Bob Iger just dropped a TON of information on Disney’s recent past and the company’s immediate future.
©Disney
Iger, the two-time CEO of Disney who had the position from 2005 to 2020 before retiring and anointing Bob Chapek as his successor only to return to the role in 2022 after Chapek was ousted, recently participated in a Q&A session at the MoffettNathanson Media, Internet & Communications Conference.
Over the course of the lengthy discussion, Iger touched on numerous topics including changes to the company’s streaming strategy, the importance of theme parks to their overall financial bottom line, the increased usage of Intellectual Property in the theme parks, and even took the time to take some shots at his once successor-turned-predecessor.
©Disney
Fitting the theme of the conference, one of the primary topics Iger spoke about was Disney+ and the company’s entrance into streaming back in 2019. He spoke about the early days of Disney+, saying “As we got into the streaming business in a very, very aggressive way, we tried to tell too many stories. Basically we invested too much, way ahead of possible returns. It’s what led to streaming ending up as a $4 billion loss.” He went on to say, “There’s a very fine line that you can cross and get in trouble if your volume ends up diluting management’s attention to what is being made is right. And that’s what happened to us. So I have pulled that back.” This can arguably be taken as a subtle shot at Chapek and the structure he had in place following Iger’s initial departure.
©Disney
Pivoting to the future, Iger said that he had come to the conclusion that traditional media is “not going to be a growth business, but it could become an important component to our ability to basically engage with the consumer” and stressed the importance of technological innovations in personalizing content recommendations through AI, as well as bundling Hulu and ESPN with Disney+ to the company’s bottom line. He also said that the philosophy he’s pushing at the company right now is that, “… good isn’t good enough. It has to be great. Just keep driving that, but if you force them to make too much, then that becomes almost impossible to do.”
©DIsney
Beyond streaming, Iger also spoke at length about Disney’s theme parks during the Q&A session. Iger touched on the financial success of Disney’s theme park division, saying “I looked at the return on invested capital in our parks and resorts unit over my tenure, and it was extraordinary”, as well as discussing Disney’s most recent quarterly earnings results, emphasizing, ”We had record revenue in all of our parks, record per capita spending, and record attendance in every one of our parks except Disney World, which was still strong.”
Disneyland
Iger also spoke about the impact Shanghai Disneyland has had on the brand in China (it “planted the brand flag deeply”), the expansion a renaming of the Walt Disney Studios Paris theme park, the success and profitability of the Disney Cruise Line, and the overall importance investors and analysts are putting on Disney’s theme park numbers as the entertainment industry was upended by COVID, strikes, and the general volatility of streaming.
Perhaps the most interesting for – and distressing to some – portion of the theme park discussion for theme park aficionados was Iger’s frank comments on the use of Intellectual Property in the parks. Intellectual Property means the stories and characters created by Disney for its movies and TV shows. He attributed much of the parks division’s success to the integration of IP, saying “If you analyze carefully how we achieved those returns on invested capital in the parks, it was all about the IP”, and used examples including building the new Zootopia expansion in Shanghai Disneyland as the company leveraging the popularity of that intellectual property in the region, and the concept of bringing Avatar to the newly approved DisneylandForward expansion project in California.
Zootopia in Shanghai
Iger went on to stress that Disney is going to “turbocharge” their parks in the next decade or so, with a goal of integrating new intellectual properties at a quicker pace, a strategy inspired by recent success. “For quite a long time, new attractions and lands at the parks were based on, essentially, either very old IP or no IP — just an attraction. And, starting really with Carsland and Toy Story and a few others… we decided that almost all of our investment in the parks in terms of attractions and lands would be using that IP. And it’s very very clear what that delivered.”
Cars
Tying into the potential of capitalizing on new IPs, Iger explained that the company wouldn’t be announcing the specifics of the latter portion of the aforementioned $60 billion decade-long expansion, so they could “pivot” to a newer IP if they so desired. In other words, it seems HIGHLY unlikely that Disney will be building any new lands or attractions that aren’t directly tied to one of their intellectual properties in the foreseeable future.
