Monday, August 31, 2009

Mickey Eats Spiderman

Disney announced today that it had purchased Marvel Entertainment. Disney is known for its wholesome/all-American entertainment (ABC, ESPN, etc.), long-running cartoon franchises (Mickey Mouse, Beauty and the Beast, etc.), and global theme parks. Marvel Entertainment is most renown for its comic book characters (Iron-Man, Spiderman, The Hulk, etc.) and related movie franchises.

I believe that this is a fundamentally brilliant move for Disney. It allows Disney to target key age-based demographics where it had previously been soft: 12-18, 18-24, and 24-34 year-olds - in particular, boys and young men. Where before Disney was brilliant at marketing a wide range of entertainment to children and their parents (typically over 34), now Disney captures the full spectrum - i.e. children, teenagers, young adults, twenty-somethings, young parents, middle-aged parents, and grandparents.

By finding the missing piece of the puzzle at the right time, Disney has once again shown why it's one of the most successful global corporations.
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