Risk Factors Dashboard
Once a year, publicly traded companies issue a comprehensive report of their business, called a 10-K. A component mandated in the 10-K is the ‘Risk Factors’ section, where companies disclose any major potential risks that they may face. This dashboard highlights all major changes and additions in new 10K reports, allowing investors to quickly identify new potential risks and opportunities.
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Risk Factors - DIS
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ITEM 1A. Risk Factors
We have implemented processes for assessing, identifying and managing material risks from cybersecurity threats as part of our overall risk management program. Our cybersecurity program is informed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework and other applicable globally recognized standards. We use a layered defense model, incorporating a wide range of technologies and practices in an effort to prevent, detect and mitigate threats. These measures include intrusion detection and prevention systems, multi-factor authentication, account management and access controls, encryption and endpoint protection tools. These measures include intrusion detection and prevention systems, multi-factor authentication, encryption and endpoint protection tools. We also implement threat detection and response solutions. To address emerging threats, we employ automated monitoring, vulnerability scans and patch management processes, network monitoring and defenses, antivirus/antimalware protections and network segmentations. To address emerging threats, we employ automated monitoring, vulnerability scans and patch management processes. Regular assessments, such as penetration tests, security audits and table-top exercises, are conducted to identify vulnerabilities and promote incident response and risk mitigation. We also provide privacy and information security trainings for our employees on a recurring basis. From time to time, we engage auditors, assessors, consultants and other third parties to assist with assessing, identifying and managing cybersecurity risks, including assisting us to conduct some of the foregoing assessments. Our cybersecurity risk management processes also are informed by intelligence received from law enforcement and other governmental agencies, private sector intelligence networks, recognized cybersecurity and intelligence firms and other third-party sources, and as appropriate we engage outside counsel to advise on regulatory compliance and other cybersecurity risk management efforts. Our cybersecurity risk management processes also are informed by intelligence received from recognized cybersecurity industry experts and other third-party sources, and as appropriate we engage outside counsel to advise on regulatory compliance and other cybersecurity risk management efforts. In addition, we have processes designed to oversee and identify cybersecurity risks associated with our use of third-party service providers. Where appropriate based on the data and intellectual property to which these providers are reasonably expected to have access, we conduct security assessments and due diligence reviews of third-party systems for compliance with our security standards, and we include data protection language in our agreements with these third parties. The Company’s Board of Directors has delegated to the Audit Committee oversight responsibility for information technology risks, including cybersecurity and data security risks and mitigation strategies. The Audit Committee at least annually receives reports from the Senior Vice President, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) concerning the Company’s cybersecurity and data security risks, including ongoing efforts to prevent, detect, monitor, remediate and manage such cybersecurity threats, the threat environment, incident updates and emerging cybersecurity practices and technologies. The Chair of the Audit Committee reports on its discussion, including concerning cybersecurity matters, to the full Board. In
addition, from time to time, senior management briefs the Audit Committee, the Audit Committee Chair and the Board on cybersecurity matters potentially of interest, including cybersecurity events, regulatory disclosures and regulatory trends. 