Iger also spoke about Universal’s upcoming Epic Universe, saying “We’ve had competition for a long time. I’m mindful of what they’re doing, but I’m confident in what we’ve built and will continue to grow.” He also stressed that Disney had built projects like Tron Lightcycle/Run, Galaxy’s Edge, and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind in Florida over the last five years, and that generally anytime Universal has opened a major new project in the state that it’s increased tourism overall in Orlando, which has benefited Disney.
©Universal
Overall, Iger spoke about the power of physical experiences in an increasingly digital world, saying he believed “The experience that we deliver, whether it’s at a park or on a cruise ship, is an extraordinary experience that I think where the value is not going away. It’s showing no signs of ebbing at all.”
DisneylandForward concept art ©Disney
Bob Iger’s answers in this recent Q&A session shed light on Disney’s upcoming strategy in both the media world, and their theme parks. Stay tuned to DFB for more Disney business news.
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An IP based splash pad at Epcot? An IP based broccoli mountain at Magic Kingdom? Ooooo, the excitement. Where are the new riders Bob?!
How about they fix the IP-based misstep theming in Galaxy’s Edge? Iger completely missed the mark there. Bob failed to make the connection between nostalgia and the IP. No one wanted or asked for the sub-par “spin-off” content. Disney can no longer tell a good story or theme a land based on one that already exists. Iger should have quit while he was ahead.
Streaming should be used in a way to promote IPs that will be featured at a park in hope of driving business to the parks. Its a perfect recipe for success.
I’m really not bothered if Disney builds new rides and attractions based on IP if the quality and maintenance are there. All the new rides in Fantasy Springs are based on IP and they all look great. So does the newish Beauty and the Beast ride at Tokyo Disney. The new Zootopia land in Shanghai looks great as well. I’d love for the domestic parks to build those rides or something similar here. The fact that they’re based on IP is less important than the fact they’re amazing rides.
We can still hope for a Villains Park, can’t we? The Villains are IP, aren’t they? I’m not sure I understand the business jargon.
So I guess that means the tacky “Incredibles” overlay on the formerly elegant Contemporary Resort is staying.
Ugh.
It’s refreshing to hear that Disney is moving forward… leveraging the brand/IP that has made Disney what it is today. Walt would be proud
As a family that were huge Disney fans, we are now huge UO fans, finding the magic that was missing at WDW in the past 6 years. Our hope is Disney will bring back the magic to WDW we so desperately miss as EPIC universe opens. Make it affordable as it used to be , increase food quality like it used to be, appreciate your cast embers like you used to as they are the face of Disney. Please bring back the magic.
Haunted mansion , pirates, jungle cruise, test track, expedition Everest, rock and rollacoaster,to name a few, no IP in site, man this guys unbelievable , my beloved Star Wars is in the toilet, killed marvel with the release of the new movies, he doesn’t get that this was started with a mouse, and some amazing imagineers that came up with there own stories just fine, he’s almost killed of imagineering with dumb IP, I will look forward to a new CEO , and then start to fire up the imagineers dept , under him, the same ole WDW day parade, epcots messy night time show, Star Wars hotel for the super rich! and price hike for everything . Honestly he won’t ever be Walt, Roy or Micheal or Frank , ☹️
IP based rides for the future? One thing is for sure, Iger is no Walt Disney, so much for originality.
Well, that’s just sad regarding IP. IP popularity changes constantly so by the time Disney gets a ride built, it may no longer be that popular. Some of the most favorite attractions at the parks were built without IP: The Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, Carousel of Progress, Country Bears Jamboree, The Enchanted Tiki Room… Movies were made based on the popularity of many attractions, not the other way around. A new CEO can’t come soon enough.
Yet another bad decision by Bob Iger. When I think of all my favorite Disney World rides–many of them gone–I realize that NONE of them were IP-based. Some of them were made into movies (Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean) which I mostly found disappointing. (I did like the first Pirates movie). Over at Epcot, I loved Horizons and the original Imagination ride…again, not IP-based. The Frozen ride is all right, but I miss the Maelstrom. Our current favorite ride is Soarin’, not IP-based. We still enjoy Spaceship Earth, while the new Moana walk-through is a bore. All I can figure is that Iger is trying to find some way to interest people in the Disney movies that fail at the box office, but I don’t think this will do it.
