’Amaro earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Georgetown University.

In conjunction with Mr. D’Amaro being named Chairman, the following key appointments have been made to the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products executive leadership team:

•Jeff Vahle, formerly President, Disney Signature Experiences, has been named President, Walt Disney World Resort.

•Ken Potrock, who had served as President, Consumer Products, becomes President, Disneyland Resort.

•Kareem Daniel, formerly President, Walt Disney Imagineering Operations/Product Creation/Publishing/Games, has been named President, Consumer Products, Games and Publishing.

•Thomas Mazloum, who was Senior Vice President of Resort and Transportation Operations at Walt Disney World Resort, becomes President, Disney Signature Experiences.

Continuing in roles as part of the executive leadership team for Disney Parks, Experiences and Products are:

•Michael Colglazier, President & Managing Director, Disney Parks International

•Jill Estorino, Executive Vice President, Marketing and Sales

•Margaret Giacalone, Chief Counsel

•Tami Garcia, Senior Vice President, Human Resources and Diversity and Inclusion

•Alannah Hall-Smith, Senior Vice President, Communications and Public Affairs

•George Kalogridis, President, Segment Development and Enrichment

•Kevin Lansberry, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

•Tilak Mandadi, Executive Vice President, Digital and Chief Technology Officer

•Bob Weis, President, Walt Disney Imagineering

Jeff Vahle, President, Walt Disney World Resort

Succeeding Mr. D’Amaro as President, Walt Disney World Resort is Jeff Vahle, a 30-year cast member who most recently served as President, Disney Signature Experiences.  In his new role, Mr. Vahle leads a team of talented Cast Members —America’s largest single-site workforce—and will be responsible for all facets of business for the resort, including its four theme parks (Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Epcot and Disney Hollywood Studios) two water parks, 28 resort hotels, four golf courses, ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, and the Disney Springs entertainment-shopping-dining complex.

“With Walt Disney World approaching its 50thanniversary, there could not be a more gratifying time to be selected for this role and to work with the incredible team responsible for creating magical memories for millions of guests each year,” said Mr. Vahle. “I plan to continue to build on the momentum from Josh’s tenure, bringing even more innovative entertainment and experiences to our guests.”

Mr. Vahle will continue to oversee Facilities & Operations Services for Disney theme parks worldwide, responsible for engineering, maintenance, construction, utilities, manufacturing, sourcing and procurement, safety and health, and asset management programs at the Disney resorts around the world.

In his previous role, Mr. Vahle led several key growth businesses for the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products segment and inspired teams around the world to deliver the Company’s unrivaled brand of family vacations. He oversaw Disney Cruise Line, Disney Vacation Club, Adventures by Disney, Golden Oak, and Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa (collectively called Disney Signature Experiences).

Mr. Vahle began his Disney career in 1990 and is a respected senior executive who is committed to driving creativity and innovation, exceeding guest expectations and delivering long-term business growth. During his career with the Company, he has held a series of high-profile leadership roles in operations, engineering, technology and global support services.

At Disney Cruise Line, Mr. Vahle also oversaw the much-anticipated expansion of Disney’s cruise fleet, with the planned delivery of three new ships, all of them showcasing the immersive family entertainment, enchanting storytelling and unparalleled service for which Disney is well known.

In addition to his duties with these high-growth vacation businesses, Mr. Vahle is actively involved in the Central Florida community, currently serving as chairman of the board of directors for Give Kids the World and as a member of the Rollins College Board of Trustees.

Mr. Vahle earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Auburn University and a master’s degree in business administration from Rollins College.

Ken Potrock, President, Disneyland Resort

Ken Potrock, formerly President, Consumer Products and with nearly 25 years at the Company takes the helm at the Disneyland Resort, as President, Disneyland Resort, overseeing two theme parks (Disneyland and Disney California Adventure), three resort hotels and a 20-acre entertainment, retail and shopping district. Mr. Potrock succeeds Rebecca Campbell, who was named Chairman, Direct-to-Consumer and International, for The Walt Disney Company (see press releasefrom The Walt Disney Company for more information).

