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The Walt Disney Company

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"Disney" redirects here. For other uses, see Disney (disambiguation).
The Walt Disney Company
TWDC Logo.svg
Waltdisneyco1.jpg
The Walt Disney Studios (corporate headquarters).
Type
Public
Traded as
NYSE: DIS
Dow Jones Industrial Average Component
S&P 500 Component
Industry
Mass media
Entertainment
Predecessors
Laugh-O-Gram Studio
Founded October 16, 1923; 92 years ago
Los Angeles, California, United States[1]
Founders
Walt Disney and Roy O. Disney
Headquarters
500 South Buena Vista Street,
Burbank, California, United States
Coordinates
34.156207N 118.325189WCoordinates: 34.156207N 118.325189W
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Bob Iger (Chairman and CEO)
Products
Cable television, publishing, films, music, video games, theme p
arks, broadcasting, radio, web portals
Services
Licensing
Revenue Increase US$ 48.813 billion (2014)[2]:25
Operating income
Increase US$ 12.246 billion (2014)[2]:26
Net income
Increase US$ 8.004 billion (2014)[2]:26
Total assets
Increase US$ 84.186 billion (2014)[2]:66
Total equity
Decrease US$ 44.958 billion (2014)[2]:66
Number of employees
180,000 (2014)[2]:1
Divisions
Divisions[show]
Subsidiaries
Subsidiaries[show]
Website thewaltdisneycompany.com
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney, is an American diversified[2]
:1 multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the
Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California. It is the world's second largest med
ia conglomerate in terms of revenue, after Comcast.[3] Disney was founded on Oct
ober 16, 1923, by Walt Disney and Roy O. Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon S
tudio, and established itself as a leader in the American animation industry bef
ore diversifying into live-action film production, television, and theme parks.
The company also operated under the names The Walt Disney Studio, then Walt Disn
ey Productions. Taking on its current name in 1986, it expanded its existing ope
rations and also started divisions focused upon theater, radio, music, publishin
g, and online media.
In addition, Disney has since created corporate divisions in order to market mor
e mature content than is typically associated with its flagship family-oriented
brands. The company is best known for the products of its film studio, The Walt
Disney Studios, which is today one of the largest and best-known studios in Amer

ican cinema. Disney also owns and operates the ABC broadcast television network;
cable television networks such as Disney Channel, ESPN, A+E Networks, and ABC F
amily; publishing, merchandising, music, and theatre divisions; and owns and lic
enses 14 theme parks around the world. The company has been a component of the D
ow Jones Industrial Average since May 6, 1991. An early and well-known cartoon c
reation of the company, Mickey Mouse, is a primary symbol of The Walt Disney Com
pany.
Contents [hide]
1
Corporate history
1.1
19231928: The silent era
1.2
19281934: Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies
1.3
19341945: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and World War II
1.4
19461954: Post-war and television
1.5
19551965: Disneyland
1.6
19661971: The deaths of Walt and Roy Disney and the opening of Walt Disne
y World
1.7
19721984: Theatrical malaise and new leadership
1.8
19842005: The Eisner era and the Save Disney campaign
1.9
2005present: The Iger era
2
Company divisions and subsidiaries
2.1
Disney Media Networks
3
Executive management
3.1
Presidents
3.2
Chief executive officers
3.3
Chairmen of the Board
3.4
Vice Chairman of the Board
3.5
Chief operating officers
4
Financial data
4.1
Revenues
4.2
Net income
5
Criticism
6
See also
7
Footnotes
8
References
9
Further reading
10
External links
Corporate history
See also: Timeline of The Walt Disney Company
The building in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Los Feliz which was home to the
studio from 1923 to 1926
19231928: The silent era
In early 1923, Kansas City, Missouri, animator Walt Disney created a short film
entitled Alice's Wonderland, which featured child actress Virginia Davis interac
ting with animated characters. After the bankruptcy in 1923 of his previous firm
, Laugh-O-Gram Films,[ChWDC 1] Disney moved to Hollywood to join his brother, Ro
y O. Disney. Film distributor Margaret J. Winkler of M.J. Winkler Productions co
ntacted Disney with plans to distribute a whole series of Alice Comedies purchas
ed for $1,500 per reel with Disney as a production partner. Walt and Roy Disney
formed Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio that same year. More animated films follow
ed after Alice.[4] In January 1926, with the completion of the Disney studio on
Hyperion Street, the Disney Brothers Studio's name was changed to the Walt Disne
y Studio.[ChWDC 2]
After the demise of the Alice comedies, Disney developed an all-cartoon series s
tarring his first original character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit,[4] which was dist
ributed by Winkler Pictures through Universal Pictures.[ChWDC 2] The distributor
owned Oswald, so Disney only made a few hundred dollars.[4] Disney completed 26
Oswald shorts before losing the contract in February 1928, due to a legal looph

