Yesterday, Disney announced it’s biggest movie blockbuster: the acquisiton of Pixar, the electronic animation firm responsible for giant hits like Toy Story and Finding Nemo. A nice summary of some of the commentary and background on this deal is posted on the Disney Blog. The acquisition of Pixar is potentially good for both firms. Pixar has been Disney’s partner and, of late, has been more successful than Disney’s own animation effort. Bringing Pixar into Disney both insures against the loss of Pixar to a rival and invigorates the animation environment at Disney. For Pixar staff, beyond the financial benefits for those with shares or options, the move to Disney should open up new creative opportunities in Disney’s larger and more diverse operation.
Steve Jobs also gets a seat on Disney’s board. This SHOULD be a big positive for Disney. Jobs understands new media, and brings creativity and vision to the Disney board. I’m not sure I’d want to work for Jobs, but I’d love to have him available for advice and insight.
There’s only once concern in my mind - could Jobs turn into a 2006 version of Ross Perot? When Perot’s firm, EDS, was acquired by General Motors, he became their biggest shareholder and took a seat on the firm’s board. At the time, there was some hope that his entrepreneurial spirit, maverick personality, and plain-speaking style would bring new life to the stodgy automaker. Does this sound eerily similar to Jobs and Disney?
As it turned out, one person’s maverick entrepreneur is another person’s loose cannon on the corporate deck. Perot was never particularly welcomed, nor did he seek to find common ground with his fellow directors. Ultimately, GM bought Perot out at significant expense in order to make him go away. Could Jobs go down the same path? Certainly, there are similarities. Jobs is entrepreneurial and has an ample ego; he’ll be a giant shareholder at Disney, and may not want to compromise with corporate drones.
Still, the Disney/Pixar cultures aren’t nearly as disparate as GM and EDS, and Jobs is not Ross Perot. If Disney’s Bob Iger can help Jobs find a role on Disney’s board that takes advantage of Job’s brain without Jobs wanting to run the show himself, there’s a good chance for this corporate marriage to last well past its honeymoon.
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[…] In an earlier post, I speculated that Steve Jobs joining the Disney board of directors had a few parallels to Ross Perot’s time at General Motors. Both joined the board of a much larger firm as big shareholders following the acquisition of their company. Both have a strong maverick streak, and neither has been reticent to say exactly what he thinks. Perot, of course, was eventually bought out by GM when he became too much of an irritant. Now, a new BusinessWeek article, Steve Jobs’ Magic Kingdom, suggests another alternative: rather than getting rejected like a xeno-transplant, there’s some chance that Jobs could end up as Head Mousketeer. While not considering it highly probable, BusinessWeek suggests that Jobs could, eventually, take over as chairman or even CEO. They point to his assurances that he didn’t want CEO Gil Amelio’s job at Apple not long before he took over as CEO. […]
Pingback by » Steve Jobs vs. Ross Perot Revisited - rogerd’s notebook 02.10.06 @ 9:19 pmLeave a comment
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Very interesting comment…
Comment by Dany 01.27.06 @ 12:12 pmI would give Jobs the benefit of doubt considering the fact that as CEO of Pixar he wan’t really involved in the nitty gritty, but rather a hands off approach. If that is any precedent, the conflict may not be much. Considering the way Apple is betting on the future of digital entertainment its in the best interest of both Apple and Disney to work together…