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to join the remarkable team at Walt Disney’s original park,” said Mr. Potrock. “This Resort holds a special place in the hearts of our Guests around the world – a responsibility that we all take very seriously, and we will continue to build on that foundation by delivering unforgettable experiences, while creating memories that last a lifetime.”

Mr. Potrock joins the Disneyland Resort after more than two decades of leadership experience at Disney Parks. Throughout his career, he has consistently challenged the status quo – enabling a holistic entrepreneurial culture that ensures the unparalleled “Disney Difference” is delivered each day to Guests, consumers and fans.

Mr. Potrock is also well-known for developing, invigorating and transforming numerous Disney properties and businesses to deliver consistent and dynamic growth. Previously he served as the Senior Vice President and General Manager of Disney Vacation Club, the Company’s innovative and fast-growing vacation ownership program, as well as Adventures by Disney, the Company’s award-winning guided group travel business.

In 2015, Mr. Potrock led the dramatic expansion and reimagining of Disney Springs, Walt Disney World’s iconic retail, dining and entertainment district. He was Senior Vice President of Disney Sports Enterprises, where he led the transformative rebranding of the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Florida. Mr. Potrock began his Disney career in 1996 as Vice President, Marketing for Disney Cruise Line, where he helped define and launch the Company’s bold entry into the cruise industry.

Mr. Potrock earned his undergraduate degree in marketing from Washington University in St. Louis and his MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Kareem Daniel, President, Consumer Products, Games and Publishing

Kareem Daniel, formerly President, Walt Disney Imagineering Business Operations, Product Creation, Publishing and Games, will take on the role of President, Consumer Products, Games and Publishing, leading the division responsible for extending the Disney brand through at-home experiences in products, publishing and games.

“Uniting the businesses responsible for bringing the magic of Disney into the daily lives of families and fans around the world will allow us to seamlessly extend the stories and characters consumers love across different platforms,” said Mr. Daniel. “I look forward to working with this team to bring Disney franchises to audiences around the world in new and innovative ways.”

Most recently, Mr. Daniel oversaw global design and delivery of all parks, attractions, resort hotels, and cruise ships, managing world-class talent to provide immersive guest experiences with operational excellence. He also led the product development of merchandise including toys, fashion apparel and accessories, home goods, consumables, and health and beauty categories; the creation of video games and interactive products and experiences; and Disney Publishing Worldwide, the world’s largest publisher of children’s books and magazines.

Previously, Mr. Daniel served as Senior Vice President of Strategy and Business Development for Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media, where he spearheaded key strategic initiatives to drive long-term growth across the division’s retail, licensing, publishing, video games, and digital businesses.

Mr. Daniel also oversaw distribution strategy at Walt Disney Studios, helping to maximize the value of studio content by evaluating traditional business models and emerging digital innovations. Prior to that he was a Director of Corporate Strategy, where he worked on a variety of strategic projects and mergers and acquisitions across The Walt Disney Company.

Mr. Daniel first joined Disney as an MBA intern and later became a senior business planner in Corporate Financial Planning and Analysis. After that, he worked in equity research as well as investment banking at Goldman Sachs, where he specialized in technology, media and entertainment, and telecommunications before returning to Disney.

Mr. Daniel holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and an MBA, both from Stanford University.

Thomas Mazloum, President, Disney Signature Experiences

Thomas Mazloum, formerly Senior Vice President of Resort and Transportation Operations at Walt Disney World Resort, becomes President, Disney Signature Experiences, which includes Disney Cruise Line, Disney Vacation Club and Adventures by Disney.

“I am thrilled to continue my Disney career by joining the businesses renowned for providing personalized and uniquely Disney experiences and delivering world-class guest service,” said Mr. Mazloum. “I cannot wait to bring even more magic to guests on the seas and at our remarkable destinations around the world.”

A veteran of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Mr. Mazloum previously oversaw 28 resort hotels as well as transportation operations that rival mid-sized American cities, at the world’s premier vacation destination, Walt Disney World Resort.