ole, when Winkler's husband Charles Mintz took over their distribution company.
After failing to take over the Disney Studio, Mintz hired away four of Disney's
primary animators (the exception being Ub Iwerks) to start his own animation stu
dio, Snappy Comedies.[ChWDC 3]
19281934: Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies
Original poster for Flowers and Trees (1932).
In 1928, to recover from the loss of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Disney came up wit
h the idea of a mouse character named Mortimer while on a train headed to Califo
rnia, drawing up a few simple drawings. The mouse was later renamed Mickey Mouse
(Disney's wife, Lillian, disliked the sound of 'Mortimer Mouse') and starred in
several Disney produced films. Ub Iwerks refined Disney's initial design of Mic
key Mouse.[4] Disney's first sound film Steamboat Willie, a cartoon starring Mic
key, was released on November 18, 1928[ChWDC 3] through Pat Powers' distribution
company.[4] It was the first Mickey Mouse sound cartoon released, but the third
to be created, behind Plane Crazy and The Gallopin' Gaucho.[ChWDC 3] Steamboat
Willie was an immediate smash hit, and its initial success was attributed not ju
st to Mickey's appeal as a character, but to the fact that it was the first cart
oon to feature synchronized sound.[4] Disney used Pat Powers' Cinephone system,
created by Powers using Lee De Forest's Phonofilm system.[ChWDC 3] Steamboat Wil
lie premiered at B. S. Moss's Colony Theater in New York City, now The Broadway
Theatre.[5] Disney's Plane Crazy and The Galloping Gaucho were then retrofitted
with synchronized sound tracks and re-released successfully in 1929.[ChWDC 3]
Disney continued to produce cartoons with Mickey Mouse and other characters,[4]
and began the Silly Symphonies series with Columbia Pictures signing on as Symph
onies distributor in August 1929. In September 1929, theater manager Harry Woodi
n requested permission to start a Mickey Mouse Club which Walt approved. In Nove
mber, test comics strips were sent to King Features, who requested additional sa
mples to show to the publisher, William Randolph Hearst. On December 16, the Wal
t Disney Studios partnership was reorganized as a corporation with the name of W
alt Disney Productions, Limited with a merchandising division, Walt Disney Enter
prises, and two subsidiaries, Disney Film Recording Company, Limited and Liled R
ealty and Investment Company for real estate holdings. Walt and his wife held 60
% (6,000 shares) and Roy owned 40% of WD Productions. On December 30, King Featu
res signed its first newspaper, New York Mirror, to publish the Mickey Mouse com
ic strip with Walt's permission.[ChWDC 4]
In 1932, Disney signed an exclusive contract with Technicolor (through the end o
f 1935) to produce cartoons in color, beginning with Flowers and Trees (1932). D
isney released cartoons through Powers' Celebrity Pictures (19281930), Columbia P
ictures (19301932), and United Artists (19321937).[6] The popularity of the Mickey
Mouse series allowed Disney to plan for his first feature-length animation.[4]
The feature film Walt Before Mickey based on the book by Diane Disney Miller fea
tured these moments in the studio's history.[7]
19341945: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and World War II
Deciding to push the boundaries of animation even further, Disney began producti
on of his first feature-length animated film in 1934. Taking three years to comp
lete, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, premiered in December 1937 and became hig
hest-grossing film of that time by 1939.[8] Snow White was released through RKO
Radio Pictures, which had assumed distribution of Disney's product in July 1937,
[ChWDC 5] after United Artists attempted to attain future television rights to t
he Disney shorts.[9]
Using the profits from Snow White, Disney financed the construction of a new 51acre (210,000 m2) studio complex in Burbank, California. The new Walt Disney Stu
dios, in which the company is headquartered to this day, was completed and open

for business by the end of 1939.[ChWDC 6] The following year on April 2, Walt Di
sney Productions had its initial public offering.[ChWDC 7]
The studio continued releasing animated shorts and features, such as Pinocchio (
1940), Fantasia (1940), Dumbo (1941), and Bambi (1942).[4] After World War II be
gan, box-office profits declined. When the United States entered the war after t
he attack on Pearl Harbor, many of Disney's animators were drafted into the arme
d forces. The U.S. and Canadian governments commissioned the studio to produce t
raining and propaganda films. By 1942, 90% of its 550 employees were working on
war-related films.[10] Films such as the feature Victory Through Air Power and t
he short Education for Death (both 1943) were meant to increase public support f
or the war effort. Even the studio's characters joined the effort, as Donald Duc
k appeared in a number of comical propaganda shorts, including the Academy Award
-winning Der Fuehrer's Face (1943).
19461954: Post-war and television
The original Animation Building at the Walt Disney Studios.
With limited staff and little operating capital during and after the war, Disney
's feature films during much of the 1940s were "package films," or collections o
f shorts, such as The Three Caballeros (1944) and Melody Time (1948), which perf
ormed poorly at the box-office. At the same time, the studio began producing liv
e-action films and documentaries. Song of the South (1946) and So Dear to My Hea
rt (1948) featured animated segments, while the True-Life Adventures series, whi
ch included such films as Seal Island (1948) and The Vanishing Prairie (1954), w
ere also popular. Eight of the films in the series won Academy Awards.[11]
The release of Cinderella in 1950 proved that feature-length animation could sti
ll succeed in the marketplace. Other releases of the period included Alice in Wo
nderland (1951) and Peter Pan (1953), both in production before the war began, a
nd Disney's first all-live action feature, Treasure Island (1950). Other early a
ll-live-action Disney films included The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men
(1952), The Sword and the Rose (1953), and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954).
Disney ended its distribution contract with RKO in 1953, forming its own distrib
ution arm, Buena Vista Distribution.[12]
In December 1950, Walt Disney Productions and The Coca-Cola Company teamed up fo
r Disney's first venture into television, the NBC television network special An
Hour in Wonderland. In October 1954, the ABC network launched Disney's first reg
ular television series, Disneyland, which would go on to become one of the longe
st-running primetime series in history. Disneyland allowed Disney a platform to
introduce new projects and broadcast older ones, and ABC became Disney's partner
in the financing and development of Disney's next venture, located in the middl
e of an orange grove near Anaheim, California. It was the first phase of a long
corporate relationship which, although no one could have anticipated it at the t
ime, would culminate four decades later in the Disney company's acquisition of t
he ABC network, its owned and operated stations, and its numerous cable and publ
ishing ventures.[citation needed]
19551965: Disneyland
Disneyland opens, July 1955.
In 1954, Walt Disney used his Disneyland series to unveil what would become Disn
eyland, an idea conceived out of a desire for a place where parents and children
could both have fun at the same time. On July 18, 1955, Walt Disney opened Disn
eyland to the general public. On July 17, 1955, Disneyland was previewed with a
live television broadcast hosted by Art Linkletter and Ronald Reagan. After a sh
aky start, Disneyland continued to grow and attract visitors from across the cou
ntry and around the world. A major expansion in 1959 included the addition of Am
erica's first monorail system.

