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After the start of the Disney + streaming service, he believed that it was now the ideal time to hand over the office to a new CEO, said Iger. Chapek has been with Disney for 27 years, and has been responsible for the thriving business of theme parks and resorts for the past five years. “Bob will be the seventh chief executive in Disney’s nearly 100-year history, and he has proven himself exceptionally qualified to lead the company into the next century,” said Iger.
Iger’s resignation comes abruptly and unexpectedly, even if he has been considering retiring for a long time and there have been speculations for years as to who could replace him. The 69-year-old was at the top of the group for around 15 years; he had taken over Michael Eisner’s chief position in 2005. Iger shaped the entertainment giant with the takeovers of studios such as Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm as well as large parts of the competitor 21st Century Fox. He will remain Disney’s executive director until the end of 2021.
In addition, the Chapek staff is quite astonishing to some observers. The 60-year-old has been with the company for almost 30 years, but actually everything in the entertainment business has long been about streaming and not so much about theme parks. Many experts had Kevin Mayer as an Iger heir on the screen. He directs Disney’s streaming services, has been with the company for more than two decades, and was often traded as Prince Igers. It is all the more surprising that he did not choose because Disney’s attack in the streaming market has only just begun.
Because Iger’s last major project as CEO was the streaming service Disney +, which had its premiere in the United States on November 12. With the offer, the Hollywood giant opened the hunt for the rival Netflix, which has chased away many customers from the classic TV and film industry in recent years. The launch of Disney + was a success; in less than three months, the streaming service won nearly 29 million customers thanks to low prices and popular productions such as the “Star Wars” series “The Mandalorian”. In Germany, the new service should start on March 24th.
Chapek also expect large construction sites. The streaming offensive poses high risks and devours a lot of money, which caused a slump in profits in the most recent quarter. In the three months to the end of December, net income from continuing operations fell 23 percent year-over-year to $ 2.1 billion. Meanwhile, sales increased by a good third to $ 20.9 billion. The group’s real problem child, however, is the troubled sports broadcaster ESPN, which is suffering from falling subscriptions and advertising revenue, but still generates a large proportion of its revenue.
On Wall Street, however, the sudden change of leadership caused astonishment, also because Disney did not present a successor to Chapek’s position. “It is a huge surprise,” said Laura Martin of the investment company Needham & Co on Bloomberg TV. Most of the companies listed on the stock exchange try to prepare the markets gently for important personnel changes. The sudden announcement of Disney – the world’s largest entertainment company with a market value of over $ 230 billion – stung investors accordingly.
In NYSE trading on Wednesday, Disney stock ultimately dropped 3.75 percent to $ 123.38.
/ Hbr / DP / eg
BURBANK (dpa-AFX)
Image sources: Katherine Welles / Shutterstock.com, canbedone / Shutterstock.com
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