The Daily News reports that ratings for Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) Hannah Montana program are down 24% since Mileygate broke last week. Last Sunday's new episode's ratings fell 24% from the previous fresh episode, which aired just under two months earlier. And ratings are down 33% since the first episode in January.
Disney thinks everything's fine with Miley. The Daily News quotes CEO Bob Iger as saying: "With a new season of shows coming up, a new record in July and a theatrical film next year, the 'Hannah Montana'/Miley Cyrus franchise is incredibly robust." But kid franchises such as "Hannah" that peak at very high levels are good for roughly 18 months, then start to fade.
Will this have any effect on the $1 billion business that is Miley Cyrus? It depends on whether she can find a new -- older -- audience and deliver what it wants as effectively as she did for the 10 to 14 set. If Mileygate helps her do that then her business will be fine.
Tomorrow afternoon Walt Disney Co.(NYSE: DIS) will be answering Wall Street's questions about the strength of its US amusement parks when it reports its second quarter earnings.
The last time that Disney reported earnings was February 5, when the company topped analysts' estimates of 52 cents per share by a whopping 11 cents.
This time, analysts expect earnings of 51 cents a share on sales of $8.51 billion, compared with 43 cents and revenue of $8.07 billion a year earlier. Sales are expected to decline year-over-year as a result of the weak market conditions hurting Disney's theme parks, particularly its Walt Disney World in Florida.
I may turn out wrong about this, but I think Disney (NYSE: DIS) is making a mistake by working on a contemporary version of The Lone Ranger. According to The Hollywood Reporter, this is an upcoming project for producer Jerry Bruckheimer and the screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio. Recognize the names? Yeah, they're from the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
Oh, man, as soon as I saw this headline, I immediately screamed inside my head -- I mean, what the heck are execs at Disney thinking?! I am so glad that even the Reporter article seemed to subtly question the worthiness of this idea, calling some of the elements of The Lone Ranger character possibly "musty to today's audiences." That's exactly what I was thinking! Look -- I know Bruckheimer and the gang are going to make sure this is all action-oriented and that it will have quick cuts and be fast and all of that great cinematic stuff, but, seriously -- The Lone Ranger? You're remaking The Old -- sorry -- Lone Ranger? No, as a Disney shareholder, this doesn't work for me. But here's a big suggestion -- make the storyline supernatural! Have the Lone Ranger chase a group of undead bandits or something. And by the way, please -- I didn't see any mention in the article of who will portray The Lone Ranger, so I'm assuming he hasn't been cast yet, so let me just say that you shouldn't give in to temptation and cast Johnny Depp in the role. That guy will be way too expensive.
This just isn't a strong concept to me. The Lone Ranger is a very ancient brand -- no offense intended, of course, it's just that, again, as a shareholder, I want the studio division to have the best possible chance of making a lot of money. This does not represent the best possible chance, and I don't think this remake will be as successful as Pirates. Disney should leave this one to the competition -- let Time Warner (NYSE: TWX), Viacom (NYSE: VIA), Sony (NYSE: SNE), or News Corp. (NYSE: NWS) roll this particular pair of dice.
I just read something that kind of shocked me as a Disney (NYSE: DIS) shareholder. In a sense, I almost don't believe the news. It looks like Disney might be re-exposing itself to the retail business in North America.
Remember, it wasn't so long ago that the Mouse decided to exit retail because of difficulties in that part of its consumer-products business -- it had given up its Disney Store operations to Children's Place (Nasdaq: PLCE).
Now, however, Children's Place is having difficulties of its own, and it has decided to enter into negotiations to hand the Disney Stores back to its original owner. According to this article from yesterday, Disney could theoretically take back two-thirds of the current Disney Store portfolio. Children's Place, as one might expect, was up significantly on the news.
Without a doubt, I don't want to see Disney back in this retail business. I have too many memories in terms of challenges at the chain. There was a time when stores such as these were strong -- remember Time Warner's (NYSE: TWX) popular-but-now-just-a-memory retail brand? -- but those times seem to have passed for now, at least.
I think Disney should concentrate on higher-margin licensing operations and leave the game of sales-per-square foot to others. Of course, I do understand that Disney might be thinking that it is in its interest not to let the chain just disappear. That might be a bit of a black eye on the corporate face of the Mouse, but I just don't believe that salvaging the retail chain should be part of Disney's long-term strategic goals at the moment.