For an enterprise as large and complex as the Company, a wide range of factors could materially affect future developments and performance. In addition to the factors affecting specific business operations identified in connection with the description of these operations and the financial results of these operations elsewhere in our filings with the SEC, the most significant factors affecting our business include the following:
RISKS RELATED TO OUR BUSINESSES AND INDUSTRY
Declines in U.S., global and regional economic conditions adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
Declines in U.S., global and regional economic conditions, such as recessions, other less severe slowdowns in economic activity and/or inflationary conditions typically adversely affect demand for our products and services and/or costs to operate our businesses, reducing our revenue and earnings. While a number of different factors affect the demand for our products and services, actual or perceived declines in economic conditions typically have impacts across our businesses, including, among others, lower attendance and spending at our parks and experiences businesses, fees received for our cable programming and DTC services, including as a result of declines in subscription levels, purchases of and prices for advertising on our DTC services and linear networks or licensing fees, while in the case of inflationary conditions, also increasing the prices we pay for goods, services and labor, as well as typically our borrowing costs due to elevated interest rates, making it more difficult to obtain financing for our operations and investments on favorable terms. Even when inflationary pressures moderate, we expect certain costs, such as for labor, to remain elevated. Even if inflationary pressures moderate, we expect certain costs, such as for labor, to remain elevated. In addition, an increase in price levels generally, or in price levels in a particular sector, could result in a shift in consumer demand away from the entertainment and experiences we offer, which could also adversely affect our revenues, while at the same time, increase our costs. In addition, an increase in price levels generally, or in price levels in a particular sector, could result in a shift in consumer demand away from the entertainment and experiences we offer, which could also adversely affect our revenues and, at the same time, increase our costs, including borrowing costs as a result of elevated interest rates, making it more difficult to obtain financing for our operations and investments on favorable terms. A decline in economic conditions or a failure of conditions to improve as anticipated could impact implementation or success of our business plans, such as our investment plans for our Experiences segment, plans for our DTC ad-supported services, enhancements, product offerings, pricing structure and price increases and plans for strategic investments. A decline in economic conditions or a failure of conditions to improve as anticipated could impact implementation or success of our business plans, such as our plans to increase investment in our Experiences segment, the realignment of our cost structure and plans for our DTC ad-supported services, enhancements, pricing structure and price increases. Unfavorable economic conditions also impair the ability of those with whom we do business to satisfy their obligations to us. The adverse impact on our businesses of actual or perceived declines in economic conditions or a failure of conditions to improve as anticipated depends, in part, on their severity and duration, and our ability to mitigate these impacts on our businesses is limited. The adverse impact on our businesses of actual or perceived declines in economic conditions or a failure of conditions to improve as anticipated will depend, in part, on their severity and duration and our ability to mitigate these impacts on our businesses is limited.
Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates impact our results of operations, including our revenues and costs.Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates impact our revenues and the profitability of our businesses.
Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates against the U.S. dollar impact our results of operations, including by impacting the cost in U.S. dollars of providing our goods and services, our revenues in U.S. dollars generated by our international businesses and the international demand for our domestic products and services. An increase or sustained strength in the value of the U.S. dollar adversely impacts the U.S. dollar value of revenue we receive and expect to receive from other markets and contributes to reduced international demand for our domestic products and services, including international travel to our domestic parks and resorts. A decrease or sustained weakness in the value of the U.S. dollar often increases the cost of labor, goods and services in, or originating from, as applicable, non-U.S. markets. Although we hedge exposure to fluctuations in certain foreign currencies, any such hedging activity may not substantially offset the negative financial impact of exchange rate fluctuations and is not expected to offset all such negative financial impact, particularly in periods of sustained U.S. dollar strength or weakness relative to multiple foreign currencies. Further, economic or political conditions in certain countries outside the U.S. also limit, our ability to hedge exposure to currency fluctuations in those countries or our ability to repatriate revenue from those countries.
Changes in technology, in consumer consumption patterns and in how entertainment products and services are created affect demand for, the revenue we can generate from and the cost of producing or distributing our entertainment offerings and our results of operations.Changes in technology, in consumer consumption patterns and in how entertainment products are created affect demand for our entertainment products, the revenue we can generate from these products and the cost of producing or distributing these products.
The media entertainment and technology businesses in which we participate increasingly depend on our ability to successfully adapt to new technologies, including shifting patterns of content consumption and how entertainment products and services are generated. New technologies affect the demand for our products and services, the manner in which our entertainment offerings are distributed to consumers, the ways we charge for and receive revenue for our entertainment products and services and the stability of those revenue streams, the sources and nature of competing entertainment offerings, the time and manner in which consumers acquire and view some of our entertainment offerings and the options available to
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advertisers for reaching their desired audiences. These developments have impacted the business model for certain traditional forms of distribution, as evidenced by the industry-wide decline in ratings for broadcast and cable television, the reduction in demand for home entertainment sales of theatrical content, the development of alternative distribution channels for broadcast and cable programming and declines in subscriber levels for traditional cable channels. In addition, the implementation of our DTC strategy may further contribute to such declines. These developments have decreased advertising and affiliate revenue at some of our linear networks and have led, and may lead in the future, to the impairment of the value of certain of our assets. In addition, theater-going to watch movies has remained below levels that existed prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, theater-going to watch movies has remained below pre-pandemic levels.
