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Can Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) be on the way to selling more of its licensed titles to competitors to raise cash for the entertainment giant?
It could be ongoing, like CEO Bob Iger is taking steps to get Disney’s (DIS) row house after a big loss in the company’s online video business and unpopular decisions made by Iger’s predecessor, Bob Chapek, whom Disney (DIS) fired last fall.
According to a Bloomberg report, Disney ( DIS ) is reportedly considering licensing some of its content library to outside media companies and streaming services as it looks for ways to bounce back from a $1.5 billion loss its online video business reported in the third quarter of 2022. Such moves would were at odds with a strategy that Disney ( DIS ) has had for more than three years, when it began letting third-party content deals with the likes of Netflix ( NFLX ) expire and consolidating nearly all of its vast content library within streaming services Disney+ and Hulu.
Iger, who returned to Disney ( DIS ) more than two years after retiring after a 15-year tenure as the company’s CEO, has already taken some steps to reorganize areas of Disney’s ( DIS ) management and reporting structure. Iger has hinted that he intends to return more decision-making to Disney’s ( DIS ) creative executives, and is expected to provide more details about his plans when Disney ( DIS ) reports its fourth-quarter results on Feb. 8.
Shares of Disney ( DIS ) fell 2% on Friday, but are still up more than 27% since the end of 2022.
Iger and Disney ( DIS ) also face a proxy fight from activist investor Trian Fund Management, which is seeking to install its director, Nelson Peltz, on Disney’s ( DIS ) board of directors.