A Spirited Perfect Ten

[Phil12]

I was talking about theatrical re-issues tied with video releases, not what "killed" the vault practice that still exists despite ebay, torrents and Chinese bootlegs.

Sorry I misunderstood. Thanks for the additional explanation.

 

[ford91exploder]

So what can we do to get wider press interested in Igergate? How do we bring this to the public's attention like SaveDisney managed to with Eisner?

It should be a good one for many publications - the boss of Disney is on course for a bumpy opening for Shanghai that will make EuroDisney's first years look quite healthy in comparison, losing stockholders tons of money, and in the process $800M has disappeared, possibly into the pockets of Chinese officials.

The only article to give negative analysis on Shanghai gets shut down by Iger's wife, in a big breach of journalism ethics.

These events should be really interesting to Wall Street publications, and anyone doing corporate investigative journalism, but nobody seems to care except us. Has Iger really built such an impenetrable wall of love around him that nobody has the slightest interest in questioning him anymore?

If you take the word of true insiders like @WDW1974 and @Lee the investment community is well aware of the articles and their disappearance I think all we can do for the moment at least is keep posting cached copies of the articles so more people become aware of their content.

As to where the $800 million went of course one possibility was of course bribes, But the Chinese government may have 'altered the deal' on Disney and demanded additional funds on Disney's part in order to keep their 'share' Shendi is a typical Chinese government controlled corporation, The senior executives are almost certainly members of the PLA and they may even be active duty.

Setting up a so called 'joint venture subordinates the Western company as they are ALWAYS the minority shareholder and they always insist on the transfer of IP to the 'joint venture' So I'm sure the Disney IP in China at least is under the control of Shendi not TWDC.

Life could get interesting if Disney offends the Chinese govt and get's booted as they would effectively lose control of their IP if its a typical Chinese/Western 'joint venture'.

Yes this is VERY interesting.

 

[ford91exploder]

Actually, I've been working on a post regarding FCPA in my free time over the past two days. From what I've been reading and this is all I will say for now, we are sitting under a powder keg.

The BIG question of course is 'is the fuse lit..'

 

[Kman101]

A bit behind on the movie discussion, and I guess it's probably time to move on from it, but you have to put your own feelings aside about these things. American Sniper may be, at the end of the day a well done movie, but it's not the type to win. Dark Knight was great (too long, IMO) but it's also not the type that was ever going to win. Neither is Guardians of the Galaxy (another great movie). In that same vein, I thought Dragon 2 would win over BH6, and I prefer BH6.

 

[Rodan75]

Well you know.. most voters for animated film do not even care.. unless it has the "disney" brand all stamped.

I think the bigger issue was DWA dropping big money on the Oscar campaign, while laying off hundreds of ppl who worked on animation. Katz cut staff to keep Wall Street happy, but it and his over indulgent campaign killed their chances. BH6 won almost by default.

I would argue that Book Of Life was probably the more important movie and deserved the attention.

 

[Phil12]

Honestly, there's no smoking gun...yet. Most of what has been talked about here isn't going to interest main stream media or Wall Street. If the SEC or some other federal agency starts a formal probe into TWDC's actions in China or if a Congressman calls for an investigation (like the child privacy one from a few years ago) that would be a major story. Right now the only story is that Iger and his wife got that story killed, but there's still really no smoking gun there either. We all know it happened, but without actual proof or at least a well connected source going on the record to confirm it major media probably won't touch it. The best anyone here can do is continue to talk about it and hope enough buzz is generated to encourage further investigation or possibly encourage a whistleblower if something highly illegal is really going on.

The original author seems to have left nothing but a vapor trail. Why? Why doesn't Mr. Snyder blog in another venue and protest that his articles were spiked? To my way of thinking, this entire scenario is just too pat. All the pieces in this puzzle were very quickly found and put together in record time and without the slightest bit of difficulty. And the entire story has been accepted as fact when precious few facts have been established. Hearsay has been elevated to evidence.

 

[tirian]

Sorry, I should have been clearer: this was a public holiday in PRC and numerous tour groups from the mainland (those who arrived before the travel ban) were in Hong Kong.

The government of China may try to paint consumerism in whatever light it wants, but China (not Hong Kong, although it is, too) has become as much of a consumer culture as the United States. If the people themselves are consuming these brands in mass quantities, I'm skeptical that the government's presentation of America matters quite so much.

Interesting point, but you've been responding to a claim I didn't make.

Of course China has its own populace that revels in conspicuous consumption of its own brands, but my point — as well as that of @WDW1974 — is how the Chinese government has spent decades officially discouraging its citizens from admiring American culture. As a result, the population currently has no emotional ties to the Disney brand; hence Frozen bombed while Transformers was successful.

Obviously, the Chinese government wants Shanghai DL to be built; otherwise, the park wouldn't be under construction.

