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☆ Disney just named 2 new top execs to advise on strategy and M&A as it considers its future: Read the memo
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Disney has appointed two senior executives to oversee corporate strategy as it considers the future of its linear business and contends with streaming losses. Veteran Disney exec Justin Warbrooke, meanwhile, was named EVP and head of corporate development, overseeing M&A as well as divestitures, among other areas. Mayer was Disney's EVP of corporate strategy and business development before going on to run strategy and the DTC and international businesses. As such, we are evolving the Corporate Strategy function to better align with this vision, which includes two leadership roles — one focused on Corporate Strategy and another focused on Corporate Development — both reporting directly to me. In addition to strategy, Andre has advised clients on the topics of operations, organization, customer journey design, and M&A.

Persons: Disney, Nelson Peltz, It's, Bob Iger, Bain, Andre James, Justin Warbrooke, James, Marvel, Hugh Johnston, Kevin Mayer, Mayer, Iger, Tom Staggs, —, Andre, Justin, Hugh Organizations: ESPN, Business, Veteran Disney, Coopers, Lybrand's, DTC, Century Fox, Disney, Media, Walt Disney Company, Corporate, Strategy, Development, of Media, Entertainment, Bain & Company, Consumer, Marvel, Reliance, Fox, Warner Bros . Discovery, Finance Locations: Hulu, India

☆ The former CFO of Disney slams Bob Iger's approach to succession planning: 'It's a real black mark'
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( Kwan Wei Kevin Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read previewFormer Disney CFO Gary Wilson has slammed Bob Iger's approach to succession planning. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Iger's return has been marred by multiple setbacks, with Disney struggling to land hits at the box office last year. Representatives for Iger did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.

Persons: —, Gary Wilson, Bob Iger's, Iger, Wilson, Bob Chapek, Jay Rasulo, Tom Staggs, Chapek, Iger's, Disney's, Andrew Ross Sorkin Organizations: Service, Disney, Business, Wall Street, Marvel, Marvel Studios, The New York Times, Business Insider

☆ Big M&A and Bob Iger's future: 13 media executives make their anonymous 2024 predictions
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-20 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +14 min

Executive 2: Bob Iger will, again, extend his contract as Disney CEO Earlier this year, Disney CEO Bob Iger renewed his contract through 2026. This executive predicted "fool me five times, shame on me." This executive predicted Peltz and Rasulo will win their campaign and both join the board. This person predicted Disney would purchase privately held Candle Media to acquire Moonbug Entertainment, the owner of CoComelon. This executive predicted Yaccarino would either lose patience or find her job increasingly pointless and leave the company in 2024.

Persons: Andrew Ross Sorkin, Walt Disney Company Bob Iger, Michael M, David Zaslav, Slaven Vlasic, NBCUniversal, Brian Roberts, Roberts, Donna Langley, Bob Iger, Iger, Nelson Peltz, Jay Rasulo, Marco Bello, Peltz, Rasulo, Disney's, Dana Walden, Dana Walden Jason Laveris, Disney Entertainment Dana Walden, Walden, Bob Chapek, Andrew Wilson, Wilson, Chris Licht wouldn't, McCarthy, Andrew Wilson Michael Newberg, Kevin Mayer, Mayer, Bryan van der Beek, Tom Staggs, Staggs, Jayson Tatum, Kyle Terada, NBCUniversal's Peacock, Alec Martinez, Gray, Discovery's Max, Jeff Zucker, Lady Michelle Obama's, Michelle Obamas, Cheriss, Gerry Cardinale, Jeff Shell, RedBird, Shari Redstone's, David Ellison, Byron Trott, Zucker, Mark Thompson, Linda Yaccarino, X Linda Yaccarino, Vox, Jerod Harris, Yaccarino, CNBC's Julia Boorstin, Boorstin, Elon Musk's, Jason LaVeris, Barbie, Mario, Oppenheimer, LightShed's Greenfield Organizations: Walt Disney Company, New York Times, Santiago, Getty, Jazz, Lincoln Center, Warner Bros ., Comcast, Warner Bros, Discovery, Disney, Trian Fund Management, Future Investment Initiative, Summit, Bloomberg, Filmmagic, Disney Entertainment, Electronic Arts, CNBC, Candle Media, Iger, Media, Moonbug Entertainment, Apple Boston Celtics, Golden State Warriors, USA, National Basketball Association, NBA, Apple, The College, ESPN, College, NHL, MLB, Vegas Golden Knights, Florida Panthers, Mobile, National Hockey League, Diamond Sports Group, Scripps, Gray Television, Las Vegas Golden Knights, Arizona Coyotes, Phoenix Suns, Street Journal, Netflix, Hulu, Max, Paramount, RedBird, Paramount Global, CNN Worldwide, CNN, NurPhoto, BDT, The Ritz, Carlton, FilmMagic, Mario Bros Locations: New York City, Disney, Miami , Florida, Las Vegas , Nevada, Laguna Niguel, Dana Point , California