Mr. Mazloum began his Disney career in 1998 as a hotel director for Disney Cruise Line. He was instrumental in launching the Disney Wonder, the second ship in the Disney Cruise Line fleet, while directing a cast and crew of nearly 700 individuals, representing 52 countries around the world. He then went on to serve as the general manager of Food & Beverage & Special Events at Epcot, where he supervised the park’s diverse restaurant operations and pursued collaborative business opportunities.

Before returning to Disney in 2017, Mr. Mazloum served as the Chief Operating Officer of Crystal Cruise Line.

Born in Austria, Mr. Mazloum received his degree in hotel management and administration in Innsbruck. A life-long learner, Mr. Mazloum has also received several business certifications from such institutions as Cornell University, the Hotel School of Lausanne and the Hotel School of Salzburg.

About The Walt Disney Company

The Walt Disney Company, together with its subsidiaries, is a diversified worldwide entertainment company with operations in four business segments: Media Networks; Studio Entertainment; Parks, Experiences and Products; and Direct-to-Consumer and International. Disney is a Dow 30 company.

About Disney Parks, Experiences and Products

Disney Parks, Experiences and Products brings the magic of The Walt Disney Company’s powerful brands and franchises—including Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, ESPN, 20th Century Studios, and National Geographic—into the daily lives of families and fans around the world to create magical memories that last a lifetime.

When Walt Disney opened Disneyland in Anaheim, California, on July 17, 1955, he created a unique destination built around storytelling and immersive experiences, ushering in a new era of family entertainment. More than 60 years later, Disney has grown into one of the world’s leading providers of family travel and leisure experiences, with iconic businesses including six resort destinations with 12 theme parks and 52 resorts in the United States, Europe, and Asia with approximately 160,000 cast members; a top-rated cruise line with four ships and plans for three more; a luxurious family beach resort in Hawai‘i; a popular vacation ownership program; and an award-winning guided family adventure business. Disney’s global consumer products operations include the world’s leading licensing business; one of the world’s largest children’s publishing brands; one of the world’s largest licensors of games across platforms; more than 300 Disney store locations around the world; and the shopDisney e-commerce platform. These experiences are created by Disney Imagineers, the creative force behind experiences found in Disney theme parks, resort hotels, and cruise ships.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding our business growth, strategy, approach or plans; business leadership or structure; future resumption of operations; and other statements that are not historical in nature as well as statements identified by words such as “will,” “look forward to,” “am confident,” “continue,” “goal,” and similar words and expressions. These statements are made on the basis of management’s views and assumptions regarding future events and business performance as of the time the statements are made. Management does not undertake any obligation to update these statements. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied. Such differences may result from actions taken by the Company, including restructuring or strategic initiatives (including capital investments and asset acquisitions or dispositions) or other business decisions, as well as from developments beyond the Company’s control, including:

•changes in domestic and global economic conditions, competitive conditions and consumer preferences;

•adverse weather conditions or natural disasters;

•health concerns;

•international, regulatory, political, or military developments;

•technological developments;

•labor markets and activities; and each such risk includes the current and future impacts of, and is amplified by, COVID-19 and related mitigation efforts.

Such developments may further affect entertainment, travel and leisure businesses generally and may, among other things, affect (or further affect):

•the performance of the Company’s theatrical and home entertainment releases;

•the advertising market for broadcast and cable television programming;

•demand for our products and services;

•construction;

•expenses of providing medical and pension benefits;

•income tax expense;

•performance of some or all company businesses either directly or through their impact on those who distribute our products; and

•achievement of anticipated benefits of the TFCF transaction.

Additional factors are set forth in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 28, 2019 under Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” Item 7, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis,” Item 1, “Business,” and subsequent reports, including, among others, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Forms 8-K, which factors should be read together with this press release.

Disney Parks, Experiences and Products - 18 mai 2020.