For the 1964 New York World's Fair, Disney prepared four separate attractions fo
r various sponsors, each of which would find its way to Disneyland in one form o
r another. During this time, Walt Disney was also secretly scouting out new site
s for a second Disney theme park. In November 1965, "Disney World" was announced
, with plans for theme parks, hotels, and even a model city on thousands of acre
s of land purchased outside of Orlando, Florida.
Disney continued to focus its talents on television throughout the 1950s. Its we
ekday afternoon children's television program The Mickey Mouse Club, featuring i
ts roster of young "Mouseketeers", premiered in 1955 to great success, as did th
e Davy Crockett miniseries, starring Fess Parker and broadcast on the Disneyland
anthology show.[4] Two years later, the Zorro series would prove just as popula
r, running for two seasons on ABC.[13] Despite such success, Walt Disney Product
ions invested little into television ventures in the 1960s,[citation needed] wit
h the exception of the long-running anthology series, later known as The Wonderf
ul World of Disney.[4]
Disney's film studios stayed busy as well. Averaging five or six releases per ye
ar during this period. While the production of shorts slowed significantly durin
g the 1950s and 1960s, the studio released a number of popular animated features
, like Lady and the Tramp (1955), Sleeping Beauty (1959) and One Hundred and One
Dalmatians (1961), which introduced a new xerography process to transfer the dr
awings to animation cels.[14] Disney's live-action releases were spread across a
number of genres, including historical fiction (Johnny Tremain, 1957), adaptati
ons of children's books (Pollyanna, 1960) and modern-day comedies (The Shaggy Do
g, 1959). Disney's most successful film of the 1960s was a live action/animated
musical adaptation of Mary Poppins, which was one of the all-time highest grossi
ng movies[4] and received five Academy Awards, including Best Actress for Julie
Andrews and Best Song for Robert B. Sherman & Richard M. Sherman for "Chim Chim
Cher-ee" .[15]
The theme park design and architectural group became so integral to the Disney s
tudio's operations that the studio bought it on February 5, 1965, along with the
WED Enterprises name.[16][17][18][19]
19661971: The deaths of Walt and Roy Disney and the opening of Walt Disney World
On December 15, 1966, Walt Disney died of complications relating to lung cancer,
[4] and Roy Disney took over as chairman, CEO, and president of the company. One
of his first acts was to rename Disney World as "Walt Disney World" in honor of
his brother and his vision.[20]
In 1967, the last two films Walt actively supervised were released, the animated
feature The Jungle Book[4] and the musical The Happiest Millionaire.[21] The st
udio released a number of comedies in the late 1960s, including The Love Bug (19
69's highest grossing film)[4] and The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969), which
starred another young Disney discovery, Kurt Russell. The 1970s opened with the
release of Disney's first "post-Walt" animated feature, The Aristocats, followed
by a return to fantasy musicals in 1971's Bedknobs and Broomsticks.[4] Blackbea
rd's Ghost was another successful film during this period.[4]
On October 1, 1971, Walt Disney World opened to the public, with Roy Disney dedi
cating the facility in person later that month. On December 20, 1971, Roy Disney
died of a stroke. He left the company under control of Donn Tatum, Card Walker,
and Walt's son-in-law Ron Miller, each trained by Walt and Roy.
19721984: Theatrical malaise and new leadership
While Walt Disney Productions continued releasing family-friendly films througho
ut the 1970s, such as Escape to Witch Mountain (1975)[4] and Freaky Friday (1976
), the films did not fare as well at the box office as earlier material. However

, the animation studio saw success with Robin Hood (1973), The Rescuers (1977),
and The Fox and the Hound (1981).
As head of the studio, Miller attempted to make films to drive the profitable te
enage market who generally passed on seeing Disney movies.[22] Inspired by the p
opularity of Star Wars, the Disney studio produced the science-fiction adventure
The Black Hole in 1979 that cost $20 million to make, but was lost in Star Wars
' wake.[4] The Black Hole was the first Disney production to carry a PG rating i
n the United States.[22][N 1] Disney dabbled in the horror genre with The Watche
r in the Woods, and financed the boldly innovative Tron; both films were release
d to minimal success.[4]
Disney also hired outside producers for film projects, which had never been done
before in the studio's history.[22] In 1979, Disney entered a joint venture wit
h Paramount Pictures on the production of the 1980 film adaptation of Popeye and
Dragonslayer (1981); the first time Disney collaborated with another studio. Pa
ramount distributed Disney films in Canada at the time, and it was hoped that Di
sney's marketing prestige would help sell the two films.[22]
Finally, in 1982, the Disney family sold the naming rights and rail-based attrac
tions to the Disney film studio for 818,461 shares of Disney stock then worth $4
2.6 million none of which went to Retlaw. Also, Roy E. Disney objected to the ov
ervalued purchase price of the naming right and voted against the purchase as a
Disney board director.[23] The 1983 release of Mickey's Christmas Carol began a
string of successful movies, starting with Never Cry Wolf and the Ray Bradbury a
daptation Something Wicked This Way Comes.[4] The Walt Productions film division
was incorporated on April 1, 1983 as Walt Disney Pictures.[24] In 1984, Disney
CEO Ron Miller created Touchstone Films as a brand for Disney to release more ma
jor release motion pictures. Touchstone's first release was the comedy Splash (1
984), which was a box office success.[25]
With The Wonderful World of Disney remaining a prime-time staple, Disney returne
d to television in the 1970s with syndicated programing such as the anthology se
ries The Mouse Factory and a brief revival of the Mickey Mouse Club. In 1980, Di
sney launched Walt Disney Home Video to take advantage of the newly emerging vid
eocassette market. On April 18, 1983, The Disney Channel debuted as a subscripti
on-level channel on cable systems nationwide, featuring its large library of cla
ssic films and TV series, along with original programming and family-friendly th
ird-party offerings.
Walt Disney World received much of the company's attention through the 1970s and
into the 1980s. In 1978, Disney executives announced plans for the second Walt
Disney World theme park, EPCOT Center, which would open in October 1982. Inspire
d by Walt Disney's dream of a futuristic model city, EPCOT Center was built as a
"permanent World's Fair", complete with exhibits sponsored by major American co
rporations, as well as pavilions based on the cultures of other nations. In Japa
n, the Oriental Land Company partnered with Walt Disney Productions to build the
first Disney theme park outside of the United States, Tokyo Disneyland, which o
pened in April 1983.
Despite the success of the Disney Channel and its new theme park creations, Walt
Disney Productions was financially vulnerable. Its film library was valuable, b
ut offered few current successes, and its leadership team was unable to keep up
with other studios, particularly the works of Don Bluth, who defected from Disne
y in 1979.
By the early 1980s, the parks were generating 70% of Disney's income.[4]
In 1984, financier Saul Steinberg's Reliance Group Holdings launched a hostile t
akeover bid for Walt Disney Productions,[4] with the intent of selling off some