With the recession upon us, consumers' wallets are already distracted enough. Disney is doing well right now with its various business segments, but diverting any focus to even two-thirds of the Disney Store locations is two-thirds too many.
Disclosure: I own shares of Disney; positions can change at any time.
Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) held its annual shareholder meeting last Thursday, and a couple interesting things were discussed, according to a Hollywood Reporter piece.
Apparently, a mutual fund manager challenged management regarding a controversial miniseries called The Path to 9/11, claiming that Disney has decided not to exploit the project on home video because of political considerations. I vaguely remember this miniseries, but it seems to have been critical of President Bill Clinton, and since his wife is running right now, well, maybe the decision was based on not interfering with whatever momentum she may (or may not) have. The mutual fund guy said CEO Bob Iger has been a donor of Clinton (as one can imagine, Iger denies that politics are involved here).
I am really not sure if this guy has a legitimate point or not, or what his bias is, but let me say this -- if the miniseries did really cost $40 million, then it should be out on DVD, period. Shareholders should be angry about that. Content is king, new distribution platforms are the kingdom, and if this miniseries is controversial, then it might bring in a little bit of cash to the Mouse's coffers. Now, I obviously realize that not releasing the miniseries isn't going to break Disney -- but I do want the company to aggressively exploit any and all content, especially one that cost $40 million to generate.
Anyone who follows Disney (NYSE: DIS) knows that the media conglomerate is serious about videogames -- it should be, considering that consoles from Nintendo (OTC: NTDOY), Sony (NYSE: SNE), and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) are currently cooking in the industry's new cycle. The company has been increasing its investments in this area, and it will continue to do so; making games for Nintendo's DS hand-held system, as well as other platforms, has become a priority. But Disney is also serious about the synthesis of virtual worlds -- you know, the kind of online gaming platforms that can suck a person's life away due to their addictive, immersive scope.
Well, the powers that be at the Mouse have decided that a dedicated team of professionals is needed to ensure a proper presence in the virtual-world space. According to a press release, Disney has created Disney Online Studios for the express purpose of programming new online entertainment platforms. It seems that the company wants to leverage the promise of social networking -- hope you're not too sick of that buzz phrase -- by creating worlds that allow gamers to interact with each other via community tools in addition to playing around in he worlds themselves. Right now, Disney operates Toontown, and it plans on developing immersive online environments for the company's Fairies and Cars franchises. Pirates of the Caribbean has also been given the online treatment; and let's not forget the acquisition of the popular Club Penguin destination.
The Wall Street Journal reported that analysts are looking to assess the significance of a new accounting problem at American International Group Inc (NYSE: AIG) which includes "material weakness" the company's auditor found that relates to subprime exposure.
China Mobile Limited (NYSE: CHL) is expected to announce its support today for Long Term Evolution, a wireless broadband standard gaining strong momentum as the next-generation wireless technology for providing super-fast web surfing on cellular phones, the Financial Times reported.
OTHER PAPERS:
According to the Associated Press, Petroleos de Venezuela SA said it has stopped selling crude oil to Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM). The decision, made "as an act of reciprocity" for Exxon's "judicial-economic harassment," will also include the suspension of commercial relations with the U.S. company.
WEB SITES:
Reuters reported that The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) signed a deal to buy 20% of Net TV, a digital television company controlled by Spanish media company Vocento.
Viacom's (NYSE: VIA) Paramount studios had a pretty kickin' year at the multiplex in 2007. According to Boxofficemojo.com, Paramount came out on top in terms of market share at 15.5%. It distributed some great hits -- Transformers, the DreamWorks Animation (NYSE: DWA) films Shrek the Third and Bee Movie, Will Ferrel's Blades of Glory comedy, and Eddie Murphy's Norbit. Viacom's movie business seems to be doing better. According to the latest 10Q for the reporting period ending September 30, 2007, operating income for the filmed-entertainment segment was $71.7 million versus a loss of nearly $8 million in the previous year's comparable quarter (the nine-month period still showed a loss). So, Paramount needs to keep the momentum going this year. How will it top the power of last summer's blockbuster Transformers? With a little swashbuckling help from Indiana Jones, of course!
