This is less a story about travel as it is about the parent company of one of the great travel destinations in the world, how it somehow is thriving in a pandemic, and will likely return those great travel destinations to prominence in a post-COVID environment.
Decades ago, when The Walt Disney Co. realized it could be much more than just a cartoon-movie-making, theme-park-going business, it made a decision that was widely scrutinized, if not outright questioned.
It would become a global content machine, and it did so by buying up properties - ESPN, ABC, 21st Century Fox, Lifetime, A&E, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, and Pixar, among others.
It wasn't exactly in the manner that Walt Disney himself would have chosen, hence some of the criticism. Walt famously once said that "I don't make films to make money; I make money to make films." So he probably would have been less enthused about acquiring content than in creating it.
But he surely would have been happy about this. The Walt Disney Co., despite losing almost $7 billion just from its theme parks alone this year, not to mention far more from having to delay the openings of several highly anticipated movies watched as the stock hit its all-time price high of $179 a share on Dec. 11 before closing at $175.72.
That's the risk - and the reward - of diversifying the company.
The stock was up largely on the success of Disney+, the company's streaming service that now has 88 million subscribers as of Dec. 2. Two words: Mandalorian and Baby Yoda. Nice cushion to have, no?
And it only bodes well for the future. With the coronavirus vaccines being rolled out this week, there is hope that a year from now, we're talking about the pandemic in the past tense and Disney can get back to its signature brands. Because right now, they just aren't the same. Nothing is the same anywhere. Disney World reopened in July but is still only operating at 35 percent capacity. Disneyland is still closed. Disneyland Paris has reclosed. Disneyland Hong Kong closed for the third time this year.
In addition, in the coming years, Disney is expected to roll out new Disney+ series based on characters from Marvel and Star Wars, among other initiatives.
Can Disney continue to operate under this model? Well, let's just say that while it isn't the greatest modus operandi every year - it sure doesn't hurt.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