Michael Colglazier (President and Managing Director, Disney Parks International) quitte Disney et rejoint Virgin Galactic en tant que CEO :

https://investors.virgingalactic.com/news/news-details/2020/Virgin-Galactic-Announces-Michael-Colglazier-as-Chief-Executive-Officer-in-Preparation-for-Commercial-Service/default.aspx

Et c'est Jill Estorino qui remplace Colglazier :

https://insidethemagic.net/2020/07/disney-parks-jill-estorino-ba1/

Le communiqué officiel :

Citation :

Disney Parks International Announcement

Jill Estorino will become president and managing director for Disney Parks International, effective immediately. In her new role, the 29-year Disney veteran will be responsible for overseeing the company’s parks and resorts international operations and development, including Hong Kong Disneyland, Tokyo Disney Resort with the Oriental Land Company, Shanghai Disney Resort and Disneyland Paris.

“Jill is known as an innovative and dynamic leader, and she'll bring her nearly 30 years of Disney experience to guide our international parks into the future,” said Josh D’Amaro, Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products.

Estorino replaces Michael Colglazier who served in this role for the past three years.

For the past five years, Estorino has served as Executive Vice President, Global Marketing and Sales, where she led the organization that manages consumer and client relationships around the world, identified opportunities for new products, experiences and services, and drove demand for the renowned Disney Destinations vacation portfolio.

Prior to that, she served as Senior Vice President, Marketing and Sales, Asia Pacific for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, leading the teams at Hong Kong Disneyland and Shanghai Disney Resort to achieve business goals and ensure a consistent brand presence in the APAC region. Previously, she was Senior Vice President, Marketing Strategy for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, leading a team that developed marketing strategies to drive attendance and occupancy for Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland Resort, and Disney Vacation Club.

“I am excited for the opportunity to once again work more closely with our teams in Europe and Asia and to share Disney Magic with Guests and fans throughout the world.” Estorino said.

Estorino also sits on the board of directors of the Association of National Advertisers, lending her time to its #SeeHer advisory board and the board of directors for Hong Kong Disneyland.

Disney Parks, Experiences and Products - 16 juillet 2020.

Bob Chapek a suggéré que les films de la firme qui sortent en salles pourraient débarquer plus vite que prévu en streaming sur Disney+ (suivant ainsi les dernières annonces de Warner/HBO Max et de Paramount/Paramount+). Selon lui, en raison de la crise sanitaire, "les consommateurs ont pris l'habitude de recevoir du contenu à la maison à peu près quand ils le souhaitent. Du coup, je ne suis pas sûr que l'on puisse revenir en arrière".

Il a également annoncé que, à leur surprise, près de 50% des utilisateurs de Disney+ n'ont pas d'enfants.

Deadine a écrit:

Disney CEO Bob Chapek suggested that the company will likely shrink the exclusive period when its films play only in theaters, though he didn’t offer any specifics.

“The consumer is probably more impatient than they’ve ever been before,” he said of the market shifts during Covid-19, “particularly since now they’ve had the luxury of an entire year of getting titles at home pretty much when they want them. So, I’m not sure there’s going back. But we certainly don’t want to do anything like cut the legs off a theatrical exhibition run.” Moviegoers, he added, won’t “have much of a tolerance for a title, say, being out of theatrical for months” and “just sort of sitting there, gathering dust” before migrating to streaming or other windows.

Chapek made the comments at a virtual investment conference hosted by Morgan Stanley. It was one of his few appearances outside of an official corporate function since becoming CEO about a year ago.

During that brutal year, of course, Hollywood has contended with an existential crisis in the form of Covid-19. The virus decimated the box office and has left only 45% of North American theaters able to function more than a year into the pandemic. Total domestic box office of $11.4 billion in 2019 won’t likely be equaled until 2022 or 2023, most analysts believe.

For Disney, which controls up to half the market and has released top blockbusters under the Marvel and Star Wars banners, it is not a casual decision about how long to play films in theaters. Chapek noted that a middle path — the “Premier Access” simultaneous deployment of streaming and theaters — would remain a distribution option for the foreseeable future. On Friday, animated feature Raya and the Last Dragon will go out via that method, costing $30 to subscribers to Disney+.

