DIS Shareholders and Stock Info ONLY

[wabbott]

I remember that day very well. Lou Dobbs was anchoring the old CNN show Moneyline. He was really shook up. IIRC, it was one of the best buying opportunities of the late 80s.

 

[wabbott]

Interesting stuff.

So Disney is solidly in 3rd place, combing Hulu and D+. Not bad considering the head-start YouTube and Netflix had.

https://www.disneyplusinformer.com/avatar-temporarily-removed-from-disney-globally/

‘Avatar’ Temporarily Removed From Disney+ Globally
August 17, 2022 by Michelle Beck

The highly anticipated Avatar sequel, “Avatar: The Way of Water” will hit theaters on December 16, 2022. To prepare for the film’s release, 20th Century Studios will rerelease Avatar in theaters worldwide on September 23, 2022 which will include a remastered picture and sound for the film.

Avatar was previously available to stream on Disney+ but has been quietly removed from the streamer globally, perhaps in an effort to encourage more people to see the rerelease in theaters. It’s not unusual for Disney+ to remove titles in certain regions from time to time due to contractual obligations however it is rare to see a title removed from the service globally. A reason for the removal and a return date has not been announced yet.

 

[wabbott]

https://www.wsj.com/articles/disney-espn-spin-off-third-point-loeb-11660863537

Should Disney Get Rid of ESPN? The Debate Returns.
The entertainment giant depends on the sports network to fund its streaming expansion, but subscriptions are in decline

By Joe Flint
Aug. 19, 2022 5:30 am ET

An activist investor’s suggestion this week that Walt Disney Co. DIS -0.11%▼ spin off ESPN rekindled a long-running debate over what the company should do with a sports network that has been a major profit engine for years but whose subscriber base is eroding.

Daniel Loeb’s Third Point LLC, which owns a small stake in the entertainment giant, told management in a letter Monday that there is a “strong case to be made” for Disney to part with ESPN, which would result in a company that is “no longer haunted by the specter of cord-cutting,” or consumers canceling their pay-TV subscription in favor of streaming services.

 

[jade1]

https://www.wsj.com/articles/disney-espn-spin-off-third-point-loeb-11660863537

Should Disney Get Rid of ESPN? The Debate Returns.
The entertainment giant depends on the sports network to fund its streaming expansion, but subscriptions are in decline

By Joe Flint
Aug. 19, 2022 5:30 am ET

An activist investor’s suggestion this week that Walt Disney Co. DIS -0.11%▼ spin off ESPN rekindled a long-running debate over what the company should do with a sports network that has been a major profit engine for years but whose subscriber base is eroding.

Daniel Loeb’s Third Point LLC, which owns a small stake in the entertainment giant, told management in a letter Monday that there is a “strong case to be made” for Disney to part with ESPN, which would result in a company that is “no longer haunted by the specter of cord-cutting,” or consumers canceling their pay-TV subscription in favor of streaming services.

I wonder if this influenced getting rid of the ESPN Club on the Boardwalk.

We really miss those 100 Sports TV's.

 

[clarker99]

https://www.wsj.com/articles/disney-espn-spin-off-third-point-loeb-11660863537

Should Disney Get Rid of ESPN? The Debate Returns.
The entertainment giant depends on the sports network to fund its streaming expansion, but subscriptions are in decline

By Joe Flint
Aug. 19, 2022 5:30 am ET

An activist investor’s suggestion this week that Walt Disney Co. DIS -0.11%▼ spin off ESPN rekindled a long-running debate over what the company should do with a sports network that has been a major profit engine for years but whose subscriber base is eroding.

Daniel Loeb’s Third Point LLC, which owns a small stake in the entertainment giant, told management in a letter Monday that there is a “strong case to be made” for Disney to part with ESPN, which would result in a company that is “no longer haunted by the specter of cord-cutting,” or consumers canceling their pay-TV subscription in favor of streaming services.

If they are getting into sports betting why would they get rid of ESPN?

 

[RivShore]

If they are getting into sports betting why would they get rid of ESPN?

The theory is that the family orientated Disney company would not want to be associated with the somewhat unseemly world of gambling so they would spin off ESPN who would then be free to align with a gambling company.

 

[Jrb1979]

The theory is that the family orientated Disney company would not want to be associated with the somewhat unseemly world of gambling so they would spin off ESPN who would then be free to align with a gambling company.

IMO it would be a big mistake. I think they would make more profit with Sports betting and ESPN+ then D+ in the end. I still think streaming is never going to bring in big profits. ESPN+ will do well due to live sports.

