Analytic Dreamz: Notorious Mass Effect - "DISNEY CEO BOB IGER'S SALARY JUMPS TO $41M AS WORKERS FACE LAYOFFS"

Episode Date: March 3, 2025

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/AnalyticIn this Notorious Mass Effect segment, Analytic Dreamz dives into Disney CEO Bob Iger’s 2024 pay increase amid widespread layoffs. Key highlights include mass staff cuts at Disney and ESPN, with high-profile ESPN talents like Sam Ponder and Jeff Van Gundy let go, alongside 300 corporate staffers. Disney targets $7.5 billion in savings, yet Iger’s compensation rises 30% to $41.1 million, featuring $18.25 million in stock awards and $523,685 in air travel perks. Analytic Dreamz explores the controversy, public perception, and corporate pay debates in the entertainment industry.Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

You don't need me to tell you that Disney versus the consumers has been ongoing for quite some time now, as not only did they lay off an estimated amount of 7,000 jobs since 2023, but to add on to that, Bob Iger's 2024 compensation was set to be 41.1 million, which is a 30% increase. from the 31.6 million in 2023. So you're laying off a ton of employees while the CEO is getting a raise. Ladies and gentlemen, not to sound like childish Gambino, but this is unequivocally America. So that being said, y'all probably are wondering, what in the world does this have to do with gaming?

Well, I'm glad you asked, as laying off this many people will ultimately shrink Disney's creation. Disney's creative pool, right? But the main thing to know is that when it comes to gaming staff and all these other high profile talents like Sam Ponder, Robert Griffin III, Zach Lowe getting laid off because of budget constraints, it will lead to less creativity overall because now you have less people under the payroll because when it comes to the marketing strategy, it also adds on to that as licensing over innovation is what they're pivoting towards when it comes to prioritizing licensing deals such as Star Wars Jedi with EA over in-house gaming limiting a lot of different IPs under Disney like primarily not the ones that they've acquired the Star Wars Marvels the one that

they own is very limiting for those franchises to get some any type of titles announced for those particular characters. So now when you're focusing on Star Wars and Marvel, it's very poor optics to lay off this many people while your CEO is getting a raise. Because when it comes to Layoffs versus Iger's 523,000 air travel perk, that obviously hurt the fan support for games like Marvel's Avengers and boosting competitors. Because when you look at brand backlash, when you look at the optics of your CEO getting a raise while 7,000 people are getting laid off, it's probably not as positive as you would think as far as the masses, right? So when you're getting into overall public perception,

that's the main thing I want to get across because this is inevitably going to hurt the gaming industry. Disney insists that IGRA's pay increase is unrelated to layoffs, even though it came right after the layoffs. But, you know, that's a discussion for another day. So when talking about Disney, we have to get into the IPs that they own and now currently making or generating revenue for them. So I would say that Marvel rivals is, of course, under the Disney umbrella because Disney owns Marvel. Marvel license the IP to net ease to make a mobile game out of and now is one of the more popular games in the world.

So now when we're about to transition from. from Bob Iger getting a pay increase due to the fact that they lay off so many people. And if you don't know, from a totality standpoint, Disney was trying to cut 7.5 billion in expenses. But Bob Iger's compensation wasn't impacted in the slightest. So very interesting just to point out for the message so you know what's going on behind the as far as these smoking mirrors they try to play in front of your face and act like, oh, it's not because of the layoffs. It's not like we just cut $7.3 billion in expenses and it gave a raise to a CEO that has no correlation, right? So now, after listening to the segment, if they ever say something like that, you automatically know that they're lying.

They're lying right to your face. So it's very disrespectful if you ask me. Anyways, Disney, along with prioritizing. licensing deals like Star Wars Jedi with EA that makes me believe that when ever the third edition of Cal Kestis storyline happens it would have to be in-game level storyline because of them going all in not on only him but you know of course other Star Wars adaptions but calcesteads specifically I think is one of the best creations that they've made Star Wars wise in the past two to three years, right? So now you have to put a lot of emphasis on that. Of course, you have the

Mandalorian. I don't know how currently, I don't know how that show is doing from the first season. People's acting like it was the greatest thing since Life Spread. But ever since then, I ain't really heard too much about it. But of course, with Cal Kess's storyline, you've been hearing it time and time again to the point where when the third iteration comes out, people are automatically assuming that once they're done with that storyline, he's going to pop up in live action. I think that's a very strategic move on Disney's part if they end up going that route. But of course, we never know. They may end up cutting Calcasters actor himself, right, because of all these layoffs.

So if you don't know, it's more of an industry trend just to, I don't want to put all the blame on Disney. It's definitely industry trend. A lot of these industry are cutting layoffs, no, are cutting off employees to save more money, basically, because Microsoft had around 1900 cuts. And this whole deal is basically just normalizing the way that the American industry works. As far as the corporate industry and them cutting you whenever they see fit, this is how it happens. They cut you and the CEOs get erased, which is why when it comes to the overall landscape, a lot of people don't have positive perceptions when it comes to these CEOs in a million-dollar,

salaries that stay untouched while the working class citizen living check to check is getting cut like they don't even matter right so um to if you want to break down bob iger's full compensation right because i think that's i love pocket watch it and this is like one of my favorite things to do as far as figuring out who is making what right bob iger was making 31.6 million dollars in 2023 and they've received a 30% increase going to 41.1 million of course in 2024 and when you think about it we have the whole entire breakdown of a salary so the base salary is one million which has been unchanged right his stock awards are 18.25 million stock options he has 12 million and of course the incentive plan compensation is 7.22 million and then the

the pension and deferred earnings are 495,000 and of course other compensations are in likes of 2.15 million including personal air travel which is 523,000 and then security costs which is 1.4 million so safe to say that they are taking care of who they want to take care of and laying off who they believe have no more value to give to the company which is just a shame in the broader landscape of things because of how the world currently is with people living check to check while the prices of eggs and things that nature is rising. So even with the aim to cut to cut 7.5 billion in expenses and not even impacting CEO Bob Iger's compensation, I think that's the main thing to point out. And in the gaming industry, it will just lead to less of a creative pool when you come to. to a totality of people trying to come up with what game they think the masses will like from Disney.

So overall, that's how I believe it will affect the gaming industry, but I wonder what y'all think about it. So click my link, sure in my bio, let me know in one of my social medias. What do you think about Disney cutting off over 7,000 employees while Bob Eiger received an increase in pay?