DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Disney shares tumble on light guidance. But here's why we're raising our price target
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +11 min

Disney Why we own it: We value Disney for its best-in-class experiential entertainment Parks business, which has proven to have immense pricing power. In the second quarter, the combined business — Disney+, India's Disney+ Hotstar, Hulu and ESPN+ — saw losses of $18 million, far better than the $659 million loss in the year-ago period. DTC profitability benefited from Disney+ core subscriber growth, higher retail subscription prices, increased advertising revenue on the back of higher impressions, and lower distribution costs. Clearly, Disney still has a big opportunity in sports as they execute on their DTC streaming strategy for ESPN. The atmosphere at the Disney Bundle Celebrating National Streaming Day at The Row in Los Angeles on May 19, 2022.

Persons: —, Nelson Peltz, wouldn't, Hugh Johnston, Jim Cramer's, Jim Cramer, Jim, Presley Ann Organizations: Club, Revenue, LSEG, Disney, Parks, ESPN, Comcast, Netflix, Warner Bros Discovery, Paramount Global, CNBC, seasonality, Entertainment, Hulu, Hulu Live, Sports ESPN, College Football, National Football League, Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise, Disneyland, Hong Kong, Getty Locations: Hulu, India, Florida, California, Hong, Los Angeles

☆ Disney's parks are its top money maker — and it plans to spend $60 billion to keep it that way
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-07 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +12 min

It had been more than a year since the Covid pandemic had forced Disney's domestic parks to shutter, but D'Amaro, chair of Disney's experiences division, was confident guests would flood back in when the gates reopened. Revenues fell 35% in 2020, a nearly $10 billion decrease from the $26.2 billion the experiences division had tallied in the year before the pandemic. The experiences division posted record revenue of $32.5 billion in fiscal 2023, a 16% increase from the prior year. Its innovations, from ride mechanics and animatronics to creature design and immersive architecture, have made Disney's parks a standout in the industry. Storytelling is at the heart of everything across Disney's experiences division.

Persons: Mickey Mouse, Ian Langsdon, Josh D'Amaro, D'Amaro, Bob Chapek, D'Amaro —, Walt Disney, King Arthur Carousel, Christian Thompson, you've, it's, Bob Iger, Nelson, Walt Disney Imagineering, Rey, Kylo Ren, Judy Hopps, Imagineers, CNBC —, Lewis, Disney, Imagineering, Matt Stroshane, Alan Bergman Organizations: Paris, Afp, Getty, Gibson, Disney, Walt Disney Imagineering, Hong Kong Disneyland, Walt Disney, Guardians, Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Star Wars, California Disneyland's, Walt Disney Imagineering's, Disney Engineers, Force, Southwest, CNBC, Galactic, Marvel Locations: California, Burbank, Disneyland, Hong Kong, Shanghai Disneyland, Florida, Epcot, Magic, Wharf, Disneyland's, Disney's, Edge

☆ Life in the US got boring, so I moved to China. I'm lonely and single, but I plan to stay.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( Danielle Marcano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The woman who interviewed me for the teaching job in China was based in Boston. Our training center decided to start teaching students from home. Despite my accomplishments in China, I'm still asked by some family members why I'm not married. I'm not opposed to dating Chinese men, but I often worry about the language barrier and cultural differences. It's a similar mindset I had when I found the opportunity to work in China in the first place.

Persons: Danielle Marcano, —, they'd, I'd, Danielle Marcano Yantai, I've, haven't, Hong Kong —, I'm, they'll Organizations: Service, SEPTA, America, Lakers Locations: Philadelphia, China, Downtown Philly, South Philly, LA, Boston, South Korea, Yantai, Yangma, Beijing, Los Angeles, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Hong, Shenzhen —

☆ First-ever World of Frozen opens at Hong Kong Disneyland
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Maureen Ohare | Tara Subramaniam | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Hong Kong CNN —Elsa, Anna, Olaf and Sven have a new home on a subtropical island in Asia. World of Frozen, Disney’s first-ever themed land dedicated to the “Frozen” media franchise, opened at Hong Kong Disneyland on November 20. Michael Moriarty, managing director of Hong Kong Disneyland, called World of Frozen “the most immersive attraction we’ve ever built.”Hong Kong Disneyland's World of Frozen includes a recreation of the Arendelle Palace and other key elements from the beloved film franchise. Courtesy DisneyHe added that the decision to bring World of Frozen to Hong Kong was influenced by the regional interest in the franchise and the unique natural elements of Lantau Island, where Hong Kong Disneyland is located. Visitors can get to Hong Kong Disneyland by car or via the orange line on Hong Kong’s MTR public transit system.

