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Walt Disney
Co.
CEO Robert Iger continued to present the company's digital future to investors, even as the company reported a year of resounding success for traditional films, such as "Black Panther. "
million. Iger predicted an accelerated schedule for mega-strategy leading to the strategic shift in streaming, claiming that Disney's acquisition of the major badets of
21st Century Fox
Inc.
could close "significantly" compared to the projected date prior to mid-2019.
The merger will allow Disney to launch a direct-to-consumer campaign. a service in which television programs based on Disney franchises such as "High School Musical" will be broadcast alongside Fox's National Geographic brand programming, combining two entertainment forces to rewrite the Hollywood economy, while traditional studios face new competitors from Silicon Valley and Netflix Inc.
Disney's $ 71.3 billion acquisition of Fox spurs the company's efforts to offer consumers direct access to the studio's films and television programs. In a results conference call announced Thursday, Mr. Iger first revealed the name of the service: Disney +.
Although Mr. Iger focused on the models of the future that are aimed directly at the consumer, it is some of Disney's most traditional businesses – theme parks and movies – that have enabled the company to to record a record performance during its recently completed fiscal year.
As for several quarters, Wall Street focused on the future of Disney as a direct competitor of Netflix, a strategy being reproduced by its competitors. AT & T Inc., which completed its acquisition of Time Warner Inc. earlier this year, is currently offering a direct-to-consumer service offering its HBO channel and other holdings. Technology companies such as Apple Inc. have aggressively embarked on entertainment programming in recent months.
Disney is betting that its library of adored characters and franchises will be enough to attract consumers who already pay monthly subscriptions to Netflix or who maintain their cable plans.
The company announced that its service, scheduled to be launched in late 2019, will offer programming including the new "Star Wars" series from its Lucasfilm division and Marvel Studios superhero derivatives. Disney's two other entertainment divisions, Disney Animation and Pixar Animation, will be featured on this service, as well as National Geographic programming, which Disney will acquire as part of the Fox deal.
"It will be very brand-centric," said Iger.
Disney has announced a new programming for the new Disney +, and new information is forthcoming: the company announced that it would welcome investors in April for a presentation of its broadcast service packages. continued. A website promoting the service was posted online during Thursday's visit.
In addition to its Disney brand service, the company will also manage ESPN +, released earlier this year after several quarters of declining subscriptions for ESPN's cable channel, and Hulu, on which it is taking over. majority control in the Fox case.
The Disney-Fox agreement will reduce the number of major Hollywood studios from six to five. Disney will produce some films exclusively for its streaming service, while distributing features with traditional theatrical releases. but Mr Iger said he was not planning to shorten the "window" of time between film movie debuts and his availability at home.
Earlier this week, the antitrust authorities of the European Union approved the merger between Disney and Fox, although some international jurisdictions have not yet spoken.
The $ 71.3 billion selling price is expected to shrink by more than $ 20 billion with the sale of Fox's stake in European pay-TV operator Sky PLC to Comcast Corp. and a mandate from the Department of Justice to divest Fox's regional sports networks. Fox and News Corp, the parent company of the Wall Street Journal, share common property.
Despite the loss of Sky's interest in Comcast, Disney will deploy Disney + in Europe, Iger said, and plans to introduce Hulu to more companies. foreign markets once he takes majority control.
For the three months ended Sept. 29, earnings rose 33% to $ 2.32 billion, or $ 1.55 per share, while revenues rose 12% to $ 14.31. billions of dollars. Excluding non-recurring items, Disney realized $ 1.48 per share.
Analysts surveyed by FactSet were counting on adjusted earnings of $ 1.34 on adjusted income of $ 13.73 billion.
For the fiscal year, Disney recorded a record annual profit of $ 12.6 billion on $ 59.43. in billions of dollars in revenue, up from $ 8.98 billion and $ 55.14 billion a year ago
Disney released five of the top 10 most profitable films in 2018; Its exercise, which ended on September 29, included gigantic successes such as "Black Panther", "Avengers: Infinity War" and "The Incredibles 2", three films that alone collected nearly $ 2 billion. dollars of tickets sold in the United States and Canada. Operating income for the Disney Studios and Entertainment division increased by 27% over the previous year.
Disney's Parks and Resorts operating income increased by 18% as traffic and prices continued to increase at its national sites.
Disney has also announced a $ 157 million reduction in its investment in Vice Media, which plans to cut its workforce by 15% to combat the slowdown in growth.
Write to Erich Schwartzel at [email protected] and Maria Armental at [email protected]
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