☆ Bob Iger's return as Disney's CEO once sparked hope inside the company. Now, insiders are anxious and losing faith.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Lucia Moses | Reed Alexander | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

"There was a lot of excitement and hope at the return of Bob Iger a year ago," a current Disney staffer told Insider. Uncertainty about the company's future and about who's deciding what on the creative side has left execs in a state of inertia, according to an entertainment lawyer with knowledge of Disney's business. The declining linear TV business culminated in a standoff with Charter Communications over terms for a new contract for carrying Disney's cable channels. And Disney's streaming business, which was supposed to make up for the decline in cable revenues, has lost $11 billion since Disney+ launched in 2019. Churn is a top concern in Disney streaming, some employees said.

Persons: Goofy, what's, Bob Iger, Bob Chapek, He's, confidants, Zenia Mucha, Alan Braverman, Alan Horn, Jayne Parker, Christine McCarthy —, Mickey, Ariel, grumbled, Iger's, It's, he's, Iger, Paul Verna, Chapek, Bob, it's, Ron DeSantis —, Iger —, Nelson Peltz, he'd, hasn't, Verna, Disney, Ike Perlmutter, Peltz, Perlmutter, Ike, Disney's, Paul Singer, Kevin Mayer, Tom Staggs, Puck, Stagg's Blackstone, Intelligence's Verna Organizations: Walt Disney Co, Disney, ABC, Hollywood, CNBC, Writers Guild of America, Wall, Insider Intelligence, Marvel, Lucasfilm, Century Fox, Google, Facebook, Netflix, Communications, Florida Gov, Hulu, ESPN Iger, FX, Geographic, ESPN, Apple, Electronic, Elliott Investment Management, Bloomberg, Mayer Locations: Burbank, Hollywood, Florida's, Iger

Disney said Monday that Hugh Johnston, longtime chief financial officer of PepsiCo , will join the company as its new CFO, as the entertainment giant contends with a sagging share price and streaming losses. Johnston has spent the last 34 years with PepsiCo, holding various positions at the food and beverage company before becoming CFO in 2010. Johnston, who starts at Disney on Dec. 4, will report directly to CEO Bob Iger. "Very few companies have withstood the test of time that Disney has, making the company as rare as it is special." Disney would like to name an heir apparent to Iger by early 2025, CNBC reported earlier this year.

Persons: Disney, Hugh Johnston, Johnston, Bob Iger, Bob, Christine McCarthy, Tom Staggs, Kevin Mayer, Nelson Peltz, Peltz's, Peltz, Iger Organizations: PepsiCo, Disney, ABC, ESPN, Trian Fund Management, CNBC, CNBC PRO Locations: Disney, Iger

☆ Hollywood insiders are bracing for M&A activity to make a comeback, as 10 experts reveal the deals they're predicting
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( Reed Alexander | Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

"The unknown is hard to transact in," Sam Powers, the global head of technology, media, and telecommunications for Bank of America, told Insider. Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of Activision , which was completed Thursday, has also put media and tech M&A back in the spotlight. "People have been holding their breath in nervous anticipation" about the idea of tech buying big media , one investor told Insider. Private-equity bets on media and Hollywood have seen mixed resultsPrivate-equity firms may have the cash to finance major media acquisitions, but they're reckoning with market volatility. Are you a Hollywood insider?

Persons: Hollywood dealmakers, Jonathan Handel, Sam Powers, Bob Iger, —, Byron Allen, Greg Doherty, Iger, Disney's, Byron Allen —, Allen, Disney, it's, Handel, It's, you've, Reese Witherspoon, Dave Kotinsky, Moonbug, Reese Witherspoon's, Jeff Zucker, Abu, Tom Staggs, Kevin Mayer, Lucia Moses, Reed Alexander Organizations: Hollywood, Puck News, Bank of America, SAG, Writers Guild of America, Disney, ESPN, Activision, Byron Allen The Weather, Wall Street shareholders, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Hulu, ABC, Nexstar Media Group, Allen Media Group, Weather, Lionsgate, Starz, Paramount, BET, Warner Bros, Games, Disney Digital Network, Maker Studios, Observers, Comcast, Paramount Global, Tech, MGM, Microsoft, Netflix, Apple, RedBird Capital Partners, RedBird IMI, Private, SP, G Global Market Intelligence, Bloomberg, Media, Apollo Global Management, Yahoo Locations: Hollywood, Blackstone, Abu Dhabi, lmoses@insider.com, ralexander@insider.com

