NYT: Tomorrowland: Apple Chief Set For Disney Role

[DeepModem Mom]

Tomorrowland: Apple Chief Set For Disney Role
By LAURA M. HOLSON and JOHN MARKOFF
Published: January 20, 2006


LOS ANGELES, Jan. 19 - Steven P. Jobs could be considered the Walt Disney of his era, breathing new life into animated movies with hits like "The Incredibles" and "Toy Story," and reinventing Apple Computer as a media darling with its popular iPod.

Now Mr. Jobs is in negotiations to join forces with the Walt Disney Company itself.

A deal would involve the sale of Mr. Jobs's Pixar Animation Studios for more than $6.8 billion to Disney, according to three people apprised of the negotiations. The sale, whose terms are still being negotiated, would make Mr. Jobs a major shareholder and director at Disney, which has been trying to find its footing in the changing world of animation.

And the merger could give Mr. Jobs a pivotal role, if he wants one, in helping shape the convergence of new media and old at Disney. "He's one of the handful of people who has shown the ability to guide both technology and entertainment companies and that might be quite useful to Disney," said Bran Ferren, a former Disney Studios Designer and technologist, who is now co-chairman of Applied Minds, a technology consulting firm based in Glendale, Calif. "What he has that is rare is taste, and that's a very valuable commodity if you can focus it and harness it."

But the move is also potentially risky for Mr. Jobs, because it ties his fortunes to an old media company that, like other entertainment giants, is trying to navigate a difficult course these days....


http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/20/business/media/20pixar.html