Regulations governing new technological developments, such as developments in artificial intelligence (AI), including generative AI and large language model tools, remain unsettled, and these developments may affect aspects of our existing business models, including revenue streams for the use of our IP, how we create our entertainment offerings and the competition we face. In order to respond to the impact of new technologies on our businesses, we regularly consider, and from time to time implement, new initiatives and changes to our business models, including by developing and investing in DTC streaming services and content offerings and new media offerings. In order to respond to the impact of new technologies on our businesses, we regularly consider, and from time to time implement new initiatives and changes to our business models, including by developing, investing in and acquiring DTC products, reorganizing our media and entertainment businesses to advance our DTC strategies and developing new media offerings. There can be no assurance that our DTC offerings, new media offerings and other efforts will successfully respond to technological changes. In addition, declines in certain traditional forms of distribution impact the cost of content allocable to our DTC offerings. In addition, declines in certain traditional forms of distribution impacts the cost of content allocable to our DTC offerings, negatively impacting the profitability of our DTC offerings. As part of our DTC strategy, we forgo revenue from certain traditional sources. As part of our DTC strategy, we forgo certain revenue from certain traditional sources as we invest in our DTC offerings. Initially, our DTC streaming services experienced significant losses. Since launch, our DTC streaming services experienced significant losses. There can be no assurance that the DTC model and other business models we may develop will each be or remain profitable or be as profitable over the long term as our historic business models.
We face risks relating to misalignment with public and consumer tastes and preferences for entertainment, travel and consumer products, which impacts demand for our entertainment offerings and products and services and our results of operations. We face competition for creative talent and sports and other programming rights and are sometimes not successful in recruiting and retaining talent and obtaining desired programming rights and face increased costs to do so.
Our businesses create entertainment, travel and consumer products, the success of which depends substantially on consumer tastes and preferences that change in often unpredictable ways. The success of our businesses depends on our ability to consistently produce compelling creative content, which may be distributed, among other ways, through DTC services, linear networks and theaters and used in theme park attractions, hotels and other resort facilities and travel experiences and consumer products. The success of our businesses depends on our ability to consistently produce compelling creative content, which may be distributed, among other ways, through DTC platforms, broadcast, cable, theaters and used in theme park attractions, hotels and other resort facilities and travel experiences and consumer products. Such distribution must meet the changing preferences of the broad consumer market and respond to competition from an expanding array of choices facilitated by technological developments in the delivery of content. The success of our theme parks, resorts, cruise ships and experiences, as well as our theatrical releases, depends on demand for out-of-home entertainment experiences. Demand for certain out-of-home entertainment experiences, such as theater-going to watch movies, has not returned to levels that existed prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Demand for certain out-of-home entertainment experiences, such as theater-going to watch movies, has not returned to pre-pandemic levels. In addition, as a global entertainment company with a global consumer base, the success of our businesses depends on our ability to predict and adapt to constantly evolving and often divergent consumer tastes and preferences across various domestic and international markets. In addition, for benefits provided to certain employees, changes in asset values, investment returns and discount rates used to calculate pension and postretirement medical expense and related assets and liabilities can be volatile and may have an unfavorable impact on our costs in some years. Evolving tourist preferences regarding travel to destinations in the U.S. and other geographical regions where our parks and experiences businesses operate sometimes affect travel to those businesses. Moreover, we must often make substantial investments in content production and acquisition, acquisition of sports and other programming rights, theme park attractions, cruise ships or hotels and other facilities or customer facing platforms before we know the extent to which these products will earn consumer acceptance, and the market, economic or social conditions are sometimes significantly different from the ones we anticipated at the time of the investment decisions. Further, preferences of some consumers are affected by their perceptions of our position on matters of public interest, including regarding environmental and social issues, and such perceptions sometimes lead to consumer boycotts. Further, preferences of some consumers are affected by their perceptions of our position on matters of public interest, including regarding environmental and social issues. Generally, our results of operations and financial condition are adversely impacted when our entertainment offerings and products and services, as well as our methods to make our offerings and products and services available to consumers, do not align with constantly evolving and often conflicting consumer preferences and tastes or achieve sufficient consumer acceptance. Generally, revenues from, and profitability of, each of our businesses are adversely impacted when our entertainment offerings and products, as well as our methods to make our offerings and products available to consumers, do not align with constantly evolving consumer preferences and tastes or achieve sufficient consumer acceptance.
