Apple’s Vision Pro Headset to Feature Disney+

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Shanghai was the venue for the launch of Chinese streaming firm iQiyi’s latest venture into Virtual Reality. Its ‘Luoyang VR Project’ is a studio-based experience in which users are invited to experience up to 12 different entertainment zones in the ancient city of Luoyang in Henan province. Requiring headsets and using a physical space of some 300 square metres, the set-up stimulates the physical experience of high winds, waterfalls and explosions. IQiyi described the project as “the first attempt in the VR industry to integrate different elements from immersive theatre, VR, and original IP,” and said that it leverages “inside-out tracking” technology and other industry-leading, sensory-simulation techniques to build in cars, boats, carriages, and other props. “The upshot is a highly realistic environment that fully immerses the audience in the story,” the company said.

shut down by WGA picketing earlier this month before being placed on an indefinite pause. Other series that have been halted on the East Coast include Disney+’s “Daredevil: Born Again” and Max’s “The Penguin.” In Montana, the “Yellowstone” prequel “1923” was also put on hold until the strike ends.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Zenia Mucha, who spent two decades as Disney’s top spokesperson before leaving the company in 2021, has been hired at TikTok. She’ll serve in the newly formed role of chief brand and communications officer and will be responsible for TikTok’s global marketing and communications strategies. Mucha’s hiring is part of a larger shakeup at TikTok. Vanessa Pappas is stepping down as the company’s chief operating officer and Adam Presser, the current chief of staff, has been promoted to head of operations. “Given all the successes reached at TikTok, I finally feel the time is right to move on and refocus on my entrepreneurial passions,” Pappas said in a note to staff.  “I know the company has a very bright and stable future under the strong leadership of Shou Chew and our executive team, I will be here to support him, the leadership team and all of you during this transition by taking on an advisory role for the company.”

Latondra Newton, who has served as Disney’s chief diversity officer since 2017, is leaving the company. An internal memo from Disney chief human resources officer Sonia Coleman announcing Newton’s departure was circulated to staff Tuesday.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Disney’s chief diversity officer and senior vice president Latondra Newton is exiting her role after more than six years, according to an internal memo obtained by Variety. An individual with knowledge of the situation says that Newton will be joining the corporate board of another company soon, and plans to devote more time to her self-owned creative company. In her role as head of DEI operations at Disney, Newton was charged with overseeing the company’s “commitment to produce entertainment that reflects a global audience and sustains a welcoming and inclusive workplace for everyone.”

Earnings calls, those ritualized quarterly opportunities for public companies to convey the state of their financial affairs to Wall Street analysts and investors at large, are two-handed affairs for the Walt Disney Co.

The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.While McCarthy’s husband has been in a healthcare facility since early this year, a person familiar with her situation told the Journal there have been no dramatic changes recently that would drive her to step down. But there were signs of strife coming from the CFO’s office before the House of Mouse announced Thursday that she’d be leaving that were perhaps buried in the glowing comments that accompanied the announcement of her depature.“Christine McCarthy is one of the most admired financial executives in America, and her impact on The Walt Disney Company during 23 years of dedicated service cannot be overstated,” CEO Bob Iger said in a statement Thursday.Yet the Journal reported that McCarthy has butted heads with Iger since he returned as CEO in November and other top execs over the media and entertainment giant’s restructuring strategy.

Christine McCarthy, a significant figure in Disney’s senior management team in recent years, is stepping down and taking a medical leave of absence from the company.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor In another shocker for the Walt Disney Co., Christine McCarthy is stepping down from her role as executive VP and chief financial officer and will take a family medical leave, Disney said Thursday. Kevin Lansberry has been named interim CFO for the media giant as of July 1. “Christine McCarthy is one of the most admired financial executives in America, and her impact on The Walt Disney Company during 23 years of dedicated service cannot be overstated,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said. “Christine has served as a key strategic anchor during a period of great transformation, and she and I have discussed her desire to ensure an orderly and successful CFO succession in advance of the company’s transition to its next chief executive officer. She is stepping down from her CFO role as she takes family medical leave, but has graciously offered to move into an advisory position to assist her successor in assuming the duties she has so expertly handled these many years.”

