News Disney’s Q1 FY25 Earnings Results Webcast

[TrainsOfDisney]

There was always revenue from the moment the service opened.

Correct. You said revenue and I quoted it as if you said profit.

 

[MisterPenguin]

I *hate* the term "operating income."

It's called "profit" (or "loss").

At the least, use "net revenue."

Thank-you for attending my Ted Talk.

 

[BrianLo]

I *hate* the term "operating income."

It's called "profit" (or "loss").

At the least, use "net revenue."

Thank-you for attending my Ted Talk.

The trouble is those are all very different things and not synonymous terms.

We’ll have to take it up with Disney for over emphasizing OI.

 

[Serpico Jones]

This is the Achilles' heel of D+ (and Disney in General) is that they are not even remotely nimble enough to generate content the way Netflix does. In the time it takes Disney to green light the next Star Wars or Marvel D+ piece of junk, Netflix will have produced 4 or 5 different series for around the same price of the one D+ series. All they would need is one of them to be successful to make up for the others that weren't, and even then, the sheer number of watch minutes for all 4 or 5 would still be many times that of the D+ production.

This is probably the key issue.

 

[JoeCamel]

I *hate* the term "operating income."

It's called "profit" (or "loss").

At the least, use "net revenue."

Thank-you for attending my Ted Talk.

But if there were no operating income would there be a need for a Chief Operating Officer to keep an eye on the income?

 

[MR.Dis]

Just wondering, if USA obtains Greenland, how long before Disney opens a park there?

 

[Dranth]

Just wondering, if USA obtains Greenland, how long before Disney opens a park there?

Given what the US wants it for, the locals overwhelmingly not wanting the US to own it and the climate in general, I am going to go with never.

 

[disneylandtour]

It really is amazing how a neophyte company like Netflix was able to bring a huge conglomerate like Disney to its knees.

Netflix lacks diversification. Streaming is having a moment. What happens when/if the world moves onto something else.

 

[disneylandtour]

This is important to repost since people keep posting the canard that "Hurricanes!" is somehow a lie to disguise a failing park.

Domestic Parks and Cruises profited $1.99B this past quarter compared to $2.10B the same quarter last year. There's a 2% loss. Roughly the amount of loss from the hurricanes.

As a frequent visitor to WDW, I think this is mostly bunk. In the last nine years, hurricanes have closed the parks six times--sometimes for a longer period than the 2024 hurricane. In 2022, Disney World closed two separate times for two hurricanes. In recent years, large hurricanes to Central Florida have been more common. So one closure for one hurricane should be squarely within the realm of a standard Q4 or Q1 experience now for Disney. This would be like me saying, Hey, it took me longer to get home today after work because there was traffic--as there's heavy traffic most days here at 5pm. Nothing new.

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

Netflix lacks diversification. Streaming is having a moment. What happens when/if the world moves onto something else.

I think the world already is. I’m a Disney fan and thought Disney+ had good content - but I really don’t have that much time to watch it and when I do have time I can look up stuff to watch on YouTube for free.

I take enough trips by air that I catch up on Disney movies when I fly (took a while to find a plane that actually had Elemental - was not a popular one! Haha).

The most valuable thing for me on Disney+ is muppets.

 

[Dranth]

As a frequent visitor to WDW, I think this is mostly bunk. In the last nine years, hurricanes have closed the parks six times--sometimes for a longer period than the 2024 hurricane. In 2022, Disney World closed two separate times for two hurricanes. In recent years, large hurricanes to Central Florida have been more common. So one closure for one hurricane should be squarely within the realm of a standard Q4 or Q1 experience now for Disney. This would be like me saying, Hey, it took me longer to get home today after work because there was traffic--as there's heavy traffic most days here at 5pm. Nothing new.

This sounds like a misunderstanding on how quarterly reports work.

The report was comparing this last quarter to the same quarter last year and that is it. Anything listed on the report is trying to explain the difference between those two things. Disney lost a cruise ship sailing and a full day of parks at WDW in Q1 2025 (10/24-12/24) due to a hurricane vs. Q1 of 2024 (10/23-12/23) where none of that happened. Hence why it is mentioned.

Without it people are making comparisons with incomplete information.

 

[flynnibus]

Netflix lacks diversification. Streaming is having a moment. What happens when/if the world moves onto something else.

You think video entertainment is ‘just a moment’??