A variety of uncontrollable events disrupt our businesses, reduce demand for or consumption of our products and services, impair our ability to provide our products and services or increase the cost of providing our products and services, adversely impacting our results of operations and financial condition.A variety of uncontrollable events disrupt our businesses, reduce demand for or consumption of our products and services, impair our ability to provide our products and services or increase the cost or reduce the profitability of providing our products and services.
The operation of, and demand for and consumption of our products and services, particularly our parks and experiences businesses, are highly dependent on the general environment for travel and tourism, including in the specific regions in which our parks and experiences businesses operate.The operation and profitability of our businesses and demand for and consumption of our products and services, particularly our parks and experiences businesses, are highly dependent on the general environment for travel and tourism, including in the specific regions in which our parks and experiences businesses operate. In addition, we have extensive international operations, including our international theme parks and resorts, which are dependent on domestic and international regulations consistent with trade and investment in those regions. The operation of our businesses, the environment for travel and tourism, the demand for and consumption of our other products and services and ultimately our results of operations and financial condition are subject to adverse impacts from a variety of factors beyond our control in the U.S., globally or in specific geographic regions around the world where we operate, including: health concerns; adverse weather conditions arising from short-term weather patterns or long-term climate change, including longer and more regular excessive heat conditions, catastrophic events or natural disasters (such as excessive heat or rain, hurricanes, wildfires, typhoons, floods, droughts, tsunamis and earthquakes); international, political or military developments, including tariffs and other trade and international disputes and social unrest; legal and
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regulatory developments; macroeconomic conditions, including a decline in economic activity, inflation and foreign exchange rates; and terrorist attacks. These events and others, such as fluctuations in travel and energy costs, supply chain disruptions and malware and other cyber-related attacks or intrusions or other widespread computing, telecommunications or payment processing failures, from time to time disrupt our ability to provide our products and services, raise the cost of providing our products and services and in certain instances affect our ability to obtain insurance coverage with respect to some of these events. These events and others, such as fluctuations in travel and energy costs, supply chain disruptions and malware and other cyber-related attacks or intrusions or other widespread computing, telecommunications or payment processing failures, from time to time have disrupted, and may in the future disrupt, our ability to provide our products and services or in certain instances may affect our ability to obtain insurance coverage with respect to some of these events. An incident or other event that affected our property directly, including a security incident, earthquake or hurricane, would have a direct impact on our ability to provide products and services and could result in closure of impacted operations or have an extended effect of discouraging consumers from attending our facilities. An incident or other event that affected our property directly, including a security incident, earthquake or hurricane, would have a direct impact on our ability to provide goods and services and could result in closure of impacted operations or have an extended effect of discouraging consumers from attending our facilities. Moreover, we incur costs to protect against such incidents.
For example, COVID-19 and measures to prevent its spread impacted our businesses in a number of ways, including the closure of our theme parks and resorts, suspension of cruise ship sailings and guided tours, delayed, or in some cases, shortened or canceled, theatrical releases and disruptions in the production and availability of content, significantly reducing revenues across all of our segments. Certain of our business operations have been temporarily disrupted by payment processing outages and widespread computing failures. Hurricanes have caused park closures and other impacts to the operations of Walt Disney World Resort, adversely affecting segment results, and may do so in the future. The Company has ceased certain operations in certain regions, including in response to sanctions, trade restrictions and related developments, resulting in impairment charges. The Company has paused certain operations in certain regions, including in response to sanctions, trade restrictions and related developments and the profitability of certain operations has been impacted as a result of events in the corresponding regions.
In addition, we derive affiliate fees and royalties from the distribution of our programming, sales of our licensed products and services by third parties, and the management of businesses operated under brands licensed from the Company and advertising revenues from the purchase of advertising on our various platforms, including DTC services and linear networks, and we are therefore dependent on the successes of those third parties for that portion of our revenue.In addition, we derive affiliate fees and royalties from the distribution of our programming, sales of our licensed goods and services by third parties, and the management of businesses operated under brands licensed from the Company, and we are therefore dependent on the successes of those third parties for that portion of our revenue. Our results of operations could be adversely impacted by a significant contraction of distribution channels for our products and services, including through third-party licensees or sellers of our licensed goods and services, or a contraction in the number or kind of advertisers purchasing advertising on our platforms, including as a result of legal or regulatory developments.Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates against the US dollar impact our revenues and the profitability of our businesses, including by impacting the cost in US dollars of providing our goods and services, our revenues in US dollars generated by our international businesses and the international demand for our domestic products and services. In addition, third-party suppliers provide products and services essential to the operation of a number of our businesses. A wide variety of factors could influence the success of those third parties and if negative factors significantly impacted a sufficient number of those third parties or materially impacted a supplier of a significant product or service, our results of operations could be adversely affected. In specific geographic markets, we have experienced delayed and/or partial payments from certain third parties due to liquidity issues.
