Taken from Reuters, heard first over MSNBC TV
"LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive-elect Bob Iger on Tuesday said he had "really good" talks with Pixar Animation Studios Inc. but had not struck a new distribution deal.
Iger told investors at a Deutsche Bank conference that it was too early to tell if a new Pixar agreement would be reached.
"I'm not sure I really want to give you odds. We've had really good discussions," Iger said.
Disney has released all Pixar films, from "Toy Story" to "The Incredibles," but last year Pixar called off talks with Disney on a deal that would extend beyond "Cars," the next and last picture covered by the current distribution deal.
Disney said the companies could not reach a deal that was financially viable, but a bitter public relationship between Disney CEO Michael Eisner and Pixar CEO Steve Jobs was also blamed by many analysts for the impasse.
Pixar reopened the door to Disney after President and Chief Operating Officer Iger was named as the next chief executive. Iger's transition to the CEO role will take place at the end of September.
"The fact that we are having a dialogue is a really good thing, and it has been really healthy," Iger said. "We'd certainly like to find a way to continue to do business with them, and I think the feeling is mutual."
Iger also commented on broader company strategy, saying that he did not think Disney needed to continue to cut debt and that he would consider divestitures of non-core assets, mentioning radio in particular. There was no urgency for such deals, he added.
He also said that he was personally trying to get the two different camps working on technology for next-generation DVDs, known as Blu-ray and HD-DVD, to agree on a single set of standards and that it was important to do so by late 2006."
"LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive-elect Bob Iger on Tuesday said he had "really good" talks with Pixar Animation Studios Inc. but had not struck a new distribution deal.
Iger told investors at a Deutsche Bank conference that it was too early to tell if a new Pixar agreement would be reached.
"I'm not sure I really want to give you odds. We've had really good discussions," Iger said.
Disney has released all Pixar films, from "Toy Story" to "The Incredibles," but last year Pixar called off talks with Disney on a deal that would extend beyond "Cars," the next and last picture covered by the current distribution deal.
Disney said the companies could not reach a deal that was financially viable, but a bitter public relationship between Disney CEO Michael Eisner and Pixar CEO Steve Jobs was also blamed by many analysts for the impasse.
Pixar reopened the door to Disney after President and Chief Operating Officer Iger was named as the next chief executive. Iger's transition to the CEO role will take place at the end of September.
"The fact that we are having a dialogue is a really good thing, and it has been really healthy," Iger said. "We'd certainly like to find a way to continue to do business with them, and I think the feeling is mutual."
Iger also commented on broader company strategy, saying that he did not think Disney needed to continue to cut debt and that he would consider divestitures of non-core assets, mentioning radio in particular. There was no urgency for such deals, he added.
He also said that he was personally trying to get the two different camps working on technology for next-generation DVDs, known as Blu-ray and HD-DVD, to agree on a single set of standards and that it was important to do so by late 2006."
) Disney making toys, theme park attractions to past movies is not a problem, but to take other people's material (while legal) shows how sickening you've become.