Walt Disney: How difficult will it be for Bob Iger to turn the company around?
Bob Iger led a 45-minute town hall session in Burbank, California.
During the exchange, Iger took on questions from anxious employees on thorny issues like the recruitment ban, the outlook for conventional television enterprises, the possible sale of the company, and the company’s stance on LGBTQ concerns that had plagued the term of his predecessor Bob Chapek. Regarding the latter, Iger emphasised that a fundamental principle of Disney's storytelling was embracing inclusion, acceptance and tolerance, and it was crucial for the company to uphold this. But his big message to the employees in the end was: “The status quo is gone.”
As he has set about reshaping Disney, the path has been arduous for Iger. The CEO has been dealing with a spectrum of challenges, from tackling streaming losses and dipping linear subscriptions to navigating advertising headwinds. Concurrently, he has had to manage an internal reorganisation that empowers creative divisions for content authority and distribution, while addressing vital cultural aspects like LGBT inclusion. Then there’s the key task of identifying a successor.
The CEO has acknowledged that the task of turning around the Disney business has proven more challenging than he anticipated. Over the past year, Disney's stock price has fallen by 30%. On August 25, the stock closed at $83.27, mirroring levels last seen in May 2014.
In the June quarter, revenue climbed 4% to $22.33 billion, yet missed forecasts. A $2.7-billion restructuring expense led to a $460-million loss, compared with last year's $1.4 billion profit. Iger's urgent focus is to halt the decline of the TV market, curb streaming losses, and arrest the stock price slide.
Disney drops to lowest in over
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