No specific number of days in release was bandied about by Chapek or moderator Benjamin Swinburne, a media analyst at Morgan Stanley. Among other major studios, Warner Bros has done away with theatrical exclusives altogether, while Paramount and Universal have either shrunk or announced plans to shrink the usual window from 74 days to more like 30 or 45. As he has in other public settings, Chapek noted the company’s 11 billion-dollar-grossing theatrical releases in 2019. “That is a big deal to us, and that will continue to be a big deal to us,” he said. At the same time, “We realize that this is a very fluid situation.”

Addressing the streaming business more broadly, Chapek said “four-quadrant appeal” has played a key role in the dynamic growth of Disney+. Since its launch in November 2019, it is almost at 100 million subscribers in several dozen countries and is projected to clear 200 million over the next three years. Chapek said the fact that 50% of its subscribers globally do not have kids was a key driver and an unexpected one.

“What we didn’t realize was the non-family appeal that a service like Disney+ would have,” he said. “That is the big difference.”

As to the rest of the company’s streaming portfolio, Chapek said its most recent addition, Star, will feature a lot of local-language programming. The non-U.S. general entertainment service, which began its global rollout last week, will have 50 original series by fiscal 2024, the exec said.

Source : Disney CEO Bob Chapek Hints At Shorter Theatrical Windows: For “Impatient” Customers, “I’m Not Sure There’s Going Back”

Chapek qui découvre que la majorité de sa clientèle n'a pas de gosses... c'est savoureux quand même. On comprend mieux certains choix de ces dernières années du groupe: ils ne connaissent même pas leurs consommateurs

Citation :

Bob Iger’s Long Goodbye

Eighteen months into media’s most consequential transition, Disney’s respected ex-CEO lingers while successor Bob Chapek provokes anxiety as he moves aggressively to reshape the Magic Kingdom.

In June, Disney’s board and top management flew to the company’s Aulani resort in Hawaii for their annual retreat. It was executive chairman Bob Iger’s last official appearance at such a gathering. With retirement looming — former theme parks and resorts chief Bob Chapek had already taken the reins as CEO in February 2020 — this was the first time in 15 years that Iger would not be presiding.

Iger decided to open the meeting by offering his parting advice. A longtime critic of over-reliance on market research rather than instinct and taste, he made an inspirational plea for the value of talent. He touched on the challenges of managing creators but stressed that every transaction at Disney — parks, consumer products, movies and television — starts with creativity.

“In a world and business that is awash with data, it is tempting to use data to answer all of our questions, including creative questions,” he said. “I urge all of you not to do that.” If Disney had relied too heavily on data, he noted, the company might never have made big, breakthrough movies like Black Panther, Coco and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

Though no outsiders were present, chatter about Iger’s talk soon began to seep through Hollywood. His words were interpreted as a shot at Chapek. Though a 28-year Disney veteran who most recently had overseen the theme parks and resorts, Chapek was an outsider in Hollywood. Known for cutting costs and raising prices, he was regarded by many with distrust if not outright hostility. So the version of the board retreat that made the rounds had Iger showing up Chapek, who was said to have followed Iger’s remarks by declaring in blunt terms that, in fact, Disney was now a data-driven company. It sent a chill through Hollywood.

Sources who attended the meeting say Chapek did not make such a bald declaration. They say he was merely being himself: a numbers-oriented, bottom-line-focused businessman lacking creative experience and without Iger’s polish and flair. Nonetheless, the retreat anecdote dovetailed with a narrative that was already taking hold among Iger confidants: that he had lost faith in Chapek and that his speech before the board was “a final warning” that Disney was veering off course. And the idea of the wrong man at the helm of Disney stokes a lot of anxiety in an industry that has seen Fox and MGM swallowed up, WarnerMedia battered by AT&T and Paramount transforming into a shadow of itself.