How will you keep making uninspired ride-based movies if you don’t invent IP?
I really can’t understand how this makes sense from the standpoint of financial performance or brand. Nearly all of the new content IP has failed at the box office and lately nearly all of the tried and true IP franchise films have lost money.
From a brand standpoint of wholesome family entertainment this would mean ideas as great as Aerosmith Rockin Roller Coaster, The American Experience, Carousel of Progress, Spaceship Earth, Small World Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder and on & on would have failed the CEO’s IP test.
Bob Iger said that Disney Plus lost $4 BILLION on Disney Plus. They made up for this loss by changes in the park and charging park goers much more. Iger said that he is making changes in the streaming business to stop the bleeding of money. Is it time to help the park goers who carried these streaming losses on their shoulders. Why not
1. ELIMINATE GENIE PLUS
2. ELIMINATE INDIVIDUAL ATTRACTION
3. BRING BACK THE FREE FAST PASS WITH THREE RIDES MONTHS IN ADVANCE.
THE PARK GOERS HAVE PAID FOR DISNEY FINANCIAL MISTAKES LONG ENOUGH. HOW ABOUT GIVING US A BREAK SINCE WE CARRIED ON OUR BACKS DISNEY LOSSES DURING THE PANDEMIC AND DISNEY MISTAKES WITH STREAMING
As long as WDW remains crowded, what is the incentive for improvement ?
Many long time favorites aren’t even on the Dining Plan for 2025 ! Max Profit Remains Iger’s Top Priority
It’s easy to write about over-turning a Chapek decision. In hindsight, anyone can easily make a different decision. I’d love to get back on the ‘bandwagon’ for Disney, but their decisions have really turned me off.
Not good. If Disney had relied on only IP in the past there would be no EPCOT, no Animal Kingdom, no Hollywood Studios and half of the Magic Kingdom would not exist. What’s the matter Bob? Running out of ideas?
If all IP is their strategy they’d better come up with some better movies. Disney’s recent efforts have been poor & don’t make me excited to see them in the parks. I’ll take Figment any day!
Everything at the Universal parks is IP based. Makes sense for Disney to do it too.
I fear for the future of the World Showcase at EPCOT. It is fine to have character meet and greets associated with the country, but the beauty of the World Showcase is feeling as if you traveled to the country, strolling through streets of Morocco, shopping at Mitsukoshi in Japan or dining at Via Napoli in Italy. Frozen Ever After, belongs in Fantasyland, not in the Norway Pavillion.
Iger has a way of saying nothing while talking.
Ok let’s start guessing what I0 goes to which attractions….
*The tiki room goes under new management agin?
*Will its a small world gain characters in each country related to IP?
*Is space mountain getting a permanent change to hyperspace mountains?
*Tomorrowland speedway badly needs an upgrade to EV Cars and Cars-land IP
*Can we get a Wall-E themed people movie overlay complete with little screens on each car for entertainment?
*the final scene in the carousel of progress just needs to have a Meet the Robinsons upgrade to show the family has been time traveling the whole time.
*Spaceship Earth is obviously the next Deathstar with every scene revamped to a galaxy far away….the brimstone smell needs to covert to Mustafar of course
*living with the land could be cool with an Antman overlay and they pull some oversized props from storage from the old HISTk section of HS.
*Soarin’ IP could be the upcoming Rocketeer reboot/sequel with some footage of flying around from the movies and nods the original ride with orange grove flyover.
*Figment….well he should be left alone or restored with the original IP and the Dreamfinder brought back!
*can we get ANY IP based 4D show back where captsin EO and HISTA used to be?
*Test track is ripe for CARS IP of course
* Canada could add some Brother Bear elements,
* UK needs to finish the Mary Poppins street
* Morocco could lean towards Aladdin?
* Americas pavilion just needs bunch of Mickey mouse bicentennial / fourth of July references
*japan will add some big hero six and a ride in the building that never got one
* Italy should get some Luca content
* China has to adds some Turning Red IP
* Germanys hidden/abandoned Boat ride should be finished.with some good captain america scenes fighting the red skull
What else?
I think Iger misses the point about the streaming services. The one and only thing that matters is content. Give the viewer something they want to watch, not the woke content, and you will do fine.
