Disney is undergoing a transformation. While it is not revolutionary, the company’s strategy is betting on the golden favorites to get back on track after incurring losses to profit, stock, and brand image. At its annual event D23 Expo in August 2024, the CEO Bob Iger announced that Disney’s future productions will bank on their popular IPs and, most importantly, focus will be placed on the quality of the entertainment, instead of quantity.
Disney’s winning franchises
In 2024, Disney’s new strategy was already underway, and the the year marked a promising box office success for the company, with two of its films surpassing the one-billion-dollar mark in domestic revenues. “Inside Out 2” and “Deadpool & Wolverine” were the two franchises in question. Naturally, Disney aims at monetizing further titles and “Moana 2” joined in making waves at the box office during Thanksgiving 2024. Animation will be one of Disney’s main work horses in the near future – a solid strategy as this category consistently proves to be the source of the highest grossing films worldwide. Going forward, Disney aims to recalibrate the Star Wars franchise and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with the aim of making fewer but more audience-targeted productions, for the small and the big screen, alike. While exploiting existing IPs has not always been lucrative for Disney, the deciding factor this time will be Iger’s quality vs. quantity approach.
Core segments are also transforming
In 2024, the global revenue of The Walt Disney Company stood at over 90 billion U.S. dollars, marking the third-most profitable year in company history. Looking at Disney’s revenue distribution by segment, the newly restructured Entertainment division (which includes linear networks, direct-to-consumer services, content sales, and licensing) accounted for the lion’s share of earnings. Over the past few decades, the list of Disney-owned properties has rapidly expanded, and today, the House of Mouse is home to television networks and streaming services such as ABC, ESPN, National Geographic, and Hulu. As for the Walt Disney studios operations – the company’s beating heart – the acquisitions of Pixar, Marvel Studios, and Lucasfilm continue to place Disney at the top of the movie charts of the most successful movies of all time.
Lately, following a common trend, Disney has also started investing in sports streaming, with its dedicated segment generating more than 17 billion U.S. dollars soon after its inception. In fact, ESPN+ is one of the most popular streaming apps in the United States.
Entertainment off-screen
Today, Disney owns and operates 12 theme parks across the globe, many of which rank among the most visited amusement and theme parks worldwide. The opening of Disneyland in 1955 rang in a new era for Walt Disney as the company was no longer exclusively entertaining audiences on-screen but also offering real-life experiences to millions of visitors. At the D23 Expo, Iger announced the expansion of the parks’ attractions to include, among others, a Villains Land in Magic Kingdom. Meanwhile, fans can also see their favorite characters aboard one of the company’s cruise ships. The Disney Cruise Line was the second top-rated large-ship cruise line in the U.S. in 2024.
Disney’s strategy for the next few years is to focus on delivering quality and relatable content and experiences as opposed to investing billions of dollars in poorly received productions. Disney aims to listen to its fans, a move which should translate into success.
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