Persons: Hong Kong CNN — Elsa, Anna, Olaf, Sven, Disney’s, Prince Hans, “, Bob Iger, Disney Imagineers, Elsa, Kristoff, ”, Michael Moriarty, ” Moriarty, Moriarty, Arendelle Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Hong Kong Disneyland, Disney, Disney Parks, Kong’s Locations: Hong Kong, Asia, Hong, Norway, Arendelle, Olaf, Sunny

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong Disneyland opened its first Frozen-themed attraction on Monday, with thousands of eager visitors turning up to experience the new rides, some lining up for hours to get an early start. Now that Chinese tourists are venturing abroad again after the pandemic, the pandemic, the new attraction is meant to be a game changer for a theme park that has run losses for years. Some of the hundreds of Disney fans who lined up hours ahead of time were dressed like characters from Frozen. “The World of Frozen is really well-designed and beautiful,” said Darmanic, whose family was making its first visit to the Hong Kong theme park. Hong Kong has been beefing up the park to try and draw more visitors.

Persons: ”, Josh D’Amaro, Bryan Darmanic, Darmanic, Winnie Ip, ” Ip Organizations: Hong Kong Disneyland, Disney, Tokyo DisneySea, Paris Locations: HONG KONG, Hong Kong, California, Macao, Shanghai, Tokyo, Arendelle

Toy figures of people are seen in front of the displayed Disney + logo, in this illustration taken January 20, 2022. For the fiscal fourth quarter ended Sept. 30, Disney reported adjusted per-share earnings of 82 cents, topping an average forecast of 70 cents, according to LSEG data. The company said it added nearly 7 million Disney+ streaming subscribers in the quarter, with the inclusion of "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. Disney+ and Disney+ Hotstar together boast 150.2 million subscribers, ahead of Visible Alpha's estimate of 147.4 million. "Our results this quarter reflect the significant progress we've made over the past year," Iger said in a statement.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Walt Disney, Bob, Kevin Lansberry, Iger, Disney, Nelson Peltz, Trian, Paolo Pescatore, Paul Verna, Verna, We've, Dawn Chmielewski, Lisa Richwine, Chavi Mehta, Peter Henderson, Sayantani Ghosh, Matthew Lewis Organizations: REUTERS, ABC, Disney, Guardians, Trian, Management, Warner Bros Discovery, SAG, Insider Intelligence, Hulu, ESPN, Shanghai Disney, Walt Disney, Disney's Entertainment, Star, Big Ten, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, Hong Kong, Florida, India, Los Angeles, Bengaluru

☆ Disney is in trouble. Bob Iger has 5 big problems to solve
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Samantha Delouya | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Last quarter, Disney’s linear television revenue continued to slip, declining 7% compared to the same quarter last year. Disney World angstIt may not be all bad news for Disney, though. However, Disney World Resort in Florida has struggled with declining attendance in recent months. Over the summer, Disney World parkgoers experienced shorter-than-expected ride wait times and fewer crowds. Nearly one year ago, Iger unexpectedly came out of retirement to take over the role of Disney CEO once again after the board unexpectedly fired his successor, Bob Chapek.

Persons: Ron DeSantis, Bob Iger, Hugh Johnston, Christine McCarthy, Iger, ” Iger, I’ve, expansively, Indiana Jones, Reynaud Julien, Bank of America’s Jessica Reif Ehrlich, Ehrlich, Jason Bazinet, Disney, Disney isn’t, ”, Vijay Jayant, underperformance, Bob Chapek, Johnston Organizations: Los Angeles CNN, Disney, Republican, Gov, Warner Bros, CNN, Media, YouTube, ESPN, Wall Street, PepsiCo, ABC, Disney Channel, Geographic, “, Destiny, Cannes Film, APS, Bank of America’s, Citigroup, Shanghai Disney Resort, Hong Kong Disneyland Locations: Florida, Refinitiv, Cannes, France, Canada, Hulu, Shanghai, Hong, Central Florida

☆ Here's how to see Disney's new 'Frozen' park area before it opens to the public
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Quek Jie Ann | Morgan Awyong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

In this article DIS Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTHong Kong Disneyland Resort is opening a new land inspired by Disney's blockbuster "Frozen" movie franchise. World of Frozen is a recreation of Arendelle — a fictional village featured in the "Frozen" movies that is home to the Disney sisters, Elsa and Anna. Disney's Elsa and Anna at World of Frozen in Hong Kong Disneyland. Getting in earlyGuests who book packages through the travel company Klook can experience World of Frozen before it opens to the public. Source: MSL SingaporeThe company is selling a "First Look at Arendelle" package, which comes with two park tickets and a one-night hotel stay, for $880.

