Another Voice
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Today's Hollywood Reporter has another article concerning the resignation of Roy Disney and the continuing turmoil surrounding Eisner. The entire on line article can be found here (http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=2043882); here are some highlights:
While a New York board meeting yielded little new controversy, shares of the Walt Disney Co. dipped 2.5% on Tuesday as some influential analysts expressed concern over continuing pressure on chairman and CEO Michael Eisner in the wake of Roy E. Disney and Stanley Gold's high-profile exits from the board of directors.
Industry observers were sure that Tuesday's regularly scheduled board meeting featured much debate over the company's tarnished public image, but actual news from the meeting was sparse.
Disney afterward simply announced that its annual dividend will remain unchanged at 21 cents per share and that Sybase chairman and CEO John Chen has been added to the board
Chen is a respected tech executive, but industry observers had little opinion either way about his nomination. The appointment is unlikely to silence critics who charge that the board is not independent enough, since Disney is a customer of Sybase
Meanwhile, expressions of popular support for Roy Disney continues, coming in particular from animation professionals and fans who feel that Eisner has willfully dismantled Disney's fabled theatrical animation operation.
Professional Web sites such as animationnation.com featured long threads on the subject of Roy Disney's action that were overwhelmingly in favor of his criticism of Eisner. Several animators who have worked at Disney began collecting online signatures at www.pruiksma.com from colleagues who backed Disney and Gold in their battle against the board
Observers don't have to look outside the extended Disney family for high-profile critics of Eisner's recent management. Miramax co-chairman Harvey Weinstein told the New York Times on Tuesday that "all the great executives have been driven from the company," and Pixar chairman Steve Jobs has been in long-running and sometimes contentious contract negotiations with Disney for the past several months
Another scenario posed by a number of observers was the idea of cable operator Comcast Corp. or another distribution firm making a play for Disney. With Comcast's financial flexibility strong after its recent acquisition of AT&T's cable operations, many have speculated that owning content is the next step for the leading U.S. cable company. Comcast has always declined to comment on any deal rumors.
Industry observers suggested Tuesday that, after the public boardroom battle of the past few days, Eisner will try to focus investor attention on improved operating performance. "The company has had a good boxoffice run and is likely to reap the benefits of that in the coming months, which is something he will want to milk," one media investor said about the CEO.
But some observers believe that only more merger or acquisition activity will save Disney longer-term. Wall Street insiders have in recent months also repeatedly suggested a merger with -- rather than a takeover by -- a distribution machine such as Comcast or satellite TV firm EchoStar Communications.
"It is a strategic imperative for Disney to gain greater depth and breadth in its broadcasting and cable network presence and/or establish an ownership of distribution assets," Reif Cohen said.
If Eisner doesn't push for a deal himself, Gold, Roy Disney and their backers likely will continue to make noise. However, few expect Eisner to leave in the near term.
"We seriously doubt Mr. Eisner will resign under this type of pressure," analyst Miller said.
While a New York board meeting yielded little new controversy, shares of the Walt Disney Co. dipped 2.5% on Tuesday as some influential analysts expressed concern over continuing pressure on chairman and CEO Michael Eisner in the wake of Roy E. Disney and Stanley Gold's high-profile exits from the board of directors.
Industry observers were sure that Tuesday's regularly scheduled board meeting featured much debate over the company's tarnished public image, but actual news from the meeting was sparse.
Disney afterward simply announced that its annual dividend will remain unchanged at 21 cents per share and that Sybase chairman and CEO John Chen has been added to the board
Chen is a respected tech executive, but industry observers had little opinion either way about his nomination. The appointment is unlikely to silence critics who charge that the board is not independent enough, since Disney is a customer of Sybase
Meanwhile, expressions of popular support for Roy Disney continues, coming in particular from animation professionals and fans who feel that Eisner has willfully dismantled Disney's fabled theatrical animation operation.
Professional Web sites such as animationnation.com featured long threads on the subject of Roy Disney's action that were overwhelmingly in favor of his criticism of Eisner. Several animators who have worked at Disney began collecting online signatures at www.pruiksma.com from colleagues who backed Disney and Gold in their battle against the board
Observers don't have to look outside the extended Disney family for high-profile critics of Eisner's recent management. Miramax co-chairman Harvey Weinstein told the New York Times on Tuesday that "all the great executives have been driven from the company," and Pixar chairman Steve Jobs has been in long-running and sometimes contentious contract negotiations with Disney for the past several months
Another scenario posed by a number of observers was the idea of cable operator Comcast Corp. or another distribution firm making a play for Disney. With Comcast's financial flexibility strong after its recent acquisition of AT&T's cable operations, many have speculated that owning content is the next step for the leading U.S. cable company. Comcast has always declined to comment on any deal rumors.
Industry observers suggested Tuesday that, after the public boardroom battle of the past few days, Eisner will try to focus investor attention on improved operating performance. "The company has had a good boxoffice run and is likely to reap the benefits of that in the coming months, which is something he will want to milk," one media investor said about the CEO.
But some observers believe that only more merger or acquisition activity will save Disney longer-term. Wall Street insiders have in recent months also repeatedly suggested a merger with -- rather than a takeover by -- a distribution machine such as Comcast or satellite TV firm EchoStar Communications.
"It is a strategic imperative for Disney to gain greater depth and breadth in its broadcasting and cable network presence and/or establish an ownership of distribution assets," Reif Cohen said.
If Eisner doesn't push for a deal himself, Gold, Roy Disney and their backers likely will continue to make noise. However, few expect Eisner to leave in the near term.
"We seriously doubt Mr. Eisner will resign under this type of pressure," analyst Miller said.