Iger has stated he sees Shanghai DL as an opportunity to increase Disney's market in China, and I hope he's right. Shanghai DL will be successful, but it can't rely on people's memories of Disney Magic because the connection doesn't exist yet. Right now, on February 23, 2015, the mainland Chinese populace doesn't care about Frozen, Teen Beach Movie 2, or Phineas and Ferb.

Chinese consumerism at large doesn't affect the country's familiarity with Disney.

 

[tirian]

The likelihood that Iger spent $800 million in bribes is very low. The money was most likely used to reconstruct shoddy buildings and pay for cost overruns.

In any case, the article didn't accuse Iger of anything illegal, and its hasty retraction appears to be protecting a bruised ego.

If you take the word of true insiders like @WDW1974 and @Lee the investment community is well aware of the articles and their disappearance I think all we can do for the moment at least is keep posting cached copies of the articles so more people become aware of their content.

As to where the $800 million went of course one possibility was of course bribes, But the Chinese government may have 'altered the deal' on Disney and demanded additional funds on Disney's part in order to keep their 'share' Shendi is a typical Chinese government controlled corporation, The senior executives are almost certainly members of the PLA and they may even be active duty.

Setting up a so called 'joint venture subordinates the Western company as they are ALWAYS the minority shareholder and they always insist on the transfer of IP to the 'joint venture' So I'm sure the Disney IP in China at least is under the control of Shendi not TWDC.

Life could get interesting if Disney offends the Chinese govt and get's booted as they would effectively lose control of their IP if its a typical Chinese/Western 'joint venture'.

Yes this is VERY interesting.

 

[ford91exploder]

Interesting point, but you've been responding to a claim I didn't make.

Of course China has its own populace that revels in conspicuous consumption of its own brands, but my point — as well as that of @WDW1974 — is how the Chinese government has spent decades officially discouraging its citizens from admiring American culture. As a result, the population currently has no emotional ties to the Disney brand; hence Frozen bombed while Transformers was successful.

Obviously, the Chinese government wants Shanghai DL to be built; otherwise, the park wouldn't be under construction.

Iger has stated he sees Shanghai DL as an opportunity to increase Disney's market in China, and I hope he's right. Shanghai DL will be successful, but it can't rely on people's memories of Disney Magic because the connection doesn't exist yet. Right now, on February 23, 2015, the mainland Chinese populace doesn't care about Frozen, Teen Beach Movie 2, or Phineas and Ferb.

Chinese consumerism at large doesn't affect the country's familiarity with Disney.

Exactly Chinese consumers are encouraged to consume CHINESE products, NOT AMERICAN imports and that holds true for IP as well as physical goods.

 

[ford91exploder]

The likelihood that Iger spent $800 million in bribes is very low. The money was most likely used to reconstruct shoddy buildings and pay for cost overruns.

In any case, the article didn't accuse Iger of anything illegal, and its hasty retraction appears to be protecting a bruised ego.

In the case of shoddy buildings that would be a contractor issue and Disney should not be required to fund that, Although it does make a useful cover story for the govt upping the ante for Disney's participation in the project.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

To be fair, Disney was instrumental in Blu-ray's success. They were the deciding vote among the studios - when Disney picks a format, that's the winning format. Plus they pioneered the Blu-ray DVD combo pack as a way to lure people to the format over time, and it worked well.

I think Sony was the most instrumental player on blu-ray's side, getting millions of players in homes selling at a loss with the PS3. I know Disney was right there with Sony, but the bio makes it sound like Chapek did it all by himself.

 

[cdd89]

I also wonder if people are making a little much of this removed Huffington Post article. There’s plenty of legitimate criticism of SDL, but the quality of the writing is really pretty bad. It’s unfortunate that one of the few negative articles on the SDL venture also reads like someone’s school project (especially since, within the article, there are some interesting points) – but I’d suggest the latter is the reason for its removal… not the former.

That's not to say Disney's PR team weren't involved in the removal in some way (I suspect they were... the timing is uncanny) - but if I were the Huffington Post, I'd probably be willing to remove that article on the grounds of journalistic quality alone.

 

[Nubs70]

I also wonder if people are making a little much of this removed Huffington Post article. There’s plenty of legitimate criticism of SDL, but the quality of the writing is really pretty bad. It’s unfortunate that one of the few negative articles on the SDL venture also reads like someone’s school project (especially since, within the article, there are some interesting points) – but I’d suggest the latter is the reason for its removal… not the former.

That's not to say Disney's PR team weren't involved in the removal in some way (I suspect they were... the timing is uncanny) - but if I were the Huffington Post, I'd probably be willing to remove that article on the grounds of journalistic quality alone.

Still, where did the $800MM go?

 

[ParentsOf4]

The likelihood that Iger spent $800 million in bribes is very low. The money was most likely used to reconstruct shoddy buildings and pay for cost overruns.

