On layoffs, very bad attendance, and Iger's legacy being one of disgrace

[flynnibus]

ESPN sinking the company was also nonsensical talk because all indications are it remained one of the (and possibly the) most profitable sections of the entire company. It just wasn't as insanely profitable as it was 10 years ago.

It's not non-sense if it didn't happen. And the ESPN golden goose narrative held the stock back and was the top of analyst minds for over 2 years. If you believed the risk was as big as the concern was is another discussion... but ESPN talk did have a actual impact on the company.. and poof.. all the problems went away with some big D+ subscriber numbers

 

[el_super]

Park fans are derided rightfully so, because IP finds its way into the parks and has successfully pushed out anything even remotely original.

So what would you do instead, to make the company less reliant on the parks?

 

[J4546]

fox had fantastic 4 and xmen (includes deadpool) and with what disney has done with the marvel stuff they already owned...i think they will make billions on those 2 franchises alone. merging them into the already established avengers universe... gonna make a lot of money. then you have avatar...a moneymaker. all of foxs vault like home alone and alien franchise and simpsons, and bobs burgers and family guy and die hard and many more will add to disney+ and hulu...and speaking of hulu they now own fox 33% cut to give disney a 66% stake on hulu. plus all the overseas stuff like star india and others i cant remember which is a realy big deal as india is quickly becoming a major player and star india serves like 9/10 households with cable....theres so many pieces of this puzzle, id recommend checking out the wiki page for the buyout, its fascinating.

 

[flynnibus]

Very interesting you talk a lot of young ones needing to make smarter decisions in life which I agree. Your oldest kid and fiance having employment impacted by covid then getting out of an apartment then moving into their first house. Doesn't seem like sound decision making in these uncertain times?

Their monthly house expenses will be less than their rental expense. They made a sacrifice of location to reduce expenses and get the elements they wanted. Want change?... drive it.

 

[el_super]

Fox acquisition.

Exactly my point. Parks fans are quick to point to things like the Fox acquisition as bad business decisions, but since that decision was important for combating the same thing people are blaming Iger for now: diversifying their business. The Fox acquisition is going to play heavily into how well Disney+ is doing on today's call.

 

[Brer Oswald]

Exactly my point. Parks fans are quick to point to things like the Fox acquisition as bad business decisions, but since that decision was important for combating the same thing people are blaming Iger for now: diversifying their business. The Fox acquisition is going to play heavily into how well Disney+ is doing on today's call.

Like I stated, you need to diversify your business strategy in order to diversify the business.

 

[el_super]

Like I stated, you need to diversify your business strategy in order to diversify the business.

How? Are we going to blame Iger for not having the foresight to start a Disney Pharmaceuticals division? For not buying Johnson and Johnson? They already put Disney characters on Band-Aids so there has to be SOME synergy prospects there right?

Maybe if go.com took off, we wouldn't need to be having this discussion...

 

[Miss Bella]

Not a huge percentage. About a 1/4 of your pay goes to taxes. The majority of Canadians get money back from income tax. It evens out in the end. The U.S. Costco top wage is $26. Its not that much less then ours.

26 is about 35 cad. Your 27 in cad is about 20 here.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Disney has the data obviously... I wonder how the viewing is for simpsons on Disney+.

I also think it’s a bad idea to mix in films like Ice Age into Disney+ branding wise.

The Disney company has spent decades making their films valuable by “keeping them in the vault” - and now its like they have dumped everything into the bargain bin that is Disney+.

Hate to break this to you, but the majority of Disney Studios' live action films fall into the category of bargain bin. Not to mention the Made for TV sequels by DisneyToon and the 'dark ages' of Disney Animation.

Then there are all the cheesy Disney channel series.

Most of the Ice Age films are better than product I just mentioned.

And... Sound of Music!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

Hate to break this to you, but the majority of Disney Studios' live action films fall into the category of bargain bin. Not to mention the Made for TV sequels by DisneyToon and the 'dark ages' of Disney Animation.

Then there are all the cheesy Disney channel series.

Most of the Ice Age films are better than product I just mentioned.

And... Sound of Music!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I guess when I’m really bored I can finally watch some of those direct to home video sequels. Maybe.

I certainly wouldn’t argue that little mermaid 3 is better than ice age - just mixing up brands the way Disney+ has done is a bit odd to me. And I like Disney+. (Yes I rolled my eyes and quietly mocked it when I saw the D23 expo booth... but I’ve come around and I would even say I’m a fan.)

 

[pheneix]

Me patiently waiting for the sequel thread like..

View attachment 488984

This thread is gonna be so lit this afternoon that it can wait.