To get things started, the media company sent out a press release alerting fans of fast-paced adventure that the first teaser trailer for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skullwill be released on February 14 during ABC's Good Morning America program and in theaters across the globe. For those of us who've been waiting with a will of patience that was oftentimes as excruciating and as taxing as sitting through yet another news item about Britney Spears' latest mental breakdown, this is one heck of a Valentine, although I do hate teaser trailers (they are, after all, such a tease!).
Will the new Indy flick be a big hit this summer? I think it will be, although it isn't an absolute given, since a lot of the younger demos probably find the Raiders aesthetic a bit antiquated these days; plus, there will be stiff competition from Disney's (NYSE: DIS) new Pixar cartoon Wall-E, Time Warner's (NYSE: TWX) The Dark Knight, and Marvel's (NYSE: MVL) Incredible Hulk project. Still, we're talking about George Lucas and Steven Spielberg here, and they still retain a lot of cultural pull with all demographics. Viacom and Paramount will probably be happy with the results from Crystal Skull come the summer , although I think it's safe to assume that Lucas and Spielberg will be taking a large portion of the grosses. Nevertheless, Viacom is in on the action, and I'm sure it wouldn't want it any other way.
So isn't this ironic... a property on the grounds of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS)'s Disney World (reportedly the happiest place ON EARTH) is putting the kibosh on kids. To kick off the new year, the Victoria & Albert's restaurant on the grounds of the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa in Disney World is instituting a ban on customers under 10 (no word on whether Peter Pan fits into the ban).
Victoria & Albert's, which has a prix fixe menu staring at $90 (per person) is the only Disney restaurant with a AAA five-diamond rating. Jackets are required for men and women must wear dresses or pant suits. The restaurant's general manager, Israel Perez, was quoted on the AP wire as asserting "We want to be the restaurant that's available for that adult experience." Prior to the ban, only about three families a month dared to bring young children into the restaurant.
Exactly. Most families with small children wouldn't want to pay $90 per head for a dinner that the children would potentially shove around their plates. A five-diamond restaurant with a prix fixe menu isn't the ideal environment for kids, and parents know that -- Disney World should have a little faith in its visitors! As for providing the "adult experience," while Disney has billed itself for years as an ideal honeymoon destination or "adult vacation" escape, anyone who goes to Orlando to spend time with Mickey and friends recognizes that he or she is, after all, in Disney World. If you're not a fan of kids, you go somewhere else (speaking from experience).
As for Disney, the stock, along with the rest of the market, has been in a slump of late. In today's regular trading, the shares sank 2% and put in a new annual low.
Microsoft (NSADAQ: MSFT) has cut deals [subscription required] with NBC, CBS (NYSE: CBS), Disney (NYSE: DIS) and a number of other media companies to use their video content on its Xbox Live and MSN services.
According to The Wall Street Journal, "under the agreements, Disney, MGM and Showtime will contribute programming to Xbox Live, an online service with about 10 million subscribers that is primarily used for playing videogames."
Microsoft may be getting a great deal of content, but the question remains whether people would want to watch content through a video game platform, no matter what other features it has. At this point, the American living room is wired with satellite and cable VOD, DVRs, video game platforms and set-top boxes from companies like Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN). All of this clutter means that no one company is likely to be able to stand out as a core provider of entertainment services.
It is a good thing that the Xbox can be used for playing Halo 3. It is not likely, however, to become a core video viewing device. The consumer won't be able to find it in the pile of other devices.
Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.
The sequel to the 2004 blockbuster, National Treasure, National Treasure: Book of Secrets had a monster weekend, with $45.5 million in sales. Nicolas Cage is once again the leading man in this movie, and in this thriller, Cage's character, Ben Gates, is in a struggle to clear the name of an ancestor that has been implicated in the murder of Abraham Lincoln's assassination.
If the first installment of this series is any indication, Disney could be seeing some pretty big numbers from this movie before it is all said and done. When National Treasure debuted in 2004 the movie raked in $35.1 million and ended up with a total of $173 million at the box office.
Tomorrow afternoon 
Anyone who follows .gif){kind=logo}
Oil hits record $127.43 on supply concerns, raised Goldman forecast
Icahn's 'shock and awe' on Yahoo -- a gutsy play
Housing starts surprisingly rise in April on apartment construction