In any case, the article didn't accuse Iger of anything illegal, and its hasty retraction appears to be protecting a bruised ego.

I agree, unexpected cost overruns happen all the time. Budgets often are based on best-case scenarios. It's how many projects get approved in the corporate world.

We have seen MyMagic+ drag out. I'm pretty sure that's overbudget yet no one is accusing the Reedy Creek Improvement District (RCID) of accepting bribes.

It's one thing to not like how a segment within the company is being managed or question the wisdom of an investing strategy. It's very different to accuse someone of committing a crime by violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

 

[FerretAfros]

Bringing in a new chapter of weirdness to the HuffPo saga, I woke up this morning to an interesting email from the USC Alumni Association, inviting me to the USC Global Conference this fall in Shanghai, with none other than Bob Iger as the featured guest:

http://us4.campaign-archive2.com/?u=08245ccd24cc9d6794dd3be4e&id=98d1e45091&e=[UNIQID]

“INNOVATIONS FOR A RAPIDLY CHANGING WORLD”

University of Southern California
Global Conference | Grand Hyatt Shanghai
October 29-31, 2015
From medical breakthroughs to storytelling in virtual environments, our world is being transformed by coupling big ideas to the collection, analysis, and application of big data. USC has long been at the forefront of this innovation, exploring what it can mean for business, science, technology, medicine, and the arts and entertainment.

Join us in Shanghai—China’s center for business and entertainment—as we examine cutting-edge innovations that are already changing the world and the opportunities they present for the future.

Registration for the 2015 USC Global Conference is now open.
Early bird registrants may register at the discounted price of US$400 per person until August 15, 2015. Advanced registration is strongly recommended, as previous Global Conferences have sold out quickly.

Featured Conversation
The conference will feature a conversation with Robert Iger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company. As steward of the world’s largest media company, Iger has been instrumental in advancing a strategic vision anchored in content, innovation and expansion that has led to historic growth for the company.

At this point, there will be no denying that Bob has been in Shanghai, and it will be getting tougher to hide his connection to Willow and Annenberg. I wonder if we'll finally get a photo of him on the construction site out of this...

I'm also sending this whole saga along to a friend of mine who is a big Disney fan with international experience, and 2 degrees from Annenberg. It will be interesting to see if we get a rise out of this

 

[justavoice]

Having a father who worked on a picture that recevied 11 nominations no wins and a rare best director snub, I learned a long time ago that my taste and OSCARS taste are not the same. Accept it, Hate it, but you are not going to change it.

 

[RivieraJenn]

I also wonder if people are making a little much of this removed Huffington Post article. There’s plenty of legitimate criticism of SDL, but the quality of the writing is really pretty bad. It’s unfortunate that one of the few negative articles on the SDL venture also reads like someone’s school project (especially since, within the article, there are some interesting points) – but I’d suggest the latter is the reason for its removal… not the former.

That's not to say Disney's PR team weren't involved in the removal in some way (I suspect they were... the timing is uncanny) - but if I were the Huffington Post, I'd probably be willing to remove that article on the grounds of journalistic quality alone.

The writing was incredibly overwrought, no doubt. But the editing process takes place before publication. You don't pull an article down after the fact because you suddenly realized the writing was poor. I have no clue what happened--I'm not an insider. But I don't think journalistic quality was the reason for the disappearance. After all, it was an op-ed, not a news piece.

 

[bhg469]

Having a father who worked on a picture that recevied 11 nominations no wins and a rare best director snub, I learned a long time ago that my taste and OSCARS taste are not the same. Accept it, Hate it, but you are not going to change it.

Right on! The golden globes are a much better awards show. I feel like the Oscars are there for the the hollywood elite to be smuggy in the same room.

 

[Lee]

The writing was incredibly overwrought, no doubt. But the editing process takes place before publication. You don't pull an article down after the fact because you suddenly realized the writing was poor. I have no clue what happened--I'm not an insider. But I don't think journalistic quality was the reason for the disappearance. After all, it was an op-ed, not a news piece.

Yes. The writing wasn't a problem for anyone.
It was the content.

 

[Mike S]

Bringing in a new chapter of weirdness to the HuffPo saga, I woke up this morning to an interesting email from the USC Alumni Association, inviting me to the USC Global Conference this fall in Shanghai, with none other than Bob Iger as the featured guest:

http://us4.campaign-archive2.com/?u=08245ccd24cc9d6794dd3be4e&id=98d1e45091&e=[UNIQID]


At this point, there will be no denying that Bob has been in Shanghai, and it will be getting tougher to hide his connection to Willow and Annenberg. I wonder if we'll finally get a photo of him on the construction site out of this...

I'm also sending this whole saga along to a friend of mine who is a big Disney fan with international experience, and 2 degrees from Annenberg. It will be interesting to see if we get a rise out of this

Go and ask him all the really hard questions we all wish that we could if we were in your position. If possible, of course