Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Over the past century, Disney has grown to become one of the largest public media and entertainment companies in the world. In fact, its market capitalization is more than US$150 billion or around IDR 2,351 trillion.
But the future of the company, which celebrated its 100th anniversary last month, is increasingly uncertain. It could be said that the magic has been lost for The Walt Disney Company.
Report CNN International mention House of Mouse is in danger due to several factors. One factor is the streaming business which is still not profitable.
Disney is also facing an ongoing actors’ strike in Hollywood, including a decline in visitor numbers at the Disney World Resort in central Florida, United States (US). The legal dispute with Republican presidential candidate Florida Governor Ron DeSantis also adds to the burden, plus uncertainty surrounding CEO Robert ‘Bob’ Iger’s succession plans.
“Like its competitors, Disney faces an uncertain media environment as more viewers abandon linear TV in favor of entertainment sources not controlled by Big Media, including TikTok and YouTube,” the report said, quoted Thursday (9/11/2023 ).
Disney shares, at about US$84 per share, are at their lowest level in nearly a decade. This figure is down 8% since Bin Iger returned as CEO last November, and down 3% since the start of the year.
This is in contrast to several of Disney’s competitors. Where Comcast shares are up more than 18% this year, and Warner Bros. Discovery is up 22%.
“The company reported its quarterly earnings Wednesday afternoon and slightly missed sales expectations but reported better-than-expected revenue. The company added 7 million core Disney+ subscribers and narrowed its streaming losses. But Iger announced deeper cost cuts across the company,” the report explained CNN Indonesia.
Employee Layoffs 7,000 Employees
Meanwhile, earlier this year, CEO Iger announced that the media giant would lay off approximately 7,000 employees from its global workforce in three waves. Iger himself suddenly came out of retirement to take over the role of CEO of Disney again after the board of directors suddenly fired his successor, Bob Chapek.
Iger has promised that in his second act as CEO, he is “very focused” on finding a worthy CEO to replace him when his contract expires at the end of 2026. Although it is unclear whether the search for a new CEO has been fruitful so far.
[Gambas:Video CNBC]
(sef/sef)