U.S. Rep. John Curtis won't run to succeed Mitt Romney, leaving the race to replace the nationally known Utah senator clear of one of the state's best known Republicans. “We’ve accomplished a lot but my work for them is not done," Rep. John Curtis wrote in a Monday op-ed in the Deseret News. “I believe we need elected leaders who are more concerned about doing their job than getting the next job. Curtis emerged as a possible candidate after Romney, 76, announced last month that he won’t run for reelection. He would have been a formidable contender for the job in Republican-dominated Utah, along with Republican Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson, 54, who announced his campaign Wednesday.

Persons: John Curtis, Mitt Romney, “ We’ve, “, ”, Curtis, Romney, Mike Lee, Donald Trump, who's, Adrielle Herring, Brad Wilson, Wilson, Joe Biden's, Trent Staggs, Rod Bird Jr, Roosevelt, Tim Ballard, Ballard Organizations: Rep, Deseret, Senate, Romney, Republican, Republican Utah, Operation Underground Railroad, Democrats Locations: Utah, Provo, Curtis, U.S, Mexico, Riverton

Republican Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson is poised to formally announce at a Wednesday night rally that he is running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Mitt Romney, who recently announced he won't run for reelection. Romney announced earlier this month that he won't seek a second term, saying younger people needed to step forward. Wilson would likely fall somewhere between Romney and Lee in that regard, said Damon Cann, head of Utah State University’s political science department. He launched an exploratory committee even before Romney’s announcement and recently said he will resign from his speaker job and the state House on Nov. 15. The winner of next year's Republican primary on June 25 will be heavily favored to win the general election in November.

Persons: Brad Wilson, Mitt Romney, Romney, Mike Lee, Donald Trump, Wilson, Lee, Damon Cann, Mike Lee’s, ” Cann, Cann, Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs, ”, Rod Bird Jr, Tim Ballard, Ballard, of Jesus Christ, Trump Organizations: Republican Utah, U.S, Senate, Utah State, Utah’s House, GOP, Riverton Mayor, Operation Underground Railroad, Operation Underground, of Jesus, Saints, Utah Legislature, Republican Locations: Utah, Romney, Salt Lake City, Draper, Massachusetts, Roosevelt, Salt

Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., March 7, 2023. With Trump dominating the 2024 Republican presidential field, Romney has faced powerful headwinds at home in solidly Republican Utah. Romney was the only Republican senator to vote to convict Trump at both Senate impeachment trials. 2 Senate Republican, told Reuters he would miss Romney most on economic issues. Brad Wilson, the Utah state House of Representatives speaker, has not declared his candidacy for Romney's seat.

Persons: Mitt Romney, Bonnie Cash, Donald Trump, Mitch McConnell, Romney, Trump, Mike Lee, I'm, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, McConnell, John Thune, Thune, TRUMP, Brad Wilson, Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs, Jason Chaffetz, Republican megadonors, of Jesus Christ, David Morgan, Moira Warburton, Richard Cowan, Scott Malone, Deepa Babington, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Capitol, REUTERS, Rights, Republican, Utah Republican, Utah Senate, Trump, Democratic, White House, Deseret, America, Reuters, Riverton Mayor, U.S, White, of Jesus, Utah Republican Party, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Utah, Michigan, Massachusetts, Republican Utah, Riverton

☆ 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

☆ What's next for Disney as CEO Bob Iger works to streamline the company, cut costs, and make streaming profitable
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-03 | by ( Lucia Moses | Alison Brower | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Bob Iger is trying to reshape Disney as a leaner company in his second act as CEO. When Bob Iger came back to Disney in November 2022, the company and the town celebrated the return of a successful and statesmanlike CEO for the world's largest entertainment brand. Two years under Iger's predecessor Bob Chapek left the company reorganized — in ways many company insiders didn't like — and executives, teams, and creative partners demoralized. Iger told CNBC in July that Disney's TV and cable businesses, including ABC and cable networks like FX, "may not be core" to the company. If Iger succeeds in acquiring all of Hulu, some analysts believe it would help Disney with streaming content, marketing, and ad revenue.

