Mini$-$case study

Disney

Few companies have been able to connect with their audience as well as Disney has. Since its founding in $1923,$ the Disney brand has been synonymous with quality entertainment for the entire family. The company, originally founded by brothers Walt and Roy Disney, stretched the boundaries of entertainment during the $20$th century to bring classic and memorable family entertainment around the world. Walt Disney once stated, $$I am interested in entertaining people, in bringing pleasure, particularly laughter, to others, rather than being concerned with $$expressing$$ myself with obscure creative impressions.$$ Beginning with simple black$-$and$-$white animated cartoons, the company grew into the worldwide phenomenon that today includes theme parks, feature films, television networks, theatre productions, consumer products, and a growing online presence.

In its first two decades, Walt Disney Productions was a struggling cartoon studio that introduced its most famous character, Mickey Mouse, to the world. Few believed in Disney$$s vision at the time, but the smashing success of cartoons with sound and the first$-$ever full$-$length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, in $1937,$ led to other animated classics throughout the $1940$s$,1950$s$,$ and $1960$s$,$ including Pinocchio, Bambi, Cinderella, and Peter Pan, live action films such as Mary Poppins and The Love Bug, and television series like Davy Crockett.

When Walt Disney died in $1966,$ he was considered the best$-$known person in the world. Walt had expanded the Disney brand into film, television, consumer products, and Disneyland in southern California$$its first theme park, where families could experience the magic of Disney in real life. After Walt$$s death, Roy Disney took over as CEO and realized his brother$$s dream of opening the $24,000-$acre Walt Disney World theme park in Florida. Roy died in $1971,$ but the two brothers left behind a brand that stood for trust, fun, and entertainment and resonated with children, families, and adults, and some of the most moving and iconic characters, stories, and memories of all time.

The Walt Disney Company stumbled for several years without the leadership of its two founding brothers. It wasn$$t until the late $1980$s that the company reconnected with its audience and restored trust and interest in the Disney brand. It all started with the release of The Little Mermaid, which turned an old fairy tale into a magical animated Broadway$-$style movie that won two Oscars. Between the late $1980$s and $2000,$ Disney entered an era known as the Disney Renaissance, as it released ground$-$breaking animated films such as Beauty and the Beast $(1991),$ Aladdin $(1992),$ The Lion King $(1994),$ Toy Story $($with Pixar, $1995),$ and Mulan $(1998).$ In addition, the company thought of creative new ways to target its core family$-$oriented consumers and expand into areas that would reach an older audience. Disney launched the Disney Channel, Touchstone Pictures, and Touchstone Television. The company made its classic films available on The Disney Sunday Night Movie and sold them on video at extremely low prices, reaching a whole new generation of children. Disney tapped into publishing, international theme parks, and theatrical productions that helped reach a variety of audiences around the world.

Today, Disney comprises four business units: $(1)$ Media Networks encompasses a vast array of broadcast, cable, radio, publishing, and digital businesses across two divisions$$the Disney$/$ABC Television Group and ESPN Inc. $(2)$ Parks, Experiences and Consumer Products brings Disney$$s stories, characters, and franchises to life through parks and resorts, toys, apps, apparel, books, and stores. $(3)$ Studio Entertainment brings movies, music, and stage plays to consumers around the world through the company's core business unit, The Walt Disney Studios, along with Marvel Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, and LucasFilm. $(4)$ The Direct$-$To$-$Consumer & International division includes digital subscription streaming services and international holdings.

Disney$$s greatest challenge today is keeping its $90-$year$-$old brand relevant and current, while retaining its core audience and staying true to its heritage and fundamental brand values. Disney$$s CEO Bob Iger explained, $$As a brand that people seek out and trust, it opens doors to new platforms and markets, and hence to new consumers. When you deal with a company that has a great legacy, you deal with decisions and conflicts that arise from the clash of heritage versus innovation versus relevance. I$$m a big believer in respect for heritage, but I$$m also a big believer in the need to innovate and the need to balance that respect for heritage with a need to be relevant.$$

Internally, Disney has focused on the value$-$creation dynamic that sets it apart from its competitors. The Disney Difference, based on high standards of quality and recognition, stems from one of Walt Disney$$s most recognizable quotations: $$Whatever you