of its operations.[26] Disney bought out Reliance's 11.1% stake in the company.
However, another shareholder filed suit claiming the deal devaluated Disney's st
ock and for Disney management to retain their positions. The shareholder lawsuit
was settled in 1989 for a total of $45 million from Disney and Reliance.[4]
19842005: The Eisner era and the Save Disney campaign
A view of downtown Celebration, Florida: the city was planned by The Walt Disney
Company.
See also Timeline of The Walt Disney Company: 1984-2004.
With the Sid Bass family purchase of 18.7 percent of Disney, Bass and the board
brought in Michael Eisner from Paramount Pictures as CEO and Frank Wells from Wa
rner Bros. as president. Eisner emphasized Touchstone Films with Down and Out in
Beverly Hills (1985) to start leading to increased output with Good Morning, Vi
etnam (1987), Dead Poets Society (1989), Pretty Woman (1990) and additional hits
. Eisner used expanding cable and home video markets to sign deals using Disney
shows and films with a long-term deal with Showtime Networks for Disney/Touchsto
ne releases through 1996 and entering television with syndication and distributi
on for TV series as The Golden Girls and Home Improvement. Disney began limited
releases of its previous films on video tapes in the late 1980s. Eisner's Disney
purchased KHJ, an independent Los Angeles TV station.[4]
Organized in 1985, Silver Screen Partners II, LP financed films for Disney with
$193 million. In January 1987, Silver Screen III began financing movies for Disn
ey with $300 million raised, the largest amount raised for a film financing limi
ted partnership by E.F. Hutton.[27] Silver Screen IV was also set up to finance
Disney's studios.[28]
Beginning with Who Framed Roger Rabbit in 1988, Disney's flagship animation stud
io enjoyed a series of commercial and critical successes with such films as The
Little Mermaid (1989), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992) and The Lion
King (1994). In addition, the company successfully entered the field of televisi
on animation with a number of lavishly budgeted and acclaimed series such as Adv
entures of the Gummi Bears, Duck Tales, Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers, Darkwing Du
ck and Gargoyles.[citation needed] Disney moved to first place in box office rec
eipts by 1988 and had increased revenues by 20% every year.[4]
In 1989, Disney signed an agreement-in-principle to acquire The Jim Henson Compa
ny (then known as Henson Associates) from its founder, Muppet creator Jim Henson
. The deal included Henson's programming library and Muppet characters (excludin
g the Muppets created for Sesame Street), as well as Jim Henson's personal creat
ive services. However, in May 1990, before the deal was completed, Jim Henson di
ed, and the two companies broke off merger negotiations the following December.[
29]
Named the "Disney Decade" by the company, the executive talent attempted to move
the company to new heights in the 1990s with huge changes and accomplishments.[
4] In September 1990, The Disney Company arranged for financing up to $200 milli
on by a unit of Nomura Securities for Interscope films made for Disney. On Octob
er 23, Disney formed Touchwood Pacific Partners I which would supplant the Silve
r Screen Partnership series as their movie studios' primary source of funding.[2
8]
In 1991, hotels, home video distribution, and Disney merchandising became 28 per
cent of total company revenues with international revenues contributed 22 percen
t of revenues. The company committed its studios in the first quarter of 1991 to
produce 25 films in 1992. However, 1991 saw net income drop by 23% and had no g
rowth for the year, but saw the release of Beauty and the Beast, winner of 2 Aca
demy Awards and top grossing film in the genre. Disney next moved into publishin
g with Hyperion Books and adult music with Hollywood Records while Disney Imagin

eering was laying off 400 employees.[4]