 

[SJN1279]

How could they expect good attendance? They aren't taking new reservations, and Northeast states have to quarantine for two weeks if they visit.

2021 things should improve.

 

[brb1006]

Me patiently waiting for the sequel thread like..

View attachment 488984

Expect that thread to drop after today's earnings call is finished.

 

[brb1006]

Hate to break this to you, but the majority of Disney Studios' live action films fall into the category of bargain bin. Not to mention the Made for TV sequels by DisneyToon and the 'dark ages' of Disney Animation.

Then there are all the cheesy Disney channel series.

Most of the Ice Age films are better than product I just mentioned.

And... Sound of Music!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I guess when I’m really bored I can finally watch some of those direct to home video sequels. Maybe.

I certainly wouldn’t argue that little mermaid 3 is better than ice age - just mixing up brands the way Disney+ has done is a bit odd to me. And I like Disney+. (Yes I rolled my eyes and quietly mocked it when I saw the D23 expo booth... but I’ve come around and I would even say I’m a fan.)

At least some of the sequels had actual effort put into them (such as Return To Neverland and Cinderella 3 for example). I remember when Bambi 2 (a midquel to the film) came out, it was able to actually get a theatrical release in Europe. Even the makers of that film put effort and heart into this one after seeing the behind the scenes features on DVD years ago. Sure it was average/alright, but even Disney fans who aren't fond of the sequel era admit that Bambi II is one of the better sequels (midquel) of that period.

Also I loved the heck out of the Winnie The Pooh films by DisneyToon Studios during the early 2000s. Especially The Tigger Movie, Piglet's Big Movie, and Pooh's Heffalump Movie.

 

[brianstl]

This thread is gonna be so lit this afternoon that it can wait.

It appears Doomcock made a video about you today.

 

[Brer Oswald]

How? Are we going to blame Iger for not having the foresight to start a Disney Pharmaceuticals division? For not buying Johnson and Johnson? They already put Disney characters on Band-Aids so there has to be SOME synergy prospects there right?

Maybe if go.com took off, we wouldn't need to be having this discussion...

You just don’t buy a well established film studio simply for its film library and characters. There are a lot of other technical assets you acquire, and when you start shutting those down, I have to question that purchase.

 

[UNCgolf]

Let’s be fair though - the cost of living in Canada is huge. I work for a Builder in the GTA, and sell new townhomes in the $700-$800K range, with detached well over a mill.

I live in a modest 44 year old semi detached home, an hour west of TO, valued at just under $500K.

I have 24 and 25 year old sons still at home because rent is $1500-$1800/month plus utilities.

Wages in Canada NEED to be higher.

Isn't that more a factor of being in/around Toronto than Canada in general? You'd get roughly the same numbers looking at other comparable major metropolitan areas in the US like NYC and Chicago.

Or even here in Atlanta, where my parents' house in a smaller city in North Carolina (although still one of the 50 or so biggest in the US) that is worth roughly $300k there would cost well over a million if it were here.

 

[marni1971]

What exactly would you be looking for in a backup plan? Decisions made that make the Walt Disney Company overall less reliant on theme parks for income, such as buying Pixar, Marvel, FOX or building out Disney+, are usually the kind of decisions derided by parks fans.

It is beyond absurdist to try to pin the current failings on Iger's leadership. Unless you have some evidence he created the virus in his basement, that is.

There was concern two, maybe three, years ago they were over stretching themselves.

But again, even less than a year ago, who could have predicted this.

 

[Brer Oswald]

At least some of the sequels had effort put into them (such as Return To Neverland and Cinderella 3). I remember when Bambi 2 (a midquel to the film) came out, it was able to get a theatrical release in Europe. Even the makers of that film actually put effort and heart into this one after seeing the behind the scenes features years ago. Sure it was average/okay, but even Disney fans who aren't fond of the sequel era admit that Bambi II was one of the better sequels of that period.

Also I loved the heck out of the Winnie The Pooh films by DisneyToon Studios during the early 2000s. Especially The Tigger Movie, Piglet's Big Movie, and Pooh's Heffalump Movie.

The Pooh sequels were fantastic. But that’s largely to do with the fact that Winnie the Pooh is largely a character dependent franchise. Grandiose plots aren’t really a thing. All you need is some sort of new scenario, good writing for your favourite 100 Acre Wood critters, and you have a good time.

 

[el_super]

You just don’t buy a well established film studio ...

But that doesn't really address the question of how they could have protected their park business from this. If they had said they were just going to take the cash and sit on it, would that have been an acceptable answer? Even amidst the complaints that they don't invest enough in their parks?

I don't think the fan community is ready to adopt a position that money spent on the parks is a waste.