 

[RivShore]

IMO it would be a big mistake. I think they would make more profit with Sports betting and ESPN+ then D+ in the end. I still think streaming is never going to bring in big profits. ESPN+ will do well due to live sports.

I don't think we have enough info to say that yet. My question I posed somewhere above was, is it a declining asset? As cord cutters cut, how many of them move over to E+? Don't forget that everyone who has a cable subscription pays for ESPN whether they watch it or not. How many of that small subset that actually watch it will be motivated to subscribe to it?

 

[Jrb1979]

I don't think we have enough info to say that yet. My question I posed somewhere above was, is it a declining asset? As cord cutters cut, how many of them move over to E+? Don't forget that everyone who has a cable subscription pays for ESPN whether they watch it or not. How many of that small subset that actually watch it will be motivated to subscribe to it?

I can see many subscribing to it due to the live sports thing. If you combine it with getting into sports betting IMO it can be very profitable.

 

[afan]

I can see many subscribing to it due to the live sports thing. If you combine it with getting into sports betting IMO it can be very profitable.

That they have all NHL games and it's cheaper than center ice which is huge. If they end up priced the same I would go back to only watching my team when they are on a national broadcast and now that there's a local team, those.

Though with the price increase mext month I need to make sure it still makes sense.

 

[wabbott]

https://technoblender.com/should-disney-get-rid-of-espn-the-debate-returns/

Beyond cord-cutting, the rapid escalation of sports-rights fees has eroded ESPN’s profitability in recent years. Last year, ESPN renewed “Monday Night Football” at a cost of $2.7 billion a season, a 35% increase from its previous deal with the NFL. The network has also indicated it will be aggressive in its efforts to retain rights to the National Basketball Association when that deal expires in three years.

Disney doesn’t break out ESPN’s financial performance, but a former executive estimated the network generates in the neighborhood of $3 billion in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization annually, and has a valuation of around $25 billion.

That’s about half of what ESPN was valued at by analyst Matthew Harrigan in 2014, who at the time projected its Ebitda to be around $4.5 billion. Mr. Harrigan declined to comment.

A Disney executive said that the valuation is significantly higher than $25 billion. Disney and ESPN representatives declined to comment on the unit’s finances.

Disney acquired majority control of ESPN as part of its 1995 purchase of Capital Cities/ABC Inc. At that time, ESPN was the darling of the cable business not only for its live sports but its irreverent attitude in covering it. Anchors such as Chris Berman, Dan Patrick, Keith Olbermann and the late Stuart Scott became household names.

For years, ESPN pretty much had the field to itself and launched sister networks, a magazine and a radio network all while delivering a steady stream of profits to Disney.

These days, ESPN competes for sports content not only with rivals such as Fox Sports and Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.’s TNT and TBS, but with Amazon.com Inc.’s Prime Video and Apple Inc.’s TV+ service, which are also moving aggressively onto ESPN’s turf. The competition continues to drive up the cost of content even as ratings for many major sports stagnate or decline.

The network currently has 73.2 million subscribers, down from 87.7 million in 2017, according to Kagan, which estimates that number will fall to 60.8 million by 2025. Marc Ganis, president of the consulting firm Sportscorp, expects U.S. cable subscriptions to stabilize around the 50 million mark.

 

[wabbott]

Can you say AT&T/Time Warner/Direct TV?

 

[RivShore]

I had no idea there was so much emphasis in the proxy on stuff that does nothing to enhance shareholder value...

https://nypost.com/2022/08/20/disneys-wokeness-only-allows-for-activist-investors-to-take-control/

Now let’s turn to the company’s board members — the people Loeb wants to oust because he thinks they’re not cutting it. In the proxy, Disney has a checklist of what it considers key attributes for board members.
Members are graded on executive management, marketing, brand enhancement and risk but also diversity and “ESG experience,” neither of which are on Loeb’s list.

 

[RivShore]

https://technoblender.com/should-disney-get-rid-of-espn-the-debate-returns/

Beyond cord-cutting, the rapid escalation of sports-rights fees has eroded ESPN’s profitability in recent years. Last year, ESPN renewed “Monday Night Football” at a cost of $2.7 billion a season, a 35% increase from its previous deal with the NFL. The network has also indicated it will be aggressive in its efforts to retain rights to the National Basketball Association when that deal expires in three years.

Disney doesn’t break out ESPN’s financial performance, but a former executive estimated the network generates in the neighborhood of $3 billion in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization annually, and has a valuation of around $25 billion.

That’s about half of what ESPN was valued at by analyst Matthew Harrigan in 2014, who at the time projected its Ebitda to be around $4.5 billion. Mr. Harrigan declined to comment.