Disney also broadened its adult offerings in film when then Disney Studio Chairm
an Jeffrey Katzenberg acquired Miramax Films in 1993. That same year Disney crea
ted the NHL team the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, named after the 1992 hit film of t
he same name. Disney purchased a minority stake in the Anaheim Angels baseball t
eam around the same time.[4]
Wells died in a helicopter crash in 1994.[4] Shortly thereafter, Katzenberg resi
gned and formed DreamWorks SKG because Eisner would not appoint Katzenberg to We
lls' now-available post (Katzenberg had also sued over the terms of his contract
).[4] Instead, Eisner recruited his friend Michael Ovitz, one of the founders of
the Creative Artists Agency, to be President, with minimal involvement from Dis
ney's board of directors (which at the time included Oscar-winning actor Sidney
Poitier, the CEO of Hilton Hotels Corporation Stephen Bollenbach, former U.S. Se
nator George Mitchell, Yale dean Robert A. M. Stern, and Eisner's predecessors R
aymond Watson and Card Walker). Ovitz lasted only 14 months and left Disney in D
ecember 1996 via a "no fault termination" with a severance package of $38 millio
n in cash and 3 million stock options worth roughly $100 million at the time of
Ovitz's departure. The Ovitz episode engendered a long running derivative suit,
which finally concluded in June 2006, almost 10 years later. Chancellor William
B. Chandler, III of the Delaware Court of Chancery, despite describing Eisner's
behavior as falling "far short of what shareholders expect and demand from those
entrusted with a fiduciary position..." found in favor of Eisner and the rest o
f the Disney board because they hadn't violated the letter of the law (namely, t
he duty of care owed by a corporation's officers and board to its shareholders).
[30]
Eisner attempted in 1994 to purchase NBC from GE, but the deal failed due to GE
wanting to keep 51% ownership of the network. Disney acquired many other media s
ources during the decade, including a merger with Capital Cities/ABC in 1995 whi
ch brought broadcast network ABC and its assets, including the A&E Television Ne
tworks and ESPN networks, into the Disney fold.[4] Eisner felt that the purchase
of ABC was an important investment to keep Disney surviving and allowing it to
compete with international multimedia conglomerates.[31]
Disney lost a $10.4 million lawsuit in September 1997 to Marsu B.V. over Disney'
s failure to produce as contracted 13 half-hour Marsupilami cartoon shows. Inste
ad, Disney felt other internal "hot properties" deserved the company's attention
.[32]
Disney took control of the Anaheim Angels in 1996, and purchased a majority stak
e in the team in 1998. That same year, Disney began a move into the internet fie
ld with the purchase of Starwave and 43 percent of Infoseek. In 1999, Disney pur
chased the remaining shares of Infoseek and launch the Go Network portal in Janu
ary. Disney also launched its cruise line with the christening of Disney Magic a
nd a sister ship, Disney Wonder.[4]
The Katzenberg case dragged on as his contract included a portion of the film re
venue from ancillary markets forever. Katzenberg had offered $100 to settle the
case, but Eisner felt the original claim amount of about half a billion too much
, but then the ancillary market clause was found. Disney lawyers tried to indica
te a decline situation which reveal the some of the problems in the company. ABC
had declining rating and increasing costs while the film segment had two film f
ailures. While neither party revealed the settlement amount, it is estimated at
$200 million.[4]
Eisner's controlling style inhibited efficiency and progress according to some c
ritics, while other industry experts indicated that "age compression" theory led
to a decline in the company's target market due to youth copying teenage behavi

or earlier.[4]
2000 brought an increase in revenue of 9% and net income of 39% with ABC and ESP
N leading the way and Parks and Resorts marking its sixth consecutive year of gr
owth. However, the September 11 attacks led to a decline in vacation travel and
the early 2000s recession led to a decrease in ABC revenue. Plus, Eisner had the
company make an expensive purchase of Fox Family Worldwide. 2001 was a year of
cost cutting laying off 4,000 employees, Disney parks operations decreased, slas
hing annual live-action film investment, and minimizing Internet operations. Whi
le 2002 revenue had a small decrease from 2001 with the cost cutting, net income
rose to $1.2 billion with two creative film releases. In 2003, the Studio becam
e the first studio to record over $3 billion in worldwide box office receipts.[4
]
Eisner did not want the board to renominate Roy E. Disney, the son of Disney cofounder Roy O. Disney, as a board director citing his age of 72 as a required re
tirement age. Stanley Gold responded by resigning from the board and requesting
the other board members oust Eisner.[4] In 2003, Disney resigned from his positi
ons as the company's vice chairman and chairman of Walt Disney Feature Animation
,[ChWDC 8] accusing Eisner of micromanagement, flops with the ABC television net
work, timidity in the theme park business, turning the Walt Disney Company into
a "rapacious, soul-less" company, and refusing to establish a clear succession p
lan, as well as a string of box-office movie flops starting in the year 2000.
On May 15, 2003, Disney sold their stake in the Anaheim Angels baseball team to
Arte Moreno. Disney purchased the rights to The Muppets and the Bear in the Big
Blue House franchises from The Jim Henson Company on February 17, 2004.[33] The
two brands were placed under control of the Muppets Holding Company, LLC, a unit
of Disney Consumer Products.[34]
In 2004, Pixar Animation Studios began looking for another distributor after its
12-year contract with Disney ended, due to its strained relationship over issue
s of control and money with Eisner. Also that year, Comcast Corporation made an
unsolicited $54 billion bid to acquire Disney. A couple of high budget movies fl
opped at the box office. With these difficulties and with some board directors d
issatisfied, Eisner ceded the board chairmanship.[4]
On March 3, 2004, at Disney's annual shareholders' meeting, a surprising 45% of
Disney's shareholders, predominantly rallied by former board members Roy Disney
and Stanley Gold, withheld their proxies to re-elect Eisner to the board. Disney
's board then gave the chairmanship position to Mitchell. However, the board did
not immediately remove Eisner as chief executive.[ChWDC 9]
In 2005, Disney sold the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim hockey team to Henry and Susan
Samueli.[4]
On March 13, 2005, Robert Iger was announced as Eisner successor as CEO. On Sept
ember 30, Eisner resigned both as an executive and as a member of the board of d
irectors.[ChWDC 10]
2005present: The Iger era
Team Disney Burbank, which houses the offices of Disney's CEO and several other
senior corporate officials.
On July 8, 2005, Walt Disney's nephew, Roy E. Disney returned to The Walt Disney
Company as a consultant and with the new title of Non Voting Director, Emeritus
. Walt Disney Parks and Resorts celebrated the 50th anniversary of Disneyland Pa
rk on July 17, and opened Hong Kong Disneyland on September 12. Walt Disney Feat
ure Animation released Chicken Little, the company's first film using 3-D animat
ion. On October 1, Bob Iger replaced Michael Eisner as CEO. Miramax co-founders