Iger won’t address the Aulani meeting but says from his standpoint, the transition has gone as planned: He has continued to oversee the creative side as Chapek took on the day-to-day running of the company. “The whole thing was sort of my construct with ultimate buy-in and full support of the board,” Iger says of the succession plan. “I would be around to mentor him for a year and a half while I was concentrating on the creative. He would get up to speed on all things Disney in that period of time. And then, by the time I gave in my Disney ID card, we’d have a transition about as smooth as it could be.”

Chapek declined to comment on the process. But even as Iger lingered, Chapek moved quickly to seize control, reorganizing the company in a way that diminished the power of some key Iger lieutenants as others have exited. “Every creative person is leaving or losing power,” laments one former high-level Disney exec.

The challenge confronting Chapek, and the leaders of every other legacy entertainment company, is daunting: They must serve Wall Street’s obsession with building their streaming services without alienating creatives, who still want a shot at the mind-bending paydays that come with success under a traditional model. In October 2020, major shareholder and activist investor Dan Loeb began to pressure Disney to double its investment in content for Disney+. In August, he pushed Disney to make “tough choices” and offer all theatrical content on the streamer the same day they open in theaters, at no additional cost to subscribers. “Disney investors are pushing Chapek to lean harder into streaming even if it frustrates talent,” says Lightshed Partners analyst Rich Greenfield. “He has to balance that with managing talent and relationships.”

All that spilled dramatically into public view when Scarlett Johansson sued Disney over her payday for Black Widow, which was offered day-of release on the service. Disney shocked Hollywood and sparked backlash with an aggressive response accusing Johansson of indifference to the effects of the pandemic. The suit was briskly settled, however, and Chapek is now getting some support from Disney’s single most important creative player. Marvel boss Kevin Feige won’t address the Johansson litigation, but, while he is not known for discussing Disney internal politics, he says the still-new CEO is being underestimated. “I think he is a creative guy, a nice guy, a real guy,” Feige says, adding that Chapek offers “just enough of an opinion to give good feedback” on early cuts of movies and shows.

Kevin Feige et Robert Chapek en juin 2021.

As head of theme parks, Chapek was a proponent of replacing the Tower of Terror attraction with the Guardians of the Galaxy — Mission: Breakout! ride, which opened in 2017. Feige says he remembers an entire plane trip to Hong Kong listening to songs Chapek had recorded for the attraction and thinking, “This guy goes deep when it comes to contemporary artists.” And after the record-breaking 2019 opening of Avengers: Endgame, Chapek celebrated the Marvel team by installing a Dole Whip machine — a theme park favorite — in their offices. “I thought that was pretty cool,” Feige says. “I thought that was great.”

But as important as the master of the Marvel universe is, he doesn’t direct or star in movies. Chapek still has to handle that part of the talent equation without the experience that Iger brought to the job. Many Disney veterans and outside observers think the public fight with Johansson never would have happened on Iger’s watch, and even before that blew up, the feeling among many in Hollywood was that Chapek was using the pandemic as an excuse to throw movies onto Disney+, steamrolling talent in the process. “The thing about Hollywood is, you can behave badly, you can be rude, you can make duds, but the thing you cannot do is fuck with people’s money,” says a producer with business at Disney. “You just don’t do that and hide behind technology as the reason why.”

Clearly Chapek is not oblivious to this and has made efforts to defuse the tension. He has repeatedly spoken of his high regard for talent and creativity and, though a Johansson legal victory was not assured, the suit was quickly settled. Before that, Disney locked up a new deal with Emma Stone — whose Cruella went day-and-date on Disney+ for $30 — and committed to exclusive theatrical releases for the remaining 2021 movies, though he committed to nothing beyond this year.

But as WarnerMedia’s Jason Kilar has learned, when talent is bruised, the marks heal slowly. After blindsiding the creative community in December by putting the studio’s 2021 slate on his HBO Max streamer, Kilar tried to make peace by writing big checks and agreeing to a 45-day theatrical window going forward. Yet he was still apologizing for the original sin as recently as Sept. 28.