When you look at what Shanghai and Tokyo have created in their parks, I think we pale in comparison. We need to step up the game. Even Universal is ramping up.
I think because we love Disney, we sometimes forget that it is first and foremost a business. Walt wanted to put his stamp on the world so he wasn’t as interested in whether it would make money or not.(His brother had to, that’s why Epcot isn’t an experimental city.) But the people who came after him have had to worry about that. Most of the rides without IPs were built before IPs were even a thing and before that many IPs existed. Walt used IPs (Snow White, Peter Pan), too. As I said before I don’t care if a ride or attraction has an IP as long as it’s well themed and well made. It first and foremost has to be FUN. Beyond that who cares what it’s based on.
I am NOT CONCERNED with IP. I AM CONCERNED WITH THE PRICE CHANGES AND THE ELIMINATION OF MAGICAL EXPRESS. I am PAYING MUCH MORE TO VISIT DISNEY AND I AM GETTING NOTHING MORE THAT WOULD JUSTIFY THE INCREASED COSTS. I am losing the Magical Express. All of these changes today DID NOT exist in 2019. Why? Can anyone explain?
As this subject is obviously of interest to a lot of people, it would be interesting to hear AJ’s thoughts on the subject.
I am bummed to hear that Disney will bas any new rides on IP. You’ve taken away the educational aspect of Epcot by having Guardians Of The Galaxy Cosmic Rewind.
I don’t think IP is inherently bad (as some are saying), but if IP theming is done badly, then it’s going to be a mess. The reason it’s bad is because it’s more of a way to sell merchandise than to actually immerse you in the world.
I think it’s easy to blame Bob entirely, but I’m sure the problem is systematic. You would really need a leader who would upend the whole structure to get things back on track. Put an actual artist in leadership positions who can actually make decisions. Stop trying to milk the money out of every crook and cranny. We’re not fooled Disney execs.
I just wonder what a definition of “IP” would be?
If it’s “Real Disney Product” I’ll be happy. But I suspect it will be more superhero/sw/st stuff.
Always depends on the IP, people have mentioned Fantasy Springs is IP based that IP spans generations. A solid ride concept with IP as the support works well, an IP with a poor ride concept is still a poor ride.
Hello Mr. Iger,
My family and I have always enjoyed the Disney Parks, both Disneyland and Disney World over the years but now is our last time because your costs are too expensive, your company is squeezing out the middle class families. This means that fewer families are able to visit the Parks and the Disney fanbase is slowly shrinking as fewer younger families try and make the trip. The Disney adventure is no longer attainable for families on a set income, you have failed to make Disney a memorable name as once were the days when Walt Disney, Roy Disney and Michael Eisner made the parks enjoyable. Years ago, Disney tickets never expired but now they do and never were there more expensive days like Friday and weekends but you have managed to gouge the public again! When Walt Disney was alive, the different brand names of food along with the affordable cost would keep people in the park. Now that quality is gone, it’s a gold mine for profits and compensation. Your stock will keep tanking until you change the venue, you’ll have to figure it out.
Disneyland
June 6th, 2024
Will never return to Disneyland because it’s extremely expensive and frustrating to experience attractions not working during the summer months. Ticket prices are higher than a few years ago and your Genie system wasn’t working when attractions broke down, so disappointing.
EIGHT major attractions closed down for repairs or maintenance during major summer season, The Haunted Mansion, The Jungle Cruise, Splash Mountain, The People Mover, Winnie The Pooh, Frontier Land Train Station and Great Moments With Mr Lincoln.
No clean up of areas, noticed fewer cast members sweeping up trash. The park looks its age, run down and dirty. The Columbia ship and Mark Twain look unkept, in need of much touch up and repair.
Why is the The River Bell Terrace not opening till 10:00am? Was always open when the park opened. There are many people looking for a nice breakfast, restaurants need to operate and open earlier. We had to inconveniently back track through the crowds towards Main Street. Finding restaurants that once operated like in the 1960’s thru the 2000’s with good selections are no longer available, sad.
The People Mover, what happened to this ride? Is this an abandoned structure (eye sore) left standing like some old Mine Train ride, left to fill-in the void with nothing to do?
