Walt Disney Company Names Marketing President Asad Ayaz First-Ever Chief Brand Officer

we exclusively reported that Trevor Kelley, an executive at Disney+, was also let go as part of the layoffs. Statistical guru Nate Silver will also be leaving ABC.More meetings are being held throughout the afternoon at various Disney business units; one source said that layoffs have been happening every 30 minutes today.

Disney layoffs currently impacting the company.Kelley had been a part of the company for more than 12 years, serving in different positions in digital marketing at both Walt Disney Studios and, later, at Disney+. He’d been the senior vice president of marketing at Disney+ for the past two years, following the direct-to-consumer streaming platform as it grew, during the pandemic, to one of the biggest streaming powerhouses on the marketing, certainly with one of the most robust libraries of legacy titles.

The creator of Barbie has officially launched its first doll with Down's syndrome.

during a recent trip to Ireland that he was not yet ready to announce his reelection campaign, telling reporters: “We’ll announce it relatively soon.” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre brushed off questions about Biden’s 2024 run on April 20, noting at a press briefing: “What I will say is that any announcement or anything that is related to 2024 certainly will not come from here.”At 80, Biden is the oldest serving president in U.S. history and would be 86 years old by the end of his potential second term, as to his fitness for the role and making the timing around his reelection announcement all the more important.

There’s a lot at stake in this week’s race for the UK’s Number 1 Album, as both acts currently leading the race are in with the chance of scooping their first-ever chart-topping LP.  

Disney is initiating the second and largest round of its planned layoffs Monday and expects to reach 4,000 of its projected 7,000 staff cuts by Thursday.

Zendaya has gotten a new significant endorsement deal.

Disney said today that “affordable and attainable housing” around Walt Disney World, which it first announced a year ago, will be ready to open in 2026. “This type of land contribution is unique and is one of many ways we are making a lasting impact in Central Florida,” according to a post on the Disney Parks Blog. It comes two days after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis included a lack affordable housing on his list of reasons to slam the House of Mouse.

Billy Idol has made history as the first person to play a show at the Hoover Dam for an upcoming concert film set for release later this year.The intimate show, with only 250 attendees, occurred earlier this month on April 8 at the Hoover Dam Bypass surrounded by the Black Canyon of the Colorado River and the Mike O’Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge. A snippet of ‘Cradle Of Love’ was released as a teaser for the upcoming concert film.Idol played a career-spanning run of hits including ‘Dancing with Myself’, ‘Eyes Without a Face’, ‘Rebel Yell’ and ‘White Wedding’.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis insisted again today that he and the state legislature can and will overturn any Disney development deal and retake control of the acreage that’s home to Walt Disney World and was administered by the company in what’s called the Reedy Creek Improvement District.

Team,Sonia Coleman and I are very happy to share that we have a familiar face returning to our organization. Jen Reberger is joining my leadership team as senior vice president of Human Resources for Disney Entertainment Television and will be based out of our Burbank offices.

The Wizarding World is getting a fresh take.

Jai Paul has shared a message with his fans ahead of his first-ever live debut, which will take place later this week.The musician will perform live for the first time this Sunday (April 16), at the first weekend of Coachella 2023. Now, in a new social media update, he has spoken directly to fans and thanked them for their ongoing support throughout his career.“Yoo it’s Jai… this weekend I’m gonna be playing my first ever live show.

The CW has tapped Roku Senior Director Ashley Hovey as its first chief digital officer, the network announced Tuesday.Hovey, who will begin responsibilities for the newly created role April 17, will oversee business strategy and day-to-day operations of the network’s digital operations and streaming platforms. She will report to The CW Network president Dennis Miller.After serving in roles across the entertainment industry at Comcast, where she served as senior director of advertising strategy and development, as well as British Telecom and Nielsen, Hovey joins the network from Roku, where she spent five years overseeing ad-supported business for The Roku Channel, encompassing both on-demand and FAST channel content as well as audience engagement and growth.In her role as a senior director at Roku, Hovey is credited with building and managing the Kids and Family, FAST, Music and Espacio Latino businesses, as well as driving overall partner strategy and monetization.“We are thrilled to have an all-star digital business strategist like Ashley Hovey join our senior leadership team,” Miller said in a statement. “Ashley is a trailblazer who knows what it takes to build a successful entertainment brand from the ground up and we look forward to having her play a vital role in helping us expand and monetize The CW Network’s digital footprint.”The CW App, which has logged over 92 million downloads to date, features the network’s primetime programming, livestream of sports content and other on-demand TV and film content.

The CW Network has named Ashley Hovey chief digital officer, a newly created position, starting April l7 reporting to President Dennis Miller.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer The CW network has tapped Roku exec Ashley Hovey as the broadcaster’s first-ever chief digital officer. Per the the Nexstar-owned CW, in this new role, Hovey will be responsible for overseeing the business strategy and day-to-day operations of the network’s digital operations and OTT streaming platforms, including the CW App. An AVOD platform, the CW App has over 92 million downloads to date and serves as home of new episodes and seasons of the CW’s primetime programs, live streaming of its sports content and on-demand library. Hovey, who most recently served as senior director of the ad-supported business for The Roku Channel (TRC), including both on-demand and FAST channel content, will begin her duties at the CW April 17. She will report to Dennis Miller, president of the CW.

Married at First Sight Australia was back on screens Monday night as the fourth commitment ceremony got underway, officially marking over the halfway point of the reality experiment.

boygenius secure their first Number 1 album with debut LP the record today.

th Century Studios’ “Free Guy” and “Prey,” along with Disney+ hit series including “The Mandalorian,” “WandaVision,” “Obi-Wan Kenobi” and “Loki,” among many others. In all, Ayaz has led the campaigns for the most watched films on Disney+ and Hulu, and 13 of the top 15 box office debuts of all time, including six opening weekends over $200 million, as well as the biggest worldwide debut of all time for “Avengers: Endgame,” which earned over $1.2 billion in five days. An award-winning marketing leader, Ayaz has been the recipient of multiple industry honors, including Variety’s Marketing Visionaries Award and The Clio Marketing Mastermind Award.

Disney has a new streaming boss.