Persons: Disney, Elsa, Anna, Disney's Elsa, Walt Disney, Walt, Disney's Olaf, Sven Organizations: Hong Kong Disneyland, Walt Disney World's Hall, Presidents, Tokyo, Tokyo DisneySea's Indiana Jones, CNBC Travel, Singapore Locations: Hong Kong, Singapore, Hong, Tokyo DisneySea's Indiana, Arendelle, Norway

☆ Disney's top-selling merchandise line in Asia is this under-the-radar fluffy bear
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Duffy and Friends is Disney's top-selling franchise in Asia, having generated $500 million in revenue this year. Duffy, a fluffy bear, was introduced in 2002 with a back story linked to Mickey and Minnie. The revenues include sales from Shanghai Disney Resort, Hong Kong Disneyland, and the Tokyo Disney Resort in Japan. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe back story for the fluffy bear involves Minnie Mouse hand-sewing the stuffed bear to accompany Mickey on a long sea voyage from Cape Cod. Both Duffy and LinaBell can be seen in a Disney video from September 2021, which shows the fluffy bear meeting his new fox friend.

Persons: Duffy, Mickey, Minnie, Mel, LinaBell, there's Organizations: Service, Disney, Shanghai Disney Resort, Tokyo Disney Resort, Walt Disney World, Shanghai, Shanghai Daily Locations: Asia, China, Wall, Silicon, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Japan, Orlando , Florida, Cape Cod

☆ Disney to nearly double parks spending to $60 billion over 10 years
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( Dawn Chmielewski | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Sept 19 (Reuters) - Walt Disney (DIS.N) said on Tuesday it would nearly double its capital expenditure for its parks business to about $60 billion over the next 10 years. Disney CEO Bob Iger and Josh D'Amaro, the company's parks chief, announced the accelerated pace of investment at a gathering of Wall Street analysts and investors at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, focused on the company's parks business. Parks have become a reliable profit engine for Disney and has helped cushion losses in the Disney+ streaming business, which is expected to become profitable only next year. The announcement of the planned investment followed a slowdown at Walt Disney World in Orlando, as attendance surges at its parks around the world, particularly Shanghai Disney Resort and Hong Kong Disneyland. Disney also plans to nearly double the capacity of its cruise line, adding two ships in fiscal 2025 and another in 2026.

Persons: Walt Disney, Bob Iger, Josh D'Amaro, Parks, Iger, Disney, Ron DeSantis, Mario Anzuoni, Paul Verna, Thomas Hayes, Samrhitha, Dawn Chmielewski, Shailesh Kuber, Chizu Nomiyama, Paul Simao, Aurora Ellis Organizations: Disney, Wall Street, Walt Disney World, Disney California, Hollywood Studios, Republican, REUTERS, Insider Intelligence, Walt Disney, Shanghai Disney Resort, Great, Thomson Locations: Orlando , Florida, California, Orlando, Florida, Anaheim , California, U.S, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Great Hill, Bengaluru, Dawn, Los Angeles

☆ Disney's wildest ride: Iger, Chapek and the making of an epic succession mess
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +88 min

Iger told Chapek that he lived for those "two-shower days," according to people familiar with the conversation. In January 2020, Iger told Chapek the plan was back on. During his 27 years at the company, Chapek had only attended one annual meeting — as a guest in the audience. Bob Iger, Disney CEO, during a CNBC interview, Feb. 9, 2023. WATCH: Disney CEO Bob Iger's exclusive July 2023 CNBC interviewTake the 'A'During Chapek's tenure as CEO, Disney lost more than a quarter of its market value.

