Walt Disney will focus more on the company’s video streaming services. This is evident from a reorganization of the management team, reports Bloomberg Tuesday. All TV networks, film studios and streaming services now fall under one division called Media and Distribution.
The streaming services Disney +, ESPN + and Hulu will also fall under one manager in the future.
The corona crisis has made streaming services that directly reach consumers more important to Disney. The film branch is struggling because cinemas are largely closed in many parts of the world. At the same time, Disney TV channels are struggling with the fact that many companies have reduced their advertising budgets and the number of households that no longer have cable TV is growing.
CEO Bob Chapek says the new divisional format will better support Disney’s growth strategy. However, there may be more redundancies due to the reorganization. At the theme parks, Disney recently announced it would lay off 28,000 employees.
Disney will hold an investor day at the beginning of December during which the new strategy will be explained more clearly. The share rose more than 5 percent in aftermarket trade on Monday.
Releases more often first via streaming services
Disney recently announced the new Pixar movie Soul to be released first on the streaming platform Disney +.
The animation and family film Soul was set to hit US cinemas on November 20, but Disney has pulled the film off its publishing roster and decided to offer the title on its own streaming platform in the United States and other countries from December 25.
The film studio had done this once before: it was the film at the time Mulan which skipped the cinemas and could be seen directly by users at home.
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