A Disney executive said that the valuation is significantly higher than $25 billion. Disney and ESPN representatives declined to comment on the unit’s finances.

Disney acquired majority control of ESPN as part of its 1995 purchase of Capital Cities/ABC Inc. At that time, ESPN was the darling of the cable business not only for its live sports but its irreverent attitude in covering it. Anchors such as Chris Berman, Dan Patrick, Keith Olbermann and the late Stuart Scott became household names.

For years, ESPN pretty much had the field to itself and launched sister networks, a magazine and a radio network all while delivering a steady stream of profits to Disney.

These days, ESPN competes for sports content not only with rivals such as Fox Sports and Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.’s TNT and TBS, but with Amazon.com Inc.’s Prime Video and Apple Inc.’s TV+ service, which are also moving aggressively onto ESPN’s turf. The competition continues to drive up the cost of content even as ratings for many major sports stagnate or decline.

The network currently has 73.2 million subscribers, down from 87.7 million in 2017, according to Kagan, which estimates that number will fall to 60.8 million by 2025. Marc Ganis, president of the consulting firm Sportscorp, expects U.S. cable subscriptions to stabilize around the 50 million mark.

This has some good data on ESPN and seems to show it is a declining asset but one that still sends a boatload of cash to the bottom line.

 

[New Mouse]

This has some good data on ESPN and seems to show it is a declining asset but one that still sends a boatload of cash to the bottom line.

Problem is you need to unload it to someone while it still has value. If you wait til it no longer sends a boat load of cash no one will want it.

 

[RivShore]

Problem is you need to unload it to someone while it still has value. If you wait til it no longer sends a boat load of cash no one will want it.

Exactly. So do you unload it now and let someone else go all in on gambling (and that might fully halt the the cash declines) or do you hold onto it and go all in on gambling without worrying about the optics?

With every sports league TV rights contract renewal, I worry that ESPN is going to horribly overpay especially with the tech giants getting into the game, and I'm sure there are plenty within Disney that do to.

Speaking of the tech giants, how about this - you sell ESPN to Apple (whom Disney has had a great relationship with for decades) and in return for lots of cash, you make Apple TV+ and ESPN+ exclusive to the Disney bundle? Best of all worlds?

 

[wabbott]

Problem is you need to unload it to someone while it still has value. If you wait til it no longer sends a boat load of cash no one will want it.

I had no idea there was so much emphasis in the proxy on stuff that does nothing to enhance shareholder value...

https://nypost.com/2022/08/20/disneys-wokeness-only-allows-for-activist-investors-to-take-control/

Now let’s turn to the company’s board members — the people Loeb wants to oust because he thinks they’re not cutting it. In the proxy, Disney has a checklist of what it considers key attributes for board members.
Members are graded on executive management, marketing, brand enhancement and risk but also diversity and “ESG experience,” neither of which are on Loeb’s list.

I suspect (but don't know) this is all the handiwork of Bob Iger. He had 15 years to implement all this kind of stuff.

 

[wabbott]

Exactly. So do you unload it now and let someone else go all in on gambling (and that might fully halt the the cash declines) or do you hold onto it and go all in on gambling without worrying about the optics?

With every sports league TV rights contract renewal, I worry that ESPN is going to horribly overpay especially with the tech giants getting into the game, and I'm sure there are plenty within Disney that do to.

Speaking of the tech giants, how about this - you sell ESPN to Apple (whom Disney has had a great relationship with for decades) and in return for lots of cash, you make Apple TV+ and ESPN+ exclusive to the Disney bundle? Best of all worlds?

Go ahead and throw in ABC with the deal and get rid of 90% of the company's headaches and all the politics.

 

[Jrb1979]

Exactly. So do you unload it now and let someone else go all in on gambling (and that might fully halt the the cash declines) or do you hold onto it and go all in on gambling without worrying about the optics?

With every sports league TV rights contract renewal, I worry that ESPN is going to horribly overpay especially with the tech giants getting into the game, and I'm sure there are plenty within Disney that do to.

Speaking of the tech giants, how about this - you sell ESPN to Apple (whom Disney has had a great relationship with for decades) and in return for lots of cash, you make Apple TV+ and ESPN+ exclusive to the Disney bundle? Best of all worlds?

Disagree. Keep ESPN and use it along with getting into Sports betting and they will make money from it. Advertise the hell out of it in Disney Springs.

 

[RivShore]

Disagree. Keep ESPN and use it along with getting into Sports betting and they will make money from it. Advertise the hell out of it in Disney Springs.

And have a Vegas style sports betting facility in DS? I don't think that will fly anytime soon.