Disney on the Dark Side

Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger says his company has 'very limited access to the consumer' and doesn't have 'any idea of who went to see Star Wars in the movies'. Laudable honesty - and of course he is looking to change that - though of course the answer is 'practically everyone'.

Iger took questions at the Deutsche Bank 2016 Media, Internet and Telecom Conference last week, and ranged over topics from the forthcoming launch of Disneyland Shanghai to the firm's need to be more mobile-friendly and more connected with its customers.

Disney will look to invest in people and technology to help it talk more directly with consumers, from a current position over-reliant on distribution through third parties such as video distributors or cinema chains - the exceptions being the entertainment giant's parks, resorts and stores. While some of these channels are very effective and 'there's nothing wrong with that', Iger said the company is learning and will move towards more direct contact to take advantage of new opportunities.

Iger says the company has learned a lot about marketing and technology from the launch of its own online subscription service, Disney Life, in the UK in autumn 2015 - including 'how [consumers] behave on iPhones and iOS devices versus Android devices' - and plans to give the service more promotion in the next few months.

Web site: www.disney.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.