Persons: Elham, Bob Iger, Bob Chapek, Iger, wasn't, Chapek, Michael Eisner, —, who's, he's, Clint Eastwood, Eastwood, Arthur Bochner, Jackie Hart, Kareem Daniel, Chapek —, Eisner, Michael Ovitz, Ovitz, Bob, Disney's, Kevin Mayer, Mayer, Bryan van der Beek, he'd, Tom Staggs, Staggs, Staggs —, Steve Jobs, cajoled Ike Perlmutter, George Lucas, Rupert Murdoch, Iger's, Susan Arnold, Arnold, Peter Rice, David Paul Morris, Rice, CNBC's Julia Boorstin, Mark Parker, Mary Barra, Michael Froman, Willow, Parker, John Donahoe, Roy Disney, Walt Disney, Stanley Gold, David A, CNBC Eisner, Big Bob, Little Bob, Christine McCarthy, Patrick T, He'd, McCarthy, Iger —, Coronavirus, Gavin Newsom, Michael Kovac, curtly, Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Ben Smith, Smith, Disney, Randy Shropshire, Agnes Chu, Ricky Strauss, Chu, Strauss, Kevin Feige, Kathleen Kennedy, Who's, Alan Bergman, Bergman, Bob Kyncl, Daniel —, Iger didn't, Daniel rankled, Daniel, Chapek didn't, James Pitaro, Jesse Grant, CNBC Chapek, Jimmy Pitaro, Zenia Mucha, didn't, Mucha, Barbara Walters, Charles Eshelman, Scarlett Johansson, Scarlett Johansson —, Florence Pugh, Natasha, Yelena, " Johansson, Bryan Lourd, Johansson, Lourd, Steven Spielberg, Al Michaels, David Muir, Robin Roberts, Michael Strahan, Spielberg, Geoff Morrell, Alan Braverman, Alan Horn, Jayne Parker, Bochner, Claire Lee, Paul Richardson, Josh D'Amaro, Ron DeSantis, Morrell, Disney Animation —, George Floyd, Reba Saldanha, Reuters Chapek, DeSantis, Nicholas Maldonado, Octavio Jones, Chapek she'd, we're, " Morrell, CNN's Chris Wallace, Kristina Schake, John Skipper, Daniel steamrolled, Latondra Newton, Newton, Charles Krupa, Pitaro, NBCUniversal's Peacock, Dana Walden, Thomas Murphy, Josh Kushner, Privately, Schake, Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Michelle Obama's, David Dee Delgado, Kara Swisher, hadn't, Netflix's, overhiring, McCarthy hadn't, Safra Catz, Kareem, DMED, Horacio Gutierrez, Justin Warbrooke, Alexia Quadrani, Bryan Castellani, Michael Buckner, Quadrani, Lindsay Lohan, Winnie, Nelson Peltz, Catz, Donald Trump's, they'd, Walden, Gutierrez, D'Amaro, Rich Polk, Walden he'd, Iger she'd, Mickey Mouse, Mark Rightmire, haven't, Indiana Jones, Halle Bailey, Ariel, Hamilton Faber, Rich Greenfield, Bob Iger's, — Mayer, McCarthy —, doesn't, they'll Organizations: Disney, Marvel, CNBC, Bloomberg, Getty, Walt Disney, Indiana University, Michigan State University, Shanghai Disney, Man, Hong Kong Disneyland, Walt Disney Parks, Resorts, Pixar, Fox, Chapek, Nike, General, Mastercard, Foreign Relations, University of Pennsylvania, Grogan, Disney's, Fallon, ABC, ESPN, ABC News, California Gov, New York Times, Disney confidants, Hollywood, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, Walt Disney Television, Walt Disney Studios, Hulu, HBO Max, Walt Disney Company, YouTube, Companies, Netflix, Apple, Disney Media, Entertainment, Stanford, Rights, Junior, petulant, Filmmagic, Brunswick Group, Covid, CAA, onetime Defense Department, Century Fox, Human, Florida Gov, Republican, Disney Animation, Reuters, Human Rights, HRC, Walt Disney World, Employees, American Foundation for Equal Rights, AP, Amazon Prime, Paramount, South Pacific, Capital Cities, Dow Jones, CVS, Kingdom, Variety, Trian Partners, Charter Communications, U.S, Comcast, Charter's, MediaNews, Orange, Allen, Co, Candle Media, Advisors Locations: Burbank , California, Midwestern, Brentwood, Los Angeles, Westlake Village, Iger, Hammond , Indiana, Shanghai, China, Hong, Fox, Willow Bay, Raleigh , North Carolina, Orlando, U.S, Hulu, Iger's Brentwood, coronavirus, Brunswick, Hollywood, Hawaii, Disney's, Marvel's, Anaheim , California, Montana, Florida, Rye , New Hampshire, Chapek, Hong Kong, California, missteps, South, DMED, Burbank, New York, India, Atlantic, Sun Valley , Idaho, America