Bob Weinstein and Harvey Weinstein also departed the company to form their own s
tudio. On July 25, 2005, Disney announced that it was closing DisneyToon Studios
Australia in October 2006, after 17 years of existence.[35]
In 2006, Disney acquired Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Disneys pre-Mickey silent anima
tion star.[36] Aware that Disney s relationship with Pixar was wearing thin, Pre
sident and CEO Robert Iger began negotiations with leadership of Pixar Animation
Studios, Steve Jobs and Ed Catmull, regarding possible merger. On January 23, 2
006, it was announced that Disney would purchase Pixar in an all-stock transacti
on worth $7.4 billion. The deal was finalized on May 5; and among noteworthy res
ults was the transition of Pixar s CEO and 50.1% shareholder, Steve Jobs, becomi
ng Disney s largest individual shareholder at 7% and a member of Disney s Board
of Directors.[37][38] Ed Catmull took over as President of Pixar Animation Studi
os. Former Executive Vice-President of Pixar, John Lasseter, became Chief Creati
ve Officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios, its division DisneyToon Studios, an
d Pixar Animation Studios, as well assuming the role of Principal Creative Advis
or at Walt Disney Imagineering.[38]
In April 2007, the Muppets Holding Company, LLC was renamed The Muppets Studio a
nd placed under new leadership in an effort by Iger to re-brand the division. Th
e re-branding was completed in September 2008, when control of The Muppets Studi
o was transferred from Disney Consumer Products to the Walt Disney Studios.[33]
After a long time working in the company as a senior executive and large shareho
lder, Director Emeritus Roy E. Disney died from stomach cancer on December 16, 2
009. At the time of his death, he owned roughly 1% of all of Disney which amount
ed to 16 million shares. He is seen to be the last member of the Disney family t
o be actively involved in the running of the company and working in the company
altogether.[citation needed]
On August 31, 2009, Disney announced a deal to acquire Marvel Entertainment, Inc
. for $4.24 billion.[39] The deal was finalized on December 31, 2009 in which Di
sney acquired full ownership on the company.[40] Disney has stated that their ac
quisition of Marvel Entertainment will not affect Marvel s products, neither wil
l the nature of any Marvel characters be transformed.[41]
In October 2009, Disney Channel president Rich Ross, hired by Iger, replaced Dic
k Cook as chairman of the company and, in November, began restructuring the comp
any to focus more on family friendly products. Later in January 2010, Disney dec
ided to shut down Miramax after downsizing Touchstone, but one month later, they
instead began selling the Miramax brand and its 700-title film library to Filmy
ard Holdings. On March 12, ImageMovers Digital, Robert Zemeckis s company which
Disney had bought in 2007, was shut down. In April 2010, Lyric Street, Disney s
country music label in Nashville, was shut down. In May 2010, the company sold t
he Power Rangers brand, as well as its 700-episode library, back to Haim Saban.
In June, the company canceled Jerry Bruckheimer s film project Killing Rommel.[4
2] In January 2011, Disney Interactive Studios was downsized.[43] In November, t
wo ABC stations were sold.[44] With the release of Tangled in 2010, Ed Catmull s
aid that the "princess" genre of films was taking a hiatus until "someone has a
fresh take on it ... but we don t have any other musicals or fairytales lined up
."[45] He explained that they were looking to get away from the princess era due
to the changes in audience composition and preference.[citation needed] However
, in the Facebook page, Ed Catmull stated that this was just a rumor.[46]
In April 2011, Disney broke ground on Shanghai Disney Resort. Costing $4.4 billi
on, the resort is slated to open in 2015.[47] Later, in August 2011, Bob Iger st
ated on a conference call that after the success of the Pixar and Marvel purchas
es, he and the Walt Disney Company are looking to "buy either new characters or
businesses that are capable of creating great characters and great stories."[48]
Later, in early February 2012, Disney completed its acquisition of UTV Software

Communications, expanding their market further into India and Asia.[49]

On October 30, 2012, Disney announced plans to acquire Lucasfilm, along with pla
ns to produce a seventh installment in its Star Wars franchise for 2015.[50] On
December 4, 2012, the Disney-Lucasfilm merger was approved by the Federal Trade
Commission, allowing the acquisition to be finalized without dealing with antitr
ust problems.[51] On December 21, 2012, the deal was completed with the acquisit
ion value amounting to approximately $4.06 billion, and thus Lucasfilm became a
wholly owned subsidiary of Disney (which coincidentally reunited Lucasfilm under
the same corporate umbrella with its former spin-off and new sibling, Pixar).[5
2]
On May 29, 2013, Disney set release dates for eight currently untitled animated
films through 2018, including four from Disney Animation and four from Pixar Ani
mation.[53]
On March 24, 2014, Disney bought Maker Studios, a YouTube company generating bil
lions of views each year, for over $500 million in order to advertise to viewers
in the crucial teenage/young adult demographics.[54]
On May 9, 2014, Disney announced they have reached an agreement with Japan s TV
Asahi Corporation to air an English dub of the Doraemon anime series on Disney X
D.[55]
In July 2014, The Walt Disney Company announced 11 startups that would begin in
the companys accelerator program.[56]
In August 2014, The Walt Disney Company filed three patents for using drones. Pa
tents included using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) to lift marionettes in the a
ir, raise mesh screens for floating video projections, and equipping drones with
lights to make them part of a new kind of light show.[57]
On February 5, 2015, it was announced that Tom Staggs had been promoted to COO.[
58]
Company divisions and subsidiaries
Main article: List of assets owned by Disney
The Walt Disney Company operates through four primary business units, which it c
alls "business segments": Studio Entertainment, with the primary business unit T
he Walt Disney Studios, which includes the company s film, music recording label
, and theatrical divisions; Parks and Resorts, featuring the company s theme par
ks, cruise line, and other travel-related assets; Media Networks, which includes
the company s television properties; and Disney Consumer Products and Interacti
ve Media, which produces toys, clothing, and other merchandising based upon Disn
ey-owned properties, as well as including Disney s Internet, mobile, social medi
a, virtual worlds, and computer games operations.[59] Three segments are led by
chairmen, but Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media are currently both
led by a president. Marvel Entertainment is also a direct CEO reporting business
, while its financial results are primarily divided between the Studio Entertain
ment and Consumer Products segments.[citation needed] While Maker Studios is spl
it between Studio Entertainment and Media Networks segments.[60]
The company s main entertainment holdings include Walt Disney Studios, Disney Mu
sic Group, Disney Theatrical Group, Disney-ABC Television Group, Radio Disney, E
SPN Inc., Disney Interactive, Disney Consumer Products, Disney India Ltd., The M
uppets Studio, Pixar Animation Studios, Marvel Entertainment, Marvel Studios, UT
V Software Communications, Lucasfilm and Maker Studios.
The company s resorts and diversified related holdings include Walt Disney Parks
and Resorts, Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World Resort, Tokyo Disney Resort,