The value in netflix is not a technology…

 

[disneylandtour]

When the CEO says it several times a year how GSATs go down when crowded and go up when not so crowded, and so, their goal is to regulate overcrowding with steep price hikes and surge pricing and reservations. And how that's OK, because the increased spending per person makes up for lower attendance.

I believe the thing that is not being said is this: the pandemic period further decreased the middle class and increased the wealth of those in middle/upper to upper categories. Disney does not specifically target the wealthy as a sector--those people tend to end up at Four Seasons or Ritz, not the Contemporary. But to the point: Disney seems to be saying that it's more profitable to focus on middle-upper households, as they spend more per cap, than on also creating ways for lower-middle families to come to Disney World. It's a repositioning on the wealth standing of the target customer which has a byproduct, also, of lowering attendance. And honestly, I think this strategy is very shortsighted, as Disney, for decades, has widely cast a net toward all families knowing that some of the kids will be hooked for life. Now that net is smaller. We can loop back in 20 years and see how it played out.

 

[disneylandtour]

You think video entertainment is ‘just a moment’??

The value in netflix is not a technology…

I didn't say video was a moment. Video has gone from air waves to cable to VHS to disc to downloadable options to streaming. I said streaming is having a moment. And I fully expect some new version of video delivery in fifteen or so years.

 

[JD80]

I didn't say video was a moment. Video has gone from air waves to cable to VHS to disc to downloadable options to streaming. I said streaming is having a moment. And I fully expect some new version of video delivery in fifteen or so years.

Uh streaming is not only a replacement for physical media as home entertainment its a replacement for a distribution network that was over the air and cable.

Replace over the air and cable is a massive change in the ecosystem. Calling it a massive change is a vast understatement.

It's like the advancement of going cross country on a train vs. an airplane. Not so much as technology but infrastructure and data usage.

To flippantly say "eh there will be something new" just shows amazing ignorance.

 

[disneylandtour]

*I think they did produce a VHS set for one of the seasons of Stranger Things, but that is a very rare exception.

There were DVDs and Blu-Rays for at least two Stranger Things seasons.

 

[disneylandtour]

Uh streaming is not only a replacement for physical media as home entertainment its a replacement for a distribution network that was over the air and cable.

Replace over the air and cable is a massive change in the ecosystem. Calling it a massive change is a vast understatement.

It's like the advancement of going cross country on a train vs. an airplane. Not so much as technology but infrastructure and data usage.

To flippantly say "eh there will be something new" just shows amazing ignorance.

Methods of dominant delivery have changed every 15 or 20 years since the start of video. Yes, streaming is a massive change. I don't think it actually changed physical media--digital downloads mostly did physical media in before the big boom in streaming in or around 2018/2019. But also, in that, the audience--or some of them--is moving away from scripted productions entirely, which is the center of streaming. My kids are far more interested in YouTube than any studio streamer. All I'm saying is that these things are in an ongoing state of flux and to recognize that streaming is the center of distribution now, but that will likely change in the mid-2030s.

 

[flynnibus]

I didn't say video was a moment. Video has gone from air waves to cable to VHS to disc to downloadable options to streaming. I said streaming is having a moment. And I fully expect some new version of video delivery in fifteen or so years.

You said...

"Netflix lacks diversification. Streaming is having a moment. What happens when/if the world moves onto something else."

Suggesting that this 'moment' thing is a liability to Netflix too..

I mean, I don't think I need to remind anyone that netflix didn't start as a streaming company... and that Netflix isn't only a streaming company any longer.. and is valued for it's brand, product, customer draw and base.

How video is actually delivered changes constantly - It's why you can realistically watch Netflix on your phone now compared to even just a few years ago.

The technology evolution isn't going to blindside or undercut Netflix. More likely in 5yrs from now you'll be talking about Netflix like you do Warner Bros instead of just as a 'streaming company'

 

[Disstevefan1]

but that will likely change in the mid-2030s.

What’s going to happen in the mid-2030s ?

 

[HauntedPirate]

I'm still trying to figure out how Helene affected Q1 (meaning, after October 1, 2024). Per Disney's own statements:

"reflecting a 6 percentage-point adverse impact to year-over-year growth due to Hurricanes Milton and Helene (~$120 million impact) " (Emphasis added is mine)

Helene made landfall near the panhandle on September 26, 2024. Did thousands and thousands of WDW reservations get cancelled that extended into October? Because I don't recall any real negative effect to attendance in the days after Helene passed by.