Disney is the latest public company to announce a significant wave of job cuts.
The media powerhouse said it would slash 7,000 jobs and cut costs to the tune of $5.5 billion as part of a significant corporate reorganization that looks to reverse course from previous CEO Bob Chapek, who stepped down in November.
“It’s time for another transformation,” reinstated CEO Bob Iger said on Thursday on the company’s first-quarter earnings call.
Disney’s next generation includes focusing more on sports and will give content executives more power, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Iger also said changes are coming to the company’s movies and television lineup and a possible price change to make its Disney+ and Hulu streaming services profitable.
Chapek created a segment called Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution to determine how to distribute and monetize Disney’s movies and TV shows during his tenure as CEO. It has since been disbanded, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Instead, the company has created a new division, Disney Entertainment, to streamline its television and streaming video services.
Disney will now operate under three core businesses, the newly-created Disney Entertainment, ESPN and Disney Parks, and Experiences and Products, Iger said.
“This reorganization will result in a more cost-effective, coordinated, and streamlined approach to our operations, and we are committed to running our businesses more efficiently, especially in a challenging economic environment,” he added.
Iger said Disney+ will be profitable by the end of fiscal 2024.
“There is a lot to accomplish, but let me be clear. This is my number one priority. We are focused on the success of our streaming business,” he said.
Disney has long been criticized for its alleged exorbitant prices, particularly at its parks.
“It’s clear that some of our pricing initiatives were alienating to consumers. I have always believed, by the way, that accessibility is a core value of the Disney brand,” Iger said.
“We were not perceived to be as accessible or as affordable to many segments as we probably should have been. So, after basically paying heed to what we were hearing, we started to address it.”
The CEO also highlighted the success of Avatar: The Way of Water, now the fourth biggest film of all time, with $2.2 billion generated at the box office. Disney is now planning to bring an Avatar experience to Disneyland.
Iger also announced new sequels for Toy Story, Frozen, and Zootopia.
The company paused its dividend in the spring of 2020 but said it “intend[s] to ask the Board to approve the reinstatement of a dividend by the end of the calendar year.”
Former longtime Nike CEO Mark Parker is also set to become Disney’s new chairman following its annual meeting.