Walt Disney Company to Reorganize Publishing Business

Posted on April 9, 1999

The Walt Disney Company will reorganize its publishing business to take better advantage of its presence worldwide and to more closely align marketing opportunities, it was announced by Bo Boyd, Chairman, Disney Consumer Products and Anne Osberg, President, Disney Consumer Products; and Robert A. Iger, Chairman, A BC Group and President, Walt Disney International.

Buena Vista Publishing Group, Inc., the U.S. publishing subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company, will expand to become Disney Publishing, Worldwide and will continue to be part of the Consumer Products Division. Hyperion, the adult book publishing division of The Walt Disney Company, will become a unit of ABC, which also includes Fairchild Publications in its publishing unit.

Steven Murphy has been promoted to Senior Vice President and Managing Director, Disney Publishing, Worldwide, and will continue to report jointly to Anne Osberg and Bo Boyd. Robert Miller has been promoted to Senior Vice President and Managing Director, Hyperion and will report to Robert Iger as part of the new structure. Mr. Murphy had been Senior Vice President of Buena Vista Publishing Group, Inc. Mr. Miller had been Vice President and Group Publisher of Buena Vista Book Publishing.

Mr. Murphy's responsibilities will expand and he will now oversee all international publishing and domestic publishing business within the Consumer Products division. All international publishing executives within the Consumer Products division will additionally report to Mr. Murphy. In addition, Mr. Murphy will continue to manage the Disney Children's Book Group, Disney visual and reference books, Disney licensed publishing and the magazines Discover, FamilyFun, Disney Adventures and Disney Magazine.

Mr. Miller has overall responsibility for Hyperion, which publishes fiction and non-fiction for adults. Hyperion has published eight hundred books since its first list in 1991, including Tim Allen's Don't Stand Too Close to a Naked Man, Oprah Winfrey's Make the Connection and Richard Carlson, Ph.D's Don't Sweat the Small Stuff.