Is Apple Gearing Up to Buy Disney? Why Rumors Surrounding the 2 Companies Are Starting to Swirl
It’s hard to tamp down corporate rumors once they get started. Boardrooms can become a hotbed for gossip, and if that loose talk filters down to a reporter, all bets are off. The entertainment world has come alive with gossip this week, as both Apple and Disney unveiled quarterly earnings reports that showed two companies moving in different directions.
Disney’s earnings from the past quarter showed that it had lost 11.7 million streaming customers, mostly due to its decision to give up streaming rights to Indian Premier League Cricket on Disney+ Hotstar in India. Apple does not report subscriber numbers publicly, but recent reports indicate that its soccer streaming service MLS Season Pass had doubled its subscriber count since Lionel Messi joined the league in July. Disney’s struggles to pivot to a streaming-forward media strategy caused CEO Bob Iger to be asked about the potential for his company to be acquired by a tech giant like Apple during the company’s conference call to discuss its earnings report with Wall Street analysts.
“I just am not going to speculate about the potential for Disney to be acquired by any company, whether a technology company or not,” Iger declared. “Obviously, anyone who want to speculate about these things would have to immediately consider the global regulatory environment. I’ll say no more than that. It’s just — it’s not something that we obsess about.”
Indeed, the acquisition of a company with its arms in as many different business segments as Disney would create significant regulatory hurdles. But outside of that non-denial by Iger, there are compelling reasons why an acquisition of Disney by Apple could make a lot of sense.
For one, Apple would instantly get access to the wide world of sports available on ESPN. Apple is looking to build its sports streaming portfolio; it already has the aforementioned MLS Season Pass, and the rights to stream every MLS match for the next decade. It was reportedly the leader to acquire the Pac-12's rights before Oregon and Washington departed the conference, though that deal might be dead considering the Pac-12 has been reduced to just four teams for the 2024 season and beyond. Apple wants international reach with its sports streaming deals, which is something ESPN can obviously provide.
Disney is clearly looking to offload parts of its company, as the company has declared that it looks on streaming to be its future in TV. Iger has signaled a willingness to sell of linear channels like ABC and Disney Channel, or even ESPN itself if it can’t find a strategic partner to help it cover the costs of creating a streaming version of that channel.
But that search is precisely why audiences shouldn’t expect a sale of Disney to Apple at any point in the near future. Iger seems to believe wholeheartedly in the goal of launching a streaming-only version of ESPN that doesn’t require a cable or satellite subscription, and he clearly wants to try everything he can to make Disney a successful streaming company, as evidenced by a newly-announced round of price increases for Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+.
What’s more likely is a partnership between Apple and Disney, possibly one that includes minority ownership in ESPN by the iPhone manufacturer. The two companies have reportedly had initial discussions about such a relationship, as Apple could help Disney boost distribution for a streaming ESPN product to a global scale. A deal along those lines could be similar to the arrangement the companies struck earlier this year that will see Disney+ integrated with every Apple augmented reality headset when they roll out sometime in 2023.
An acquisition of Disney by Apple isn’t impossible, and it would be of great benefit to the tech company if it were to happen. But it’s probably still a ways off if such a merger is in the future at all, as Disney wants to try everything it can to reach streaming success on its own before selling itself.
Disney+
Disney+ is a video streaming service with over 13,000 series and films from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, The Muppets, and more. It is available in 61 countries and 21 languages. It is notable for its popular original series like “The Mandalorian,” “Ms. Marvel,” “Loki,” “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” and “Andor.”