Persons: Bob Iger, Iger, Iger's, Bob Chapek, didn't, He's, Ron DeSantis, Penn, —, Dana Walden, Alan Bergman, Josh D'Amaro, Kevin Mayer, Tom Staggs, Puck Organizations: Disney, ESPN, Apple, Florida Gov, Iger, — Entertainment, Parks, CNBC, ABC, Hulu, Hollywood, Writers Guild of America, Association of, Television Producers, SAG, WGA, He's, Netflix, Penn Entertainment, ESPN Bet Locations: Hollywood, Orlando, California, Hulu

☆ 3 key questions Disney analysts say CEO Bob Iger faces ahead of earnings, as concerns mount about succession and streaming profits
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( Reed Alexander | Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

For Disney, Iger's return was a doctor's-orders scenario. "What is the long game for any pure-play media company in a world where we have tech-driven media companies that are much larger than any traditional media company and have fundamentally different business models?" Will Disney sell TV assets like ABC? Industry watchers have focused on private-equity firms as likely buyers of Disney's TV assets. Are you a Disney insider?

Persons: Bob Iger, Bob Chapek, Iger, Disney, Iger's, Peter Csathy, Tom Staggs, Kevin Mayer, Csathy, they're, He's, Paul Verna, Verna, David Heger, Edward Jones, Heger, Hulu —, it's, Dave Portnoy's Barstool, Will, Evercore, Dana Walden, Alan Bergman, Puck, Disney bigwigs, Mayer, Walden, Bergman, Reed Alexander, Lucia Moses Organizations: Disney, ESPN, Walt Disney Co, Hollywood, Creative Media, Apple, PE, Candle Media, Insider Intelligence, Hulu, LightShed Partners, Penn Entertainment, ESPN Bet, Penn, Yahoo Finance, Will Disney, ABC, Geographic, CNBC, Industry, Disney's, Parks

☆ 3 key questions Disney analysts say CEO Bob Iger faces ahead of earnings this week, as concerns mount about succession and streaming profits
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( Reed Alexander | Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Persons: Bob Iger, —, Bob Chapek, Iger, Disney, Iger's, Peter Csathy, Tom Staggs, Kevin Mayer, Csathy, they're, He's, Paul Verna, Verna, David Heger, Edward Jones, Heger, Hulu —, Will, it's, Evercore, Dana Walden, Alan Bergman, Puck, Disney bigwigs, Mayer, Walden, Bergman, Reed Alexander, Lucia Moses Organizations: Disney, ESPN, Walt Disney Co, Hollywood, Creative Media, Apple, PE, Candle Media, Insider Intelligence, Hulu, LightShed Partners, Will Disney, ABC, Geographic, CNBC, Industry, Disney's, Parks

☆ Disney CEO Bob Iger wants minority partners for ESPN, but landing a deal won't be easy
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

They're working with ESPN President Jimmy Pitaro on the strategic options for ESPN and, to a lesser degree, Disney's other linear cable networks. In years past, ESPN could still generate revenue growth by increasing programming fees for pay TV distributors, such as Comcast , Charter and DirecTV. As ESPN revenue declines, it will become a larger anchor on Disney's earnings. Disney offers many of its lower-rated live games on its ESPN+ streaming service, which costs $9.99 per month. When ESPN does decide to offer an unbundled subscription service, it will likely cause even more people to cancel pay TV.

Persons: Bob Iger, Kevin Mayer, Tom Staggs, Staggs, Jimmy Pitaro, Iger, CNBC's David Faber Organizations: Disney, ESPN, Mayer, Candle Media, Comcast, Charter, DirecTV

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves midday: SoFi, ON Semiconductor, Disney, Sweetgreen and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

SoFi Technologies – Shares of the fintech company popped more than 18% after it reported second-quarter results and lifted its full-year guidance. ON Semiconductor — The chipmaker's shares jumped 3.2% after it posted an earnings and revenue beat for the second quarter. New Relic — Shares jumped 13.4% after a private equity consortium announced it would take the software company private. Sweetgreen — The salad chain's shares jumped 11% Monday after an upgrade from Piper Sandler. Adobe — The software stock jumped 3.9% after Morgan Stanley upgraded the shares to overweight from equal weight.