We also visited Universal Studios, very impressed with the cleanliness and well setup arrangement of the park, everything was working! Early morning food selections were easy to find and of good quality and decent prices.
Universal Studios sent me a 10 minute review to fill out online, I was happy to do this because parks need to know how their guests enjoyed their visit. Disney did the same but their review took less than a minute to fill out, no place for comments. I told Universal Studios that I rank their park well above Disneyland for the first time, sad.
Sincerely,
Marc Norris
Reply left above
Hello Mr. Iger,
My family and I have always enjoyed the Disney Parks, both Disneyland and Disney World over the years but now is our last time because your costs are too expensive, your company is squeezing out the middle class families. This means that fewer families are able to visit the Parks and the Disney fanbase is slowly shrinking as fewer younger families try and make the trip. The Disney adventure is no longer attainable for families on a set income, you have failed to make Disney a memorable name as once were the days when Walt Disney, Roy Disney and Michael Eisner made the parks enjoyable. Years ago, Disney tickets never expired but now they do and never were there more expensive days like Friday and weekends but you have managed to gouge the public again! When Walt Disney was alive, the different brand names of food along with the affordable cost would keep people in the park. Now that quality is gone, it’s a gold mine for profits and compensation. Your stock will keep tanking until you change the venue, you’ll have to figure it out.
Disneyland
June 6th, 2024
Will never return to Disneyland because it’s extremely expensive and frustrating to experience attractions not working during the summer months. Ticket prices are higher than a few years ago and your Genie system wasn’t working when attractions broke down, so disappointing.
EIGHT major attractions closed down for repairs or maintenance during major summer season, The Haunted Mansion, The Jungle Cruise, Splash Mountain, The People Mover, Winnie The Pooh, Frontier Land Train Station and Great Moments With Mr Lincoln.
No clean up of areas, noticed fewer cast members sweeping up trash. The park looks its age, run down and dirty. The Columbia ship and Mark Twain look unkept, in need of much touch up and repair.
Why is the The River Bell Terrace not opening till 10:00am? Was always open when the park opened. There are many people looking for a nice breakfast, restaurants need to operate and open earlier. We had to inconveniently back track through the crowds towards Main Street. Finding restaurants that once operated like in the 1960’s thru the 2000’s with good selections are no longer available, sad.
The People Mover, what happened to this ride? Is this an abandoned structure (eye sore) left standing like some old Mine Train ride, left to fill-in the void with nothing to do?
We also visited Universal Studios, very impressed with the cleanliness and well setup arrangement of the park, everything was working! Early morning food selections were easy to find and of good quality and decent prices.
Universal Studios sent me a 10 minute review to fill out online, I was happy to do this because parks need to know how their guests enjoyed their visit. Disney did the same but their review took less than a minute to fill out, no place for comments. I told Universal Studios that I rank their park well above Disneyland for the first time, sad.
What is sad about all of this is that I don’t think Bob Iger even reads or cares about these comments. Over 16 years ago I bought into the DVC with the intent that this would be my annual vacation or even twice a year. Over the years I have watched the quality of almost every aspect of WDW decline. Changes made are not always progress. In my estimation I do not even care if I go to WDW, and it used to be my refugee from everything that was going on in the world and now it has injected itself into the politics of the world.
Disney needs to get back to serving middle-class families instead of what they consider groups that are on the fringe and not treated properly, which is not even reality. If they continue down the road they are on I fear that there may not even be a Disney company. I am definitely in the older generation but quality matters as well as price. They need to get back to the leadership of the 80’s.
Gino, well said!!! Agree completely!!!
Gigi, are these posts sent directly to Disney? Universal is eating Disney’s lunch. The Royal Pacific is cheaper than The Polynesian and a FREE FAST PASS COMES ALONG WITH THE HOTEL STAY.
Hi Ron. No, our posts are not sent to Disney at all. We post for our followers who are Disney/Universal fans. Our articles are public, however. Anyone can read them.
Gigi, wouldn’t it beneficial for the Disney Food Blog to make Disney aware of how we feel, particularly our complaints and there are MANY?
Hi Ron. Our articles are all public and we do not have a direct line to Disney. I would encourage you to reach out to Disney directly with any complaints that you may have.