Robert Iger, the former chief executive of Walt Disney Co., is joining venture-capital firm Thrive Capital, where as a venture partner he will advise on day-to-day initiatives including mentoring startup founders and identifying new investment opportunities.
Robert Iger spent decades helming a company known for its animated characters. For his next act, the former Walt Disney Co. boss is backing a startup that celebrities and others are using to create avatars for the much-hyped metaverse. In his first career move since leaving the entertainment company in November, Iger has taken a board seat with Los Angeles-based Genies Inc. He is also an investor in the business, one of five fledgling tech companies he’s recently backed.
Long before he became Disney’s celebrated supreme leader, Robert A. Iger was a humble weatherman. He started his career in 1973 at a cable channel in Ithaca, N.Y., where his duties involved standing in front of a map and doing that awkward talking-into-space thing while reciting temperatures. On Thursday, he went out the way he came in.
Apple disclosed Iger’s departure in a regulatory filing Friday, but his resignation became effective last Tuesday. That’s the same day that Apple announced its long-awaited video streaming service will debut Nov. 1 and cost only $5 per month, less than half the price of Netflix’s most popular plan.
Walt Disney Co-Chief Executive Bob Iger says it would be “very difficult” for the media company to keep filming in Georgia if a new abortion law takes effect because many people will not want to work in the state. Disney has filmed blockbuster movies in Georgia such as Black Panther and Avengers: Endgame, and it would be a blow to the state’s efforts to create production jobs if the entertainment giant stopped filming there.
The company is cutting an annual base salary increase of $500,000 that Iger was set to receive when the Fox deal closes and maintains his current base of $3 million. It cuts the annual bonus he was set to receive by $8 million to $12 million. It also cut his annual target long-term incentive award by $5 million to $20 million.
Exclusives
Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger missed his shot at a $60 million bonus but still got his largest-ever compensation package thanks to special awards issued in connection with his contract extension. Iger was awarded $65.6 million for 2018, including an $18 million cash incentive and $43.6 million in restricted stock and options.
Bob Iger shared the stage with presidential historian Doris Keans Goodwin at Tuesday’s Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit, but he didn’t want people to read into it. “I happen to be speaking with a presidential historian, but it’s just a coincidence,” he told the crowd. “I am not doing that. It’s off the table. I am running the Walt Disney Co.” Questions of a possible presidential run in 2020 have followed the Disney CEO for some time.
So far in 2018, Disney has released the top three U.S. box-office hits. And Disney CEO Bob Iger has topped his own bigger-is-better strategy with a $71 billion deal to buy 21st Century Fox’s entertainment assets, bringing into the fold everything from Avatar to The Simpsons. Now the studio that began in the back of a real estate office by selling its first cartoon to one distributor in 1923 is poised to launch its own streaming service. By eliminating the middlemen and selling content directly to consumers, Disney will disrupt the disrupters.
Jeff Bezos had the Allen & Co. conference crowd in Sun Valley, Idaho, transfixed on Thursday morning as the Amazon CEO spoke about the evolution of his company, what he looks for in leaders, and his ambitious plan to develop the world of outer space for the betterment of humanity. Several attendees made mention of what one described as a “baller move” by Disney chief Bob Iger to take his breakfast at a prominent front table with Fox’s Rupert Murdoch and Lachlan Murdoch and Rupert’s wife, Jerry Hall.
Oprah Winfrey: “I really, really pushed him to run for president, so much so that I said to him, ‘Gee, if you ever decide to run for office, I will go door to door carrying leaflets. I will go sit and have tea with people.’ ”
Robert Iger, the chief executive of Walt Disney Co., saw his total compensation decline 17% in the recently concluded fiscal year to $36.3 million, according to the company’s latest proxy statement filed Friday to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The drop from last year’s $43.9 million was due in part to a smaller cash bonus to Iger that Disney said was the result of an “absence of growth” in the fiscal year.
Disney’s $66 billion acquisition of Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox will help it accelerate its digital direct-to-consumer strategy, accelerate growth at Hulu and allow ESPN to become a global powerhouse, CEO Bob Iger said this morning in a call with investors.
Walt Disney Co. CEO Robert Iger may stay at the company longer than expected if it buys major entertainment assets from 21st Century Fox. Iger had said he would retire from the Burbank entertainment giant when his deal there expires in 2019. The Disney board is expected to extend Iger’s contract so that he can oversee the integration of Fox properties with Disney, according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to speak publicly.
Disney chairman and CEO Robert Iger sold $83.8 million in Disney stock between Wednesday and Friday of last week, according to an SEC filing. After exercising some options, Iger’s pre-tax net proceeds from the sale comes out to be more like $69.3 million.
Disney CEO Bob Iger said he will step down from Trump’s business advisory council, protesting the president’s decision to withdraw from the Paris climate deal. “Protecting our planet and driving economic growth are critical to our future, and they aren’t mutually exclusive,” Iger said in a statement. “I deeply disagree with the decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement.”