Persons: FactSet, Disney, Kevin Mayer, Tom Staggs, Bob Iger, Spero, Sweetgreen, Piper Sandler, XPeng, Cowen, Morgan Stanley, Morgan Stanley's, Goldman Sachs, Wayfair, Salesforce's, — CNBC's Hakyung Kim, Yun Li, Sarah Min, Tanaya Macheel, Samantha Subin Organizations: SoFi Technologies, Disney, Financial Times, Food and Drug Administration, UBS, Hasbro, of, Bank of America, CVS, Adobe, Chevron, New York Community Bancorp, Deutsche Bank, CSX, RBC Locations: Bob Iger .

has brought back two former heirs apparent, Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs, to advise on the future of Disney’s legacy TV businesses were sure to get Hollywood talking. Mr. Mayer and Mr. Staggs will help Iger think about “linear” TV properties like ABC, according to Puck. Both men had once been tipped as potential successors to Iger — Mr. Mayer as head of M.&A. (Mr. Iger chose Bob Chapek to take over, but he was ousted after two years and replaced by … Mr. Mr. Mayer and Mr. Staggs now run Candle Media, an investment company that has bought an array of production studios.

Persons: Robert Iger, Kevin Mayer, Tom Staggs, Iger’s, Mayer, Staggs, Puck, Iger, Mr, Bob Chapek, … Mr Organizations: Disney, ESPN, Media

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Hasbro, Adobe, GoodRx, SBA Communications and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Chevron — Shares rose 1.6% after Goldman Sachs upgraded Chevron to buy from neutral and hiked its price target. Hasbro — The toymaker added 2.9efore the bell after Bank of America upgraded the stock to buy from neutral. United Parcel Service — Shares fell 1% after Credit Suisse downgraded UPS to neutral from outperform, citing labor concerns. Cowen also raised its price target to reflect about 78% potential upside. SBA Communications — Shares fell 1.6% in premarket trading.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Jefferies, Walt Disney, Bob Iger, Kevin Mayer, Tom Staggs, XPeng, GoodRX, Cowen, It's, —, Alex Harring, Hakyung Kim, Tanaya Macheel, Samantha Subin Organizations: Chevron, Ford, Disney, Financial, UBS, Hasbro, Bank of America, United Parcel Service, Credit Suisse, CVS, SBA Communications, Semiconductor, FactSet Locations: U.S

☆ Inside Bob Iger's Disney contract extension: a CEO moving to protect his legacy and get succession right this time
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Lucia Moses | Reed Alexander | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Disney extended CEO Bob Iger's contract for 2 years, through the end of 2026. Company watchers won't be shocked by the move, since Iger extended his previous tenure in the role many times. Insiders said he wants to protect his legacy and stabilize the business, especially after the exit of its CFO. Disney just extended Bob Iger's contract for two more years, through 2026, the company announced today. Iger pledged at the time to prioritize finding a successor, but he has extended his contract before — four times during his first 15-year tenure.

Persons: Bob Iger's, Iger, Bob Chapek, Dave Heger, Edward Jones, Heger, Christian Knaebel, Christine McCarthy, Disney, — here's, Chapek, Jay Rasulo, Kevin Mayer, Tom Staggs, Dana Walden, Alan Bergman, Iger's reorg, Dana, who's, Bergman, Walden, Meta execs Sheryl Sandberg, Carolyn Everson, Josh D'Amaro, Jimmy Pitaro, Adam Silver, Silver, Andrew Wilson Organizations: Disney, Hollywood, Writers Guild of America, SAG, Longtime, Disney Entertainment, Pixar, ESPN, National Basketball Association, EA Locations: Iger

☆ TikTok and Candle Media strike deal to co-create content
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

June 20 (Reuters) - TikTok and Blackstone-backed Candle Media will co-create content and branded entertainment as part of a broad strategic partnership in the United States, the companies said on Tuesday. A key piece of the partnership will be Hello Sunshine, Reese Witherspoon's company that Candle acquired in 2021. TikTok, owned by China's ByteDance, will also allow advertisers purchase advertisements directly adjacent to Candle content and share that ad revenue as part of the tie-up. Candle Media was founded by former top Walt Disney (DIS.N) executives Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs. Reporting by Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra EluriOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Reese Witherspoon's, TikTok, HBO's, hashtag, China's ByteDance, Kevin Mayer, Tom Staggs, Jaspreet Singh, Krishna Chandra Organizations: Blackstone, Media, Walt Disney, Thomson Locations: United States, Bengaluru

☆ Disney's parks division is driving big profits, a bright spot as the streaming biz struggles and ESPN's future is unclear. Here's how that could factor into Bob Iger's CEO succession plans.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Reed Alexander | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Disney CEO Bob Iger has reorganized the company into 3 core units: entertainment, ESPN, and parks. Parks' growing prominence comes as the company faces looming decisions over Iger's CEO. Travel bans "dramatically impacted" results for Disney Parks during the intense early years of the coronavirus pandemic, Heger noted, adding that parks are now generating more revenue and operating profit than they did in pre-COVID times. The parks' success is "helping to offset" losses from Disney's "DTC," or direct-to-consumer streaming business, Heger added. Josh D'Amaro, the current chairman for Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products, would be a likely figure appearing on any shortlist of CEO contenders.