There have been signs of tension within Disney as well. In April, the Insider reported that Pixar’s Pete Docter was unhappy with the decision to skip theatrical and put Soul on the service in December 2020; animators were said to be dismayed when Disney then put Luca directly onto the streamer, both for no extra charge. (Soul went on to win the Oscar for best animated feature, eligible to compete only because of pandemic rules.)

Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel — whose firm benefits greatly from the UFC’s deal with Disney-owned ESPN — dismisses talk of a choppy transition: “Bob has steered [Disney] through one of the most challenging times anyone in our business could go through, and he did it without losing sight of their long-term objectives.” Despite complaints from his competitors at CAA, Emanuel continues, “Our clients have a great relationship with Disney, as the studio has quickly demonstrated to us how the creative community can share in the success of new platforms like Disney+.”

It’s true, as Emanuel points out, that Chapek stepped into the job at a nearly impossible moment, just as the pandemic shut down all the company’s revenue streams except the nascent Disney+. The crisis created more bad optics for him. Disney laid off 28,000 staffers in September 2020, prompting frequent critic Abigail Disney to tweet that the company should have spent more time fighting California Gov. Gavin Newsom for unemployment benefits and rent subsidies instead of lobbying to reopen the theme parks “prematurely and in a way that would risk their employees’ health.”Transitions are almost always messy. Just ask the ghost of Sumner Redstone, whose refusal to loosen his grip on his empire steered it into a ditch. Michael Eisner, Iger’s predecessor, didn’t handle leaving well; he ultimately was pushed out after a shareholder revolt. Iger was hazed when he took over in 2005.

But as it turned out, Iger would become an especially hard act to follow, not only hugely successful in building the business but the very embodiment of a polished entertainment executive: immaculate in his presentation, friends with Oprah and Lin-Manuel. Almost anyone seems earthbound in comparison. One Disney veteran — not a Chapek fan — compares a lunch with Iger to a lunch with Chapek. “A conversation with Iger was, ‘Where can I help you? Did you watch this new Icelandic thriller on Netflix? I just finished this book about Churchill.’ Bob Chapek is all about business. He sits at lunch, there is 60 seconds of small talk about his home in Key West, and then it’s all Bob sending messages about how things are going great. He is on-message.”

The board had been pushing for a succession plan even as Iger built Disney with one acquisition after another: Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, Fox. Iger had toyed with other pursuits through the years, flirting intermittently with a run at politics and making a play to bring an NFL team to Los Angeles in 2015. But he postponed his retirement four times from 2013 to 2020.

As one success followed another, a former colleague says, Iger had started to feel somewhat underappreciated, and the pressure to pick a successor began to grate. Some former insiders think he had gotten a bit too much positive press for his own good. Iger sometimes expressed his amazement to friends that other industry figures pulled in huge paydays while running much lesser companies. In 2017, for example, then-CBS chief Leslie Moonves cleared $69.3 million while Iger was paid $36.3 million. In 2018, Iger got $65.6 million while Discovery’s David Zaslav raked in $129.4 million. Meanwhile, Iger was at the helm of the biggest and most complex entertainment company and had done brilliantly by all accounts.

Iger says it was he who chose his moment to step aside. Plans for him to give way to Chapek as CEO began to take shape around Thanksgiving 2019, when he was a few months shy of his 69th birthday. By then, other internal candidates had come and gone. Iger had a bake-off that caused one potential successor, Jay Rasulo, to leave in 2015. The industry believed Tom Staggs had been anointed when he was named COO in February of that year, but if so, Iger changed his mind, and Staggs departed in April 2016. (Sources say Staggs heard from associates that Chapek had actively undermined him. Staggs declined to comment.) That left Peter Rice, chairman of general entertainment content, but though he had been through a lot of grooming in film and TV during his years at Fox, he had been at Disney less than a year. Kevin Mayer, who had been overseeing Disney+, was in serious contention but sources say he had less operating experience than Chapek. (He exited after Chapek was named CEO.)

Robert Chapek et Robert Iger en septembre 2021.

