Is Disney Becoming Too Powerful?

It’s a good question to consider: Is Disney becoming “too powerful” or do you believe they are just another company “trying to make money?”

With the creation of Disney+, there is no secret that Disney is everywhere. You can’t hide from them, even if you tried. If you spend a few moments online, the growth of their own global empire is impossible to overlook:

• First, they took over ABC (1995)
• Then, ESPN (1996)
• Pixar (2006) 
• Marvel (2009) 
• LucasFilm (2012) 
• 21st Century Fox (2018)
• And, now they have full power over Hulu (2019).

Does this mean that Disney can qualify as being a full-fledged monopoly?

After buying these companies, Disney is clearly becoming the most powerful movie studio in cinematic history, leaving us with one other question…

What’s Next? 

Disney has a grasp on the most successful movie franchises of today — Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and X-Men. They have made an empire out of entertainment. If this was high school, Disney would be the overbearing principal and all of us are nothing more than students subjected to detention…for life.

Now don’t get me wrong, I love Disney.

Yet, if you look at all of their properties, it is difficult not to think about all the power they hold when it comes to entertainment. Also, they own a few more properties that you may not be considering, including: 

• A&E 
• Blue Sky Studios (20th Century Fox Animation) 
• FOX Searchlight Pictures
• Freeform TV
• FX (and FXX) 
• Gamestar
• History Network
• Industrial Light and Magic
• Lifetime Entertainment
• LucasArts 
• National Geographic
• Regency Enterprises
• Skywalker Sound
• Touchstone Pictures

It’s all there — movies to TV, gaming to animation. And Disney owns most of it. 

When you are watching something on any sized screen, there is a great chance you can tie it back to Disney. No other company inside the world of entertainment has that kind of dominating reach.

What’s Left?

The Walt Disney Company has been around since 1923 and has grown in power seemingly every year of its existence. They smash their own financial records. Now that Avengers: Endgame is the highest grossing movie of all time, Disney is just competing with themselves right now. 

No other company is even close to touching their records at this point. There isn’t a problem with Disney becoming “too powerful,” is there?

Some people will give Disney their money until they are broke (present company included). Others need some convincing but eventually come around. How many awesome memories do you associate with Disney? Whether you have been to their theme parks or have only watched every movie they have made, you have definitely had a happy memory that was brought to you by the Mouse himself.

This may sound childish, but it is not a bad thing that one of the most powerful companies on Earth “brings magic into people’s lives.” It all begins with cherished memories. Those are the breeding ground for that “magic.” And Disney has a lionshare of those too. 

Disney has been at the heart of making people happy for decades.

They create content that is kid friendly and parent approved. They create content that moves you regardless of your age. If we allow Disney to become the most powerful company on the planet (we see you Apple, Facebook, and Google), we are putting our money into a good place — one where imaginations can soar, hearts can roam, and minds can dream big.

And it’s all run by a mouse. So, the next time you watch a Disney show and think that they are too much control, just remember their focus — quality, not quantity; memories, not movies; and (believe it or not) magic, not money.