We obtain insurance against the risk of losses relating to some of these events, generally including certain physical damage to our property and resulting business interruption, certain injuries occurring on our property and some liabilities for alleged breach of legal responsibilities. When insurance is obtained it is subject to deductibles, exclusions, terms, conditions and limits of liability. The types and levels of coverage we obtain vary from time to time depending on our view of the likelihood of specific types and levels of loss in relation to the cost of obtaining coverage for such types and levels of loss and we experience losses not covered by our insurance, which could be material.
We face risks related to changes in our business strategies and plans, which have affected and may continue to affect our cost structure, the value of our assets and/or our results of operations.We face risks related to changes in our business strategy, which have affected and may continue to affect our cost structure, the profitability of our businesses and/or the value of our assets.
We adjust our business strategies and plans from time to time in connection with changes in senior management and in our efforts to respond to changes in technology, consumer purchasing and consumption patterns, acceptance of our entertainment offerings, the market for advertising, macroeconomic conditions and other changes in the business environment.We adjust our business strategies from time to time in connection with changes in senior management and in our efforts to respond to changes in technology, consumer purchasing and consumption patterns, acceptance of our entertainment offerings, the market for advertising, macroeconomic conditions and other changes in the business environment. For example, in October 2025, we completed a combination of certain Hulu Live TV assets with Fubo to acquire a 70% interest in Fubo; in fiscal 2025, we announced plans for ESPN to acquire the NFL Network and certain other media assets owned and controlled by the NFL in exchange for a 10% noncontrolling interest in ESPN; in fiscal 2024, we transferred Star India into a joint venture and recorded related impairment charges and announced an investment in a multi-year project with Epic Games; in fiscal 2023, we reorganized our media and entertainment operations, which had been previously reported in one segment, into two segments, Entertainment and Sports; in fiscal 2023 we announced that we would review content, primarily on our DTC services, for alignment with a strategic change in our approach to content curation, resulting in removal of certain content from our platforms and related impairment charges; and from time to time, we announce exploration of new types of businesses. Our new business strategies and plans are, among other things, subject to execution risk and may not produce the anticipated benefits, such as supporting our growth strategies and enhancing shareholder value, and over the long term could be less successful than our prior strategies and plans. For example, the cost of executing on our DTC strategy may continue to grow or be reduced more slowly than anticipated, which may impact our distribution strategy across businesses/distribution platforms, the types of content we distribute through various businesses/distribution platforms, the timing and sequencing of content windows and ultimately, the financial results of our DTC services and other businesses/distribution platforms. For example, notwithstanding our continuing efforts to rationalize costs, the cost of executing on our DTC strategy may continue to grow or be reduced more slowly than anticipated, which may impact our distribution strategy across businesses/distribution platforms, the types of content we distribute through various businesses/distribution platforms, the timing and sequencing of content windows and ultimately, the profitability of our DTC products and other businesses/distribution platforms.
In addition, changing technology, consumer purchasing patterns and acceptance of content offerings and macroeconomic conditions may impair the value of our assets. We incur costs in connection with changes to our business strategy and plans and have needed and may in the future need to write-down the value of our assets. We incur costs in connection with changes to our business strategy and have needed and may in the future need to write-down the value of our assets. Among other assets, in connection with changes
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in strategy, we have impaired the value of our content primarily at our DTC services and goodwill and intangible assets at our linear networks and impaired the value of certain of our retail store assets and certain hotel experiences assets. We may write down other assets as our strategy evolves to account for the business environment.