Disneyland Paris, Euro Disney S.C.A., Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, Disney Vacati
on Club and Disney Cruise Line.
Disney Media Networks
Disney Media Networks is a business segment and primary unit of The Walt Disney
Company that contains the company s various television networks, cable channels,
associated production and distribution companies and owned and operated televis
ion stations. Media Networks also manages Disney s interest in its joint venture
with Hearst Corporation, A+E Networks and ESPN Inc.. Unlike the four other busi
ness segments, it is the only one with two leaders or "co-chairs": the president
s of ESPN and Disney-ABC Television Group.[61] Thus, Disney has a total of eight
business unit leaders who report to the CEO and COO.
DisneyABC Television Group
ABC Television Network
ABC Family Worldwide
ABC Family
ABC Owned Television Stations Group
Live Well Network
A+E Networks (50%)
Disney Channels Worldwide
Radio Disney
Disney Television Animation
Hulu (32%)
ESPN Inc. (80%)[61]
Executive management
Further information: List of management of The Walt Disney Company
Presidents
19231945: Walt Disney
19451966: Roy O. Disney
19661971: Donn Tatum
19711977: Card Walker
19781983: Ron W. Miller
19841994: Frank Wells
19951997: Michael Ovitz
20002012: Bob Iger
Chief executive officers
19291971: Roy O. Disney
19711976: Donn Tatum
19761983: Card Walker
19831984: Ron W. Miller
19842005: Michael Eisner
2005present: Bob Iger
Chairmen of the Board
Walt Disney dropped his Chairman title in 1960 to focus more on the creative asp
ects of the company, becoming "executive producer in charge of all production."
After a four-year vacancy, Roy O. Disney assumed the chairmanship.
19451960: Walt Disney
19641971: Roy O. Disney
19711980: Donn Tatum
19801983: Card Walker
19831984: Raymond Watson
19842004: Michael Eisner
20042006: George J. Mitchell
20072012: John E. Pepper, Jr.
2012present: Bob Iger
Vice Chairman of the Board
19842003: Roy E. Disney
19992000: Sanford Litvack (Co-Vice Chair)

Chief operating officers

19841994: Frank Wells
19971999: Sanford Litvack[62] (Acting Chief of Operations)
20002005: Bob Iger
2015present: Tom Staggs[58]
Financial data
Revenues
Annual gross revenues of The Walt Disney Company (in millions USD)
Year
Studio Entertainment[NI 1]
Disney Consumer Products[Rev 1] Walt Dis
ney
Parks and Resorts
Disney Media Networks[NI 2]
Disney Interactive[NI 3]
[Rev 2] Total
1991[63]
2,593.0 724
2,794.0
6,111
1992[63]
3,115 1,081 3,306
7,502
1993[63]
3,673.4 1,415.1 3,440.7
8,529
1994[64][65][66]
4,793 1,798.2 3,463.6 359
10,414
1995[64][65][66]
6,001.5 2,150 3,959.8 414
12,525
1996[65][67]
10,095[Rev 1] 4,502 4,142[Rev 3]
18,739
1997[68]
6,981 3,782 5,014 6,522 174
22,473
1998[68]
6,849 3,193 5,532 7,142 260
22,976
1999[68]
6,548 3,030 6,106 7,512 206
23,402
2000[69]
5,994 2,602 6,803 9,615 368
25,402
2001[70]
7,004 2,590 6,009 9,569
25,790
2002[70]
6,465 2,440 6,691 9,733
25,360
2003[71]
7,364 2,344 6,412 10,941
27,061
2004[71]
8,713 2,511 7,750 11,778
30,752
2005[72]
7,587 2,127 9,023 13,207
31,944
2006[72]
7,529 2,193 9,925 14,368
34,285
2007[73]
7,491 2,347 10,626 15,046
35,510
2008[74]
7,348 2,415 11,504 15,857 719
37,843
2009[75]
6,136 2,425 10,667 16,209 712
36,149
2010[76]
6,701 2,678 10,761 17,162 761
38,063
2011[77]
6,351 3,049 11,797 18,714 982
40,893
2012[78]
5,825 3,252 12,920 19,436 845
42,278
2013[79]
5,979 3,555 14,087 20,356 1,064 45,041
2014[80]
7,278 3,985 15,099 21,152 1,299 48,813
^ Jump up to: a b Merged into Creative Content in 1996
Jump up ^ Disney Interactive Media Group, starting in 2008 with the merge of WDI
G and Disney Interactive Studios
Jump up ^ Following the purchase of ABC
Net income
Net income of The Walt Disney Company (in millions USD)
Year
Studio Entertainment[NI 1]
Disney Consumer Products[NI 4] Walt Dis
ney
Parks and Resorts
Disney Media Networks[NI 2]
Disney Interactive[NI 3]
/ Disney Interactive Media Group[NI 5] Total
1991[63]
318
229
546
1,094
1992[63]
508
283
644
1,435
1993[63]
622
355
746
1,724
1994[64][65]
779
425
684
77
1,965
1995[64][65]
998
510
860
76
2,445
1996[65]
1,596[NI 4]
990
747
300[NI 6]
3,033
1997[68]
1,079 893
1,136 1,699 56
4,312
1998[68]
769
801
1,288 1,746 94
3,231
1999[68]
116
607
1,446 1,611 93
3,231
2000[69]
110
455
1,620 2,298 402
4,081
2001[70]
260
401
1,586 1,758
4,214
2002[70]
273
394
1,169 986
2,826
2003[71]
620
384
957
1,213
3,174
2004[71]
662
534
1,123 2 169
4,488

