Round-Up on Disney and the Coronavirus

by Ray Keating

News

DisneyBizJournal.com

March 4, 2020

The coronavirus has dominated much of the news, and Disney certainly has not gone untouched. Here are a few points and reports worth taking note of and keeping in mind.

1. Disney’s U.S. Theme Parks. The only official word that seems to have emerged so far from The Walt Disney Company regarding its U.S. theme parks and the coronavirus was noted by People.com. The site reported a Disney spokesman saying: 

“We have very stringent sanitation procedures in place at Walt Disney World Resort. We are in close contact with health agencies for information and guidance, and at this time, we are continuing to communicate to our Cast the importance of preventative measures such as frequent handwashing and rigorous cleaning processes. For guest convenience, we have placed additional hand sanitizers throughout our parks and resorts and will adjust our protocols as the situation warrants.”

2. Cancellation of Disney+ Launch Event for Europe. Disney cancelled its March 5 London event launching Disney+ in Europe. According to The Hollywood Reporter: “Disney's streaming platform was due to herald its expansion across select European territories March 24 with an event Thursday [March 5] evening followed by a press conference and panel discussions Friday morning, with journalists from across the continent invited to London to take part.”

Disney+ will still launch on March 24 in the U.K., Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria, and Switzerland.

3. The Mulan Opening. In its report noting that the James Bond Film No Time to Die will see its release date pushed back to November given coronavirus concerns, Variety also pointed out: 

This month brings the debut of Disney’s “Mulan,” an adventure film that had been designed to appeal to Asian audiences. A Disney spokesperson confirmed that the release date for “Mulan” in the U.S. remains unchanged, but the film will debut in certain foreign markets at a later date.

4. Disney Stock Price. Finally, The Motley Fool ran a piece that looks beyond the current coronavirus woes, and identifies reasons as to why Disney’s stock price likely has bottomed, and ranks as a buying opportunity. First, the author believes that a successful European launch for Disney+ could see Disney reaching the low end of its 2024 goal of 60 million to 90 million subscribers by the end of this year! Second, he sees speculation around the Iger retirement story as being overblown. And third was a simple reminder that the coronavirus story is a temporary one for the company, and that Disney “owns a diverse array of businesses, and its portfolio of brands is unrivaled in entertainment. It will overcome the coronavirus, and when it does, the stock will almost certainly be higher than it is today.” 

Ray Keating is the editor, publisher and economist for DisneyBizJournal.com, and author of The Disney Planner 2020: The TO DO List Solution and the Pastor Stephen Grant novels. He can be contacted at  raykeating@keatingreports.com.