Persons: Bob Iger, Parks, It's, Dave Heger, Edward Jones, Heger, AECOM, Iger, Josh D'Amaro, Christine McCarthy —, Iger's, Bob Chapek, Ron DeSantis, Chapek, Hollywood creatives, Tom Staggs, Iger —, —, Chapek's, it's, you've, Jeffery Merola, he'd, DeSantis, Reed Alexander Organizations: Disney, ESPN, Disney Parks, Walt Disney, Disneyland, Products, Florida Gov, Hollywood, Los Angeles Times, Sunshine State Locations: Tokyo, Shanghai, Orlando , Florida, Anaheim , California, execs, Chapek, Syracuse , New York, Orlando

☆ Disney board exposed itself to activist intervention, but Peltz may be overreaching
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Disney's share price spike in 2021 was caused by the same phenomenon — investors charging into streaming services with significant subscriber growth. Activist investor Nelson Peltz spent about 30 minutes Thursday morning speaking with CNBC's Jim Cramer and David Faber in a wide-ranging interview about why he wants a Disney board seat. Now Iger's back, and the Disney board has tasked him with finding a successor in the next two years. It's a far easier case to be made that Disney's board and Iger have consistently bungled succession planning. As Trian noted in its presentation (on Slide 28), the Disney board extended Iger's retirement date five different times between October 2011 and December 2017.

☆ 12 media executives anonymously predict 2023's biggest deals, trends and changes
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Candle Media has acquired intellectual property assets including Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine production company and Moonbug, which owns the animated kids series "CoComelon." Executive 3: Iger extends his contract There's been lots of speculation over who Iger will choose as his successor. History suggests he has a hard time leaving the role of Disney CEO. Christine M. McCarthy, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer The Walt Disney Company. "I love Shari [Redstone], but ViacomCBS is not long for this world as it stands today," said a media executive last year.

☆ 21 production companies that are acquisition targets as streamers race to get profitable and private equity bets big on Hollywood content
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Lucia Moses | Elaine Low | Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The streaming wars have fueled a wave of deal-making for Hollywood production companies. Private equity is leading the charge, with firms like Apollo and Blackstone spending big on content. Insider identified 21 top production companies that could attract buyers or investors in 2023. Media companies need fresh content to win and keep subscribers who have more options than ever to choose from. Insider spoke with five industry dealmakers, consultants, and other experts who named 20 companies that could be hot acquisition targets as the drive for content continues.

☆ Brad Pitt sells 60% of his Plan B production company to French media conglomerate Mediawan, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Brad Pitt is selling 60% of his production company, Plan B Entertainment, to French media conglomerate Mediawan in a deal that's set to be announced this weekend, according to people familiar with the matter. Neither Plan B nor Mediawan responded to requests for comment. For TV, Plan B's productions have included HBO's 2014 adaptation of "The Normal Heart," directed by Ryan Murphy, and Amazon Prime Video's 2021 miniseries "The Underground Railroad." Candle Media also acquired a minority stake in Westbrook Inc. — the production company founded by Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith – earlier this year. The boutique investment bank Moelis led the sale for Plan B.

☆ Cameo launches Cameo Kids personalized videos with Candle Media
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Dawn Chmielewski | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Dec 8 (Reuters) - Celebrity video messaging service Cameo said Thursday it has partnered with Candle Media to launch a new feature aimed at the playground set -- Cameo Kids. The service will offer personalized birthday and holiday video greetings from animated children's characters, including popular figures from Candle Media's Moonbug Entertainment's franchises "Blippi" and "CoComelon." Personalized messages for children expand the potential market for Cameo, which launched five years ago and allows athletes, celebrities and musicians to sell personalized videos to their fans. Cameo had experimented with offering children's content about a year ago, working with Mattel Inc's (MAT.O) 'Thomas the Tank Engine,' but its partnership with Candle Media helped elevate the experience, Galanis said. Blackstone-backed Candle Media spent months figuring out how to use its animated characters to deliver personalized video at scale.

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