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor Filmmaker Victoria Bousis has partnered with Unique Network to enhance the immersive film experience of her award-winning film “Stay Alive, My Son.” Inspired by true events and based on the memoirs of Pin Yathay, “Tu Vivra, Mon Fils” (“Stay Alive, My Son”), Bousis says she wanted to “leverage technology to break the rules of traditional storytelling and educating audiences about Cambodia’s history.” The film, which will screen at Siggraph in August and is currently on the festival circuit, uses augmented reality and a virtual world that audiences experience through a VR headset.

https://t.co/27ETuDLLf1— P!nk (@Pink) June 12, 2023My grandfather is spinning in his grave. https://t.co/Qb5lV9ChbF— Abigail Disney (@abigaildisney) June 12, 2023The Orange County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement: “We are aware of these groups that aim to agitate and incite people with antisemitic symbols and slurs.

Bloomberg report. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman speculated the weaker model will feature a lesser chip and less impressive display but won’t compromise on the core functionalities of the headset (seeing other people and hand-tracking tech).The evidence is in the name of the initial product itself: Vision “Pro,” with the implication being that there will be a non-“Pro” version coming up.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Apple this week announced Vision Pro, its augmented-reality and VR headset priced at a cool $3,500, seven times the price of Meta’s upcoming Quest 3 headset. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, apparently, was not blown away by the Apple reveal. “From what I’ve seen initially, I’d say the good news is that there’s no kind of magical solutions that they have to any of the constraints on laws and physics that our teams haven’t already explored and thought of,” Zuckerberg told employees at an all-hands meeting Thursday, per a report by the Verge. Apple’s Vision Pro will use a higher-resolution display than Meta’s Quest 3, Zuckerberg noted. The Vision Pro will deliver 23 million pixels across two displays, more pixels for each eye than a 4K TV. However, with the high-end display “and all the technology they put in there to power it, it costs seven times more” than a Quest 3, slated to ship in the fall of 2023, and “requires so much energy that now you need a battery and a wire attached to it to use it. They made that design tradeoff and it might make sense for the cases that they’re going for,” Zuckerberg said.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Apple took the wraps off Vision Pro, an expensive pair of goggles the company promises will unlock a new universe of magical new virtual- and augmented-reality apps. Apple announced the years-in-development headset Monday at the annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) at its headquarters in Cupertino, Calif. “I believe that augmented reality is a profound technology,” said CEO Tim Cook, saying that Apple’s introduction of Vision Pro will introduce people to new forms of “spatial computing” and comparing the product introduction to the way iPhone introduced smartphones to millions of people.

reporting Apple’s been spending over $1 billion per year to get the product out the door. It’s aiming to be a technological jump akin to the introduction of the iPhone but for the mixed reality space.

Apple has entered the virtual reality arena, announcing a long-anticipated new headset and augmented reality platform called Vision Pro.

Apple may have entered the virtual reality arena earlier today with the unveiling of a new platform and headset, launched with the help of Disney boss Bob Iger, but in the real world it spent the day being targeted by writers.

Reuters reported Saturday.Angus MacLane, director of the unsuccessful “Toy Story” spinoff and a 26-year animation veteran who was part of the creative team behind hits like “Toy Story 4” and “Coco,” was included in the cuts. Gayln Susman, a producer on the film who had been at Pixar since 1995, was also removed from her role.TheWrap has reached out to Pixar for further comment.“Lightyear” grossed just over $226 million worldwide at the box office when it was released last June, but cost $200 million to produce.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Disney, after removing dozens of shows and movies from Disney+ and Hulu last week, said it will incur a $1.5 billion impairment charge for the June quarter. In an SEC filing Friday, the company said that on May 26, 2023, it removed “certain produced content” from its direct-to-consumer streaming services. As a result, Disney will record a $1.5 billion impairment charge in its fiscal third quarter financial statements “to adjust the carrying value of these content assets to fair value.” Disney said it’s continuing to review content on streaming platforms and “currently anticipates additional produced content will be removed from its DTC and other platforms, largely during the remainder of its third fiscal quarter.” As a result, Disney currently estimates it may incur further impairment charges of up to about $400 million related to produced content.

2ND UPDATE, 5:20 PM: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis today won a victory in his legal skirmishes with the Walt Disney Company — but not for the reasons he wanted to.