Walt Disney Co

Walt Disney Co., looking to rein in costs at its Hollywood studio as it focuses on mainstream movies, is slashing staff by 70% at its Miramax Films specialty label and is substantially reducing the number of pictures it releases. The retrenchment, which has been foreshadowed in Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger's strategy to emphasize family and "branded" films, comes quickly on the heels of the recent ouster of former Disney Studios Chairman Dick Cook. The former movie chief left abruptly last month under pressure from Iger, who had been unhappy with the studio's direction and performance.

Disney unveiled plans today for the largest expansion in the history of the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, provided updates on its $1-billion expansion of Disney's California Adventure and said it would modernize the popular Star Tours ride at its domestic parks. Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Chairman Jay Rasulo chose the D23 Expo in Anaheim, the first-ever gathering of Disney devotees, to announce the ambitious new project in Orlando, Fla., that will nearly double the size of Fantasyland.

Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Bob Iger must act quickly to replace studio head Dick Cook to avoid further destabilizing the Burbank-based movie operation. Cook's abrupt departure Friday is upsetting employees, many of whom are finding it difficult to focus on work because they are anxious about their future. In addition, stars and filmmakers do not like to face uncertainty and want assurances that their projects will remain on track. Iger is not tipping his hand about whom he will name to fill the job. One executive that's a subject of speculation is Disney Channel President Rich Ross.

Walt Disney Co. reported Friday that Chief Executive Robert Iger was awarded total compensation of $30.6 million last year, up 11% from 2007. Steve Jobs, Disney's biggest shareholder, is up for reelection to the board, the Burbank-based media company said in a regulatory filing. Jobs announced this week he's taking a medical leave from Apple Inc. for the first half of this year. Iger's salary was unchanged at $2 million. Net income at Disney, the second-largest U.S. media company, fell 5.

Walt Disney Co., looking to bolster its movie operation, is close to making a distribution pact with Steven Spielberg's new DreamWorks studio. The surprise development comes after DreamWorks and Universal Studios failed to reach final terms on a distribution agreement announced in October. Despite months of negotiations in the home stretch, Universal was unwilling to grant DreamWorks and its partner, India's Reliance Entertainment, all the cash and concessions they demanded.

It's a smaller world after all at Disney's theme parks. Grappling with the deepening recession, Walt Disney Co. announced plans Wednesday to shake up its parks and resorts operation, setting the stage for job cuts in the coming weeks. Under the new structure, the behind-the-scenes operations of Anaheim's Disneyland and Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., will be consolidated into a single unit, led by Worldwide Operations President Al Weiss.

A group of Walt Disney Co. shareholders wants a say on the wages and benefits paid to the company's executives. The proposal would give Disney investors a nonbinding, advisory vote on the pay packages given to Chief Executive Bob Iger and other top executives. The measure reflects growing investor ire over generous executive compensation.

Walt Disney Co., seeking to broaden the audience for its broadcast and cable shows on the Internet's most popular video site, struck a deal Monday with Google Inc.'s YouTube to distribute short-form content from ESPN and ABC. The agreement would extend the Internet reach for ESPN's sports highlights and ABC News updates and provide another outlet for video snippets taken from the ABC broadcast network and ABC Family cable channel shows.

Walt Disney Co. reported a 46% drop in net income for its second quarter, blaming disappointing results from its movie studio and a weak global economy, which took a toll on the entertainment giant's tourism-dependent theme park and advertising-reliant broadcast television businesses. Disney shares nonetheless jumped 4% in after-hours trading on the news, which beat Wall Street's more pessimistic forecasts.

At Creative Artists Agency's recent corporate retreat in Ojai, Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Bob Iger was invited to expound on the future of the entertainment business and field questions about the media giant. He talked about Disney's decision to make fewer movies. He talked about the acquisition of Pixar Animation, producer of the soon-to-be-released "Up." He talked about the studio's new deal to distribute films from director Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks SKG.