Disney Profit Surges But TV Income Declines
Walt Disney Co. reported an 11% jump in profit in its second fiscal quarter, boosted by several hit films and growth in its theme parks operation. But the company’s closely watched media networks unit, which includes ESPN, had a tough quarter. Operating income fell 3% to $2.2 billion, which the company attributed in part to higher programming costs and subscriber losses during a period of upheaval in the television business.
The CEO has now re-upped his contract until July 2, 2019, amid concerns among industry observers that there is no heir apparent within the company’s executive ranks.
“I don’t believe my membership in that group in any way endorses or supports any specific policy of the president or his administration,” Disney CEO Bob Iger told shareholders.
Robert Iger has been one of the most admired executives in recent Hollywood history, transforming Walt Disney Co. into a global powerhouse. But how much longer will he remain chief executive of the $176-billion juggernaut? Nearly a year after launching a search for a new chief executive, Disney’s board could soon extend his contract, which expires in June 2018.
ESPN Continues To Drag Down Disney
Rising costs and declining viewership at ESPN once again dragged down quarterly results for Walt Disney Co. Disney’s total revenue fell 3% in the quarter ended Dec. 31 to $14.8 billion, while profit dropped 14% to $2.5 billion.
Walt Disney Co. CEO and Chairman Robert Iger’s total compensation was $43.9 million during the company’s most recent fiscal year, according to an SEC filing. His compensation during fiscal 2016, which ended Oct. 1, was down 2.3% from $44.9 million a year earlier.
Walt Disney Co. CEO Robert Iger has been named to a new policy forum created by President-elect Donald Trump. The President’s Strategic and Policy Forum includes several business heavyweights. The nonpartisan, 16-person forum will be chaired by Stephen Schwarzman, the chief executive of private equity firm Blackstone. The group will frequently meet with Trump to directly offer its knowledge and perspective to the president, according to Trump’s transition team.
Disney CEO Bob Iger offered some surprisingly frank responses during a sit-down interview with Mathew Belloni, touching on his progress in China, his future replacement, and ESPN’s recent struggles. Of particular note, Iger announced that ESPN is “creating more product that can be sold directly to the consumer.”
As Walt Disney Co. looks for a potential new leader following the surprising departure of Thomas Staggs, it’s having difficulty finding someone who appears able to measure up to Bob Iger.
Disney CEO Bob Iger says Disney needs to improve on the digital front, and that selling ESPN direct-to-consumer is on table. Speaking on Tuesday, Iger said that “rights” were not the issue with selling ESPN directly, but mentioned that price was a sticking point.
Robert Iger, whose contract as chairman-CEO of Disney ends in 2018, was appointed to head the proposed stadium project to house the San Diego Chargers and the Oakland Raiders in Carson, Calif., creating speculation that Disney — the former owner of the Anaheim Angels and Mighty Ducks — might want back into the game.
With OTT, Nets Have Netflix In Their Sights
Instead of trashing the network news business, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings should focus on his core business. With the big old-line media companies growing more and more interested in the potential of OTT, Hastings is liable to find his programming suppliers morph into competitors.
Like many successful corporate leaders, Disney CEO Rpbert Iger, 64, decided early on to try to control events rather than react to them. To be “fearless,” as he put it recently. Former colleagues say Iger possesses an expansive vision for Disney and is daring enough to act on it.
He will remain chief executive until June 2018, a reflection of the company’s success under his leadership.
On Disney’s earnings call, chief executive Robert Iger admitted that TV advertising is not as hot as it once was. As a result, he wants Disney, which owns ABC and ESPN, to rely less on advertising in the future.
Walt Disney Co. Chairman-CEO Bob Iger said he won’t rule out the appointment of a president or chief operating officer, positions he held before ascending to the top job. “Right now, I’m comfortable with the way the company is structured,” Iger, 63, said when asked about those posts. “But we don’t rule that out.”
Leslie Moonves, Philippe Dauman, Robert Iger, David Zaslav,.Jeffrey Bewkes and Brian Roberts make the annual list.
Walt Disney Co. Chairman and Chief Executive Robert Iger faced tough questioning about alleged liberal bias at Disney-owned ABC News and ESPN during the entertainment company’s annual meeting in Phoenix on Wednesday.
Walt Disney Co Chief Executive Officer Robert Iger got a 20% bump in his 2012 pay, totaling $40.2 million, regulatory filings show. Iger’s package included $2.5 million in base salary, with an additional $9.5 million in stock awards.
Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Robert A. Iger commanded a 35% jump in salary and bonuses in 2010, rewarding what the board of directors’ compensation committee called his “exceptional performance” in the face of a slow-recovering U.S. economy.
Disney CEO Turns Slump Into Springboard
While many of his peers hoarded cash during the downturn, Robert Iger, chief executive of Walt Disney Co., doubled down, investing in entertainment businesses, theme parks, new technology and other infrastructure and counting on the weak economy to keep a lid on construction costs.
