Bob Iger Gives Response To Nelson Peltz And Other Investors
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Facing upcoming board elections in April, Disney's once and current CEO Bob Iger fired back at what he called “activist investors” over criticism of Disney’s streaming services and lagging stock performance by two firms attempting to defeat incumbent board members. Nelson Peltz, whose firm, Trian, is currently targeting two board seats, with himself nominated for one of those seats, called for Disney to achieve “Netflix-like” profitability margins of 15 percent to 20 percent by Fiscal Year 2027 for its flagship streaming service, D+.
Iger dismissed such calls, noting that D+ only launched a little over four years ago, in 2019, and Netflix already had a ten-year head start over them. Additionally, he noted that Disney is adopting many of the same measures Netflix instituted to improve its profitability, including eliminating password sharing, customer acquisition and retention, and technology that lowers churn. He also stated that Disney knows more about what they are doing than any “outsiders” and how to do it.
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“All of those things are things that not only do we aspire to but that we’re working towards in terms of delivering,” Iger said. “You don’t snap your fingers and get there, and as I said a moment ago, I’m not suggesting we’re patient about it. We’ve got a lot of work to do. Some of it takes time. The fact that we’re guiding to profitability by the end of this year, and that I’m saying to you, we’re going to turn that business into a business that we’re proud of in terms of margins. We know a lot more about it how to do that than any outsider is going to tell us.”
Iger also harshly criticized Peltz personally, stating that, “in a two-year quest for a seat on the Disney Board, Mr. Peltz had not presented a single strategic idea for Disney; that his assessment of Disney seemed oblivious to the ongoing secular change in the media industry.” Iger stated he had not spoken to Peltz for a while and had no current plans to speak to him ahead of the Board vote on April 3.
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Source(s): The Hollywood Reporter
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