Disney’s Bob Iger Reveals “Cordial” And “Constructive” Talks Have Started With Comcast About Buying Out Its Hulu Stake
deadline.comDisney CEO Bob Iger has changed strategic course on Hulu, revealing that “cordial” and “constructive” discussions have started with Comcast about Disney acquiring its one-third stake in the streaming service. “I mentioned on the first earnings call that I did [in February] when I came back that everything was on the table, and in fact everything was on the table,” Iger said on the company’s fiscal second quarter earnings call. “I’ve now had another three months to really study this carefully and figure out what is the best path for us to grow this business.” He added a caveat. “It has not yet been fully determined what’s going to happen,” Iger cautioned.
But he described undergoing a significant evolution in his thinking about the matter, after he made comments earlier this year pouring cold water on the viability of general entertainment streaming.
The deadline is less than a year away for a put/call option on Comcast’s stake, whose value has been set at a minimum of $9 billion.
While spending such a hefty sum isn’t a casual matter as the company works to whittle down costs, Disney would be wise to pair general entertainment from Hulu with Disney+ fare from tentpole brands like Marvel and Pixar, Iger believes.
Read more on deadline.com