2005[72]
207
543
1,178 3,209
5,137
2006[72]
729
618
1,534 3,610
6,491
2007[73]
1,201 631
1,710 4,285
7,827
2008[74]
1,086 778
1,897 4,942 258
8,445
2009[75]
175
609
1,418 4,765 295
6,672
2010[76]
693
677
1,318 5,132 234
7,586
2011[77]
618
816
1,553 6,146 308
8,825
2012[78]
722
937
1,902 6,619 216
9,964
2013[79]
661
1,112 2,220 6,818 87
10,724
2014[80]
1,549 1,356 2,663 7,321 116
13,005
^ Jump up to: a b Also named Films
^ Jump up to: a b Broadcasting from 1994 to 1996
^ Jump up to: a b Walt Disney Internet Group, from 1997 to 2000, next merged wit
h Disney Media Networks
^ Jump up to: a b Merged into Creative Content in 1996
Jump up ^ Disney Interactive Media Group, merge of WDIG and Disney Interactive S
tudios
Jump up ^ Not linked to WDIG, Disney reported a $300M loss due to financial modi
fication regarding real estate
Criticism
For more details on this topic, see Criticism of The Walt Disney Company.
Some of Disney's animated family films have drawn fire for being accused of havi
ng sexual references hidden in them, among them The Little Mermaid (1989), Aladd
in (1992), and The Lion King (1994). Instances of sexual material hidden in some
versions of The Rescuers (1977) and Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) resulted in
recalls and modifications of the films to remove such content.[81]
Some religious welfare groups, such as the Catholic League, have opposed films i
ncluding Priest (1994) and Dogma (1999).[82] A book called Growing Up Gay, publi
shed by Disney
owned Hyperion and similar publications, as well as the company's
extension of benefits to same
sex domestic partners, spurred boycotts of Disney
and its advertisers by the Catholic League, the Assemblies of God USA, the Amer
ican Family Association, and other conservative groups.[82][83][84] The boycotts
were discontinued by most of these organizations by 2005.[85] In addition to th
ese social controversies, the company has been accused of human rights violation
s regarding the working conditions in factories that produce their merchandise.[
86][87]
Disney has been criticized for its influence over children in that it endeavours
to appeal to children at a young age and develop their views and interests acco
rding to Disneys portrayal of major themes as well as prepare children to become
early consumers of their brand. [88]
See also
Portal icon
Disney portal
Portal icon
Animation portal
Portal icon
Film portal
Portal icon
Los Angeles portal
Portal icon
Companies portal
Walt Disney and Roy Disney
List of assets owned by Disney
List of Walt Disney Pictures films
List of channels owned by Disney
Lists of films released by Disney
Disney University
Disneyfication
Buena Vista
Mandeville-Anthony v. The Walt Disney Company, a federal court case in which Man
deville claimed Disney infringed on his copyrighted ideas by creating Cars
List of conglomerates

List of United States companies

Pixar
Maker Studios
Consider the Source
Footnotes
Jump up ^ Although Disney released a PG-rated film, Take Down, prior to the rele
ase of The Black Hole, they did not make the film; it was a pickup from independ
ent producers.
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Further reading
Disney Stories: Getting to Digital, Newton Lee and Krystina Madej (New York, NY:
Springer Science+Business Media, 2012), ISBN 978-1-4614-2100-9.
A View Inside Disney, Tayler Hughes, 2014 Slumped
The Animated Man: A Life of Walt Disney, Michael Barrier, 2007
Building a Company: Roy O. Disney and the Creation of an Entertainment Empire, B
ob Thomas, 1998
Building a Dream; The Art of Disney Architecture, Beth Dunlop, 1996, ISBN 0-8109
-3142-7
Cult of the Mouse: Can We Stop Corporate Greed from Killing Innovation in Americ
a?, Henry M. Caroselli, 2004, Ten Speed Press
Disney: The Mouse Betrayed, Peter Schweizer
The Disney Touch: How a Daring Management Team Revived an Entertainment Empire,
by Ron Grover (Richard D. Irwin, Inc., 1991), ISBN 1-55623-385-X
The Disney Version: The Life, Times, Art and Commerce of Walt Disney, Richard Sc
hickel, 1968, revised 1997
Disneyana: Walt Disney Collectibles, Cecil Munsey, 1974
Disneyization of Society: Alan Bryman, 2004
DisneyWar, James B. Stewart, Simon & Schuster, 2005, ISBN 0-684-80993-1
Donald Duck Joins Up; the Walt Disney Studio During World War II, Richard Shale,
1982
How to Read Donald Duck: Imperialist Ideology in the Disney Comic ISBN 0-88477-0
23-0 (Marxist Critique) Ariel Dorfman, Armand Mattelart, David Kunzle (translato
r).
Inside the Dream: The Personal Story of Walt Disney, Katherine Greene & Richard
Greene, 2001
The Keys to the Kingdom: How Michael Eisner Lost His Grip, Kim Masters (Morrow,

2000)
The Man Behind the Magic; the Story of Walt Disney, Katherine & Richard Greene,
1991, revised 1998, ISBN 0-7868-5350-6
Married to the Mouse, Richard E. Foglesorg, Yale University Press.
Mouse Tales: A Behind-the-Ears Look at Disneyland, David Koenig, 1994, revised 2
005, ISBN 0-9640605-4-X
Mouse Tracks: The Story of Walt Disney Records, Tim Hollis and Greg Ehrbar, 2006
, ISBN 1-57806-849-5
Storming the Magic Kingdom: Wall Street, the raiders, and the battle for Disney,
John Taylor, 1987 New York Times
The Story of Walt Disney, Diane Disney Miller & Pete Martin, 1957
Team Rodent, Carl Hiaasen.
Walt Disney: An American Original, Bob Thomas, 1976, revised 1994, ISBN 0-671-22
332-1
Work in Progress by Michael Eisner with Tony Schwartz (Random House, 1998), ISBN
978-0-375-50071-8
External links
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