In the end, Chapek was the only real internal candidate. Given his lack of creative background, it may have seemed likely to Iger that the board would want him to stick around. Then came the challenges of the pandemic. Several sources believe Iger was sure his plan to run the creative side of things until the end of 2021 — and maybe beyond — would work out of necessity. “I think he thought Chapek was so not liked and so not a creative executive that he would for sure be needed for the foreseeable future,” says a former Disney insider. “He could be executive chairman for who knows how long, and Chapek could be a glorified COO.”

Iger disputes this. “I wanted him to be CEO, not COO, because I wanted him to have the authority to take off my plate the kind of things I couldn’t do if I were going to be concentrating on the creative side,” he says, adding that he has felt energized by his freedom to focus on scripts and rough cuts and talks with creators. “The roles that I initially designed and announced are the roles that we’ve been performing.”

As the company mostly shut down in the early months of the transition, Chapek dealt with the pandemic response while Iger looked for material to put on the streamer. He moved up Beyoncé’s Black Is King to July. In May 2020, he appeared on Good Morning America with Lin-Manuel Miranda to announce that the movie version of Hamilton would drop on the service early.

Several Disney veterans believe Iger did not anticipate how aggressively Chapek would move to take charge. In The New York Times in April 2020, media columnist Ben Smith reported that Iger, mere weeks after Chapek became CEO, had “smoothly reasserted control” and “effectively returned to running the company.” Iger was said to have made his intentions clear to Chapek on a flight in March. In an email to the Times, Iger explained: “A crisis of this magnitude, and its impact on Disney, would necessarily result in my actively helping Bob [Chapek] and the company contend with it, particularly since I ran the company for 15 years!”

One Iger associate says the Times article was “a seminal moment” in a souring relationship between Iger and Chapek. Says another: “[Iger] forgot that as soon as he steps down as CEO, the gravity shifts to the new CEO. He miscalculated that because of his belief in his own mastery. [And] he thought Chapek would have a sense of fealty or duty. Instead, Chapek really resented the Ben Smith article. And he’s really not a collaborative person. He put his people in positions of power and marginalized Iger’s deputies.”

Iger says the Times column was “really unfair.” Naturally he would have a role helping the company through the pandemic, he says, but that shouldn’t have been interpreted as, “I’m back, I’m leading the company.”

In May, IAC chairman Barry Diller told a CNBC interviewer that Iger was “being pushed to the sidelines by his successor — not very nicely, by the way.” Iger says Diller is a friend but adds he was “shocked” when he heard those comments and doesn’t know how Diller would have gotten such an impression. It’s possible the constraints of the pandemic inflamed the perception of strained relations with Chapek. “It’s not like the two of us can walk into a room and show body language that’s positive,” he says. (One Iger associate says the situation would be much more awkward if the two were forced to be in the same office under the anxious eyes of staff.)

n October 2020, Chapek announced a major reorganization that continues to be opaque to many in the industry and even on Wall Street. It effectively moved the power of the purse from Iger’s creative executive team to Kareem Daniel, a longtime Chapek subordinate who has no more creative experience than Chapek. “You can’t blame Chapek for doing that,” says Hal Vogel of Vogel Capital Management. “He had to make his own imprint on the company pretty quickly or he would not have been effective or respected. I think he had to move as forcefully as he could.”

Now Disney is witnessing a broad changing of the guard, with general counsel Alan Braverman, studio chief Alan Horn and communications chief Zenia Mucha among those who have departed or are on their way out.

The critical question now is whether Chapek ever will be able to mimic the talent-friendly words that Iger said at the Aulani and convince anyone that he means them. “The single biggest topic is, does Disney now think its IP is more important than talent itself?” says Greenfield. “The question is, who is Bob Chapek?”

Hollywood will be watching closely to discern the answer. Iger says it will all become clear. “He’s very different from me,” Iger says. “That doesn’t mean he can’t do the job well. Give him time. It’s the only fair thing to do.”

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/bob-iger-disney-exit-bob-chapek-succession-1235025504/