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The President and CEO of Walt Disney Co. has ruled out any assumption that the Entertainment Center will make fun of its Hulu partners once it takes control of the online video pioneer next year, informing analysts that the Mouse House would make all decisions fiscally responsible to other shareholders. "
Disney will control 60% of Hulu after the closing of the purchase of some of Fox's assets by the end of the first half of next year, but it will still have partners in Comcast-NBCUniversal (with 30%) and AT & T (with 10%). Although some speculate that Disney will try to buy the others, although some analysts hope Comcast clings to his goal, if only to adjust the nose of Disney. Iger said his plan was to give Hulu as original programming as possible.
Iger said his intention was to increase investment in Hulu, especially on the programming side.
"We are aiming to use the merged company's television production capabilities to provide Hulu with a much more original programming," Iger said during a conference call with analysts to discuss the fourth quarter results.
Iger added that the service will also include advertising-funded programming. He pointed out that subscribers to Hulu were typically 20 years younger than traditional viewers, which, he said, is underestimated but should be incredibly attractive to advertisers. He also added that with its high quality content, it was possible to increase prices at some point.
Hulu will stick to entertainment programming in general, said Iger, thus leaving a more family-friendly tariff to his other consumer-oriented offer, Disney +, which is expected to be launched later in 2019. Iger has given the company a 39, other details on the service in addition to its official name. – Some analysts had started calling it Disneyflix, out of respect for Netflix, the SVOD service that many believe emulate – adding that the service would be loaded with content from the Disney, Pixar, National Geographic and Marvel universes and Star Wars.
Disney recorded one of the best quarters in its history – its turnover grew by 12%, its operating income grew by 17%, mainly because of the huge gains of its Entertainment Studio division – with a growth of 50% and an operating result almost tripled. Media Networks, which includes the cable and broadcasting networks, saw its revenues grow by 9% and its operating income by 4%. Broadcasting accounts for most of these gains, with revenue growth of 21% and a 6% increase in operating income. In cable networks, sales increased by 5% and operating income decreased by 6%.
Although Disney focused on its direct sales offers to consumers, Mr. Iger pointed out that he was not abandoning his more traditional distribution lines. But he also sees the writing on the wall.
Iger said Disney would "de-prioritize" and "sacrifice" traditional distributors, but added, "We are also realistic. We see what is happening on the market. We are seeing the growth of new platforms and program consumption relative to channel consumption. "
Iger said that it was too early to say when this change would occur, adding that if the company saw opportunities to transfer programming to DTC format, it would do so.
"We can not now estimate in any way if that will happen," Iger said.
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