☆ Disney World has a bigger problem than Ron DeSantis: people aren't going
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Cork Gaines | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Disney's ongoing feud with Ron DeSantis is certainly a factor. Ron DeSantis, it's pretty clear that the park's problems run deeper than a political beef. While crowd sizes are down in the US parks, revenue is up at international Disney parks such as Disneyland Hong Kong. Despite the DeSantis dust-up, the park's biggest issue has nothing to do with politics — Disney World is damn expensive. Ron DeSantis Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty ImagesIt's also clear that a cut back on vacationing is not the issue.

Persons: Ron DeSantis, Disney execs, Li Zhihua, execs, DeSantis, —, Ron DeSantis Paul Hennessy, Courtney Garcia, Garcia, Samantha Delouya, Bob Iger Organizations: Disney, Service, Walt Disney, Florida Gov, Wall Street Journal, Hollywood Studios, Shanghai Disney Resort, Hong Kong Disneyland, China News Service, — Disney, Getty, TSA, Payne Capital Management Locations: Wall, Silicon, Magic, Shanghai, Paris, Hong, Hong Kong, Florida

[1/3] A man looks at his phone as he passes by a screen advertising Walt Disney's streaming service Disney+ in New York City, U.S., November 12, 2019. The division ended the quarter with an operating loss of $659 million, compared with $1.1 billion in the prior quarter. At the same time, total subscribers to the flagship Disney+ service dropped by 4 million to 157.8 million. Inge Heydorn, a fund manager at GP Bullhound, said a question for investors is: "are the trade offs from lower marketing costs leading to lower subscribers?" "We've only just begun to scratch the surface of what we can do with advertising on Disney+," Iger said on a conference call with analysts.

The company plans to expand its streaming offerings by the end of the year with a new app that combines Disney+ and Hulu, Chief Executive Bob Iger said. Total subscribers to the flagship Disney+ service dropped by 4 million from the previous quarter to 157.8 million. Most of the defections came from the Disney+ Hotstar offering in India after it lost streaming rights to Indian Premier League cricket matches. "Striking a fine balance between customer acquisition versus financial performance is no easy feat." As Disney tries to build streaming, its traditional television business faces hurdles.

☆ Disney's quarter reflects what we knew all along about Bob Iger's turnaround plan. Here's our earnings analysis and what's next
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Jeff Marks | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Botton line We've been saying for weeks that fiscal Q2 was not the one to rush in and get in ahead of. Not represented in the table, the Q2 loss was also smaller by $400 million quarter over quarter. Furthermore, management acknowledged churn could be a potential issue for one more quarter before returning to domestic sub-growth in the fiscal fourth quarter. As for theme park sales, this profitable growth engine remains in great shape, jumping nearly 38% to $6.76 billion in fiscal Q2. Iger's Strategy Updates Alongside fiscal Q2 results, we got some more news on the strategic changes Iger has for the company, about six months into his return as CEO.

☆ Disney aims for more profits at Disney+ with more ads, less content, higher fees
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

New York CNN —Disney laid out the profit plan for Disney+ streaming service on its investor call after reporting its most recent quarterly results, and it’s likely not going to make its customers very happy. It entails cutting back on the content offered, selling more ads and charging higher subscription fees. The company’s ongoing efforts to trim losses and begin to make profits on its streaming business could disappoint some of the people who have enjoyed Disney+, however. “It’s critical we rationalize the volume of content we’re creating and what we’re spending to produce our content,” Iger said about the cuts to the streaming service. Iger said Disney is still learning the proper business model for streaming as it makes the transition.

☆ Why fans say trips to Disney World are now 'incredibly complicated' to pull off
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Monica Pitrelli | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +12 min

But some travelers aren't thrilled about what it takes to pull off a trip to Walt Disney World these days. He said he goes to Disney World about "once a month." They will leave thinking food at Disney World is a "cheeseburger and a hot dog … which could not be farther from the truth," he said. Walt Disney World comprises four theme parks, two water parks and dozens of themed hotels, plus a shopping and entertainment area called Disney Springs. He called Disney World an "amazing spa destination" and said Disney Springs, formerly known as Downtown Disney, has shopping, live music and fantastic restaurants.

Search resuls for: "Hong Kong Disneyland"

17 mentions found