Iger in China

[Sarangel]

Walt Disney president and chief operating officer Robert Iger is likely to push for greater access to China's high-potential but tightly controlled movie and television content distribution market when he visits the country today [10/13/04].

With Hong Kong Disneyland gearing up for its grand opening in about a year's time, the company is eager to ramp up its mainland presence as its television programmes and popular movies are a key driver of the Disney brand.

It is a challenge for Disney to get widespread coverage for its characters because only 20 foreign movies are allowed to be distributed in China's cinemas each year.

So far, Ladder 49, a new firefighter flick featuring John Travolta, has been cleared for release in China.

But the movies in its stable that really count are the universally popular Pixar-animated works like Toy Story and Finding Nemo that have spawned a new generation of Disney characters.

According to a recent ranking of the most valuable characters by Forbes magazine, the top five list was dominated by Disney with Mickey Mouse at No1, followed by Winnie the Pooh and Nemo in fifth place.

The other two were characters from Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter films.

With television, Disney already has 11 Disney Channels and six Playhouse Disney Channels, which target the pre-school market.

Iger said the launch of Disney Channels in India and China are in the works.

Iger, who is attending the two Disney-sponsored National Basketball Association matches in China, is also keen to push the company's ESPN brand and capitalise on the popularity of sports in the country.

The matches mark the first time for NBA teams to play in the country and will feature the Houston Rockets, with Yao Ming, and the Sacramento Kings.

A match will be held in Shanghai tomorrow and another game will follow in Beijing on Sunday.

The matches will be broadcast live on ESPN.

Basketball is already the second most popular sport in China, after football, according to Walt Disney parks and resorts president Jay Rasulo.

This is expected to grow following last year's launch of the mainland edition of ESPN The Magazine.