Disney's Bob Iger faces the shareholders

The Wall Street Journal notes that Disney CEO Bob Iger will face the company's shareholders for the first time at the annual meeting this coming Friday. Merissa Mar writes:

...Mr. Iger still faces challenges as he tries to move the entertainment giant forward. One question is whether Pixar is really worth the $7.4 billion Disney is paying for it. The answer will depend on Pixar maintaining its stellar run of movies and the company being successfully integrated into Disney. Mr. Iger has argued that animation is vital to Disney's future because it drives so many parts of the company.



The next question is whether Mr. Iger has brought the fox into the henhouse by welcoming Mr. Jobs, an aggressive executive who is likely to want a strong voice at the company. The hope is that Mr. Jobs will bring his technology genius to the table in helping to crack the biggest problem facing Disney -- how to navigate a fast-evolving media landscape where traditional business models are under siege and "old" media face an uncertain future.

Disney's stock is up about 17 percent since Iger took over in October. But Marr says that Wall Street is still waiting to see "where the next `big idea' will come from to propel the company's growth into a digital future."