We also make investments in existing or new businesses, including investments in international expansion of our business and in new business lines. For example, in recent years, we have expanded our fleet of cruise ships, with announced plans for further fleet expansion, and increased investment in our parks and resorts; completed the acquisition of Hulu and of a 70% interest in Fubo; and made substantial investments related to DTC offerings. The ultimate success of these investments is uncertain, some of these and future investments may ultimately result in returns that are negative or lower than anticipated, and these investments may negatively impact the resources available to our other businesses and ultimately, our results of operations. The ultimate success of these investments is uncertain, some of these and future investments may ultimately result in returns that are negative or lower than anticipated, and these investments may impact the resources available to, and the profitability of, our other businesses. In addition, our costs increase in connection with these investments, and we may have significant charges associated with the write-down of assets if the investments are not as successful as anticipated. Over the long term, our new strategies could be less successful than previous strategies. Even if our strategies are effective in the long term, our new offerings generally negatively impact results of operations in the short term, results of our new offerings are unlikely to be even quarter over quarter and we may not expand into new markets as or when anticipated. Even if our strategies are effective in the long term, our new offerings will generally not be profitable in the short term, results of our new offerings are unlikely to be even quarter over quarter and we may not expand into new markets as or when anticipated. Our ability to forecast for new businesses is impacted by our lack of experience operating in those new businesses, speed with which the competitive landscape changes, volatility beyond our control (such as the events beyond our control noted above) and our ability to obtain or develop the content and rights on which our projections are based. Accordingly, we may not achieve our forecasted outcomes.
Increased competitive pressures impact our revenues, increase our costs and impact our results of operations.
We face substantial competition in each of our businesses from alternative providers of the products and services we offer and from other forms of entertainment, lodging, tourism and recreational activities. This includes, among other types, competition for personnel, content and other resources we require in operating our businesses. This includes, among other types, competition for human resources, content and other resources we require in operating our business. For example:
•Our programming and production operations compete to obtain creative, performing, production and business talent, sports and other programming, story properties, advertiser support, production facilities and market share with traditional and new media platforms, including other video-on-demand services and sources of broadband delivered content, studio operators and television networks.
•Our linear networks and DTC streaming services compete for viewers and subscribers with an increasing number of competitors, including other DTC and linear offerings, all other forms of media and all other forms of entertainment, as well as for technology, creative, performing and business talent and for content.
•Our linear networks, television stations and DTC services compete for the sale of advertising time with traditional and new media platforms, including other television and video-on-demand services and various forms of internet and mobile delivered platforms and content, which offer advertising delivery technologies that are more targeted than can be achieved through traditional means, as well as with other forms of advertising.
•Our linear networks compete for carriage of their programming with other programming providers.
•Our theme parks, resorts and experiences compete for guests with other theme parks and resorts, all other forms of entertainment, lodging, tourism and recreation activities and compete for technology, creative, performing and business talent, including with other theme park and resort operators.
•Our content sales/licensing operations, including theatrical releases, compete for customers with all other forms of entertainment.
•Our consumer products business competes with other licensors and creators of IP.
Competition for the acquisition of resources sometimes further increases the cost of producing our products and services; changes the composition of our offerings, including sports; deprives us of talent needed for our entertainment and experiences businesses, which talent is necessary to produce high quality creative material; increases employee turnover and staffing instability; and increases our labor costs. Competition for the acquisition of resources can further increase the cost of producing our products and services; change the composition of our offerings, including sports; deprive us of talent needed for our entertainment and experiences businesses, including the talent necessary to produce high quality creative material; increase employee turnover and staffing instability; or increase our labor costs. Competition also reduces, or limits growth in, prices for our products and services, including advertising rates and subscription fees at our linear networks and DTC offerings, parks and resorts admissions and room rates and prices for consumer products from which we derive licensing revenues. For example, our advertising revenue is negatively impacted by the increased supply of advertising tools and platforms on which to place advertising, including search, social media, online marketplaces and other ad-supported DTC services, which depresses advertising rates across our DTC streaming services and linear networks and creates demand uncertainty.
Technological developments, including developments in generative AI tools that can be used to create competing low-cost content and products, and changes in market structure, including consolidation of suppliers of resources and distribution channels, increase competition in these areas. Technological developments, including developments in generative AI tools that can be used to create competing low-cost content, and changes in market structure, including consolidation of suppliers of resources and distribution channels, increase competition in these areas. Increased competition raises the cost of programming, including for sports and other products, and diverts consumers from our offerings to other products and services or other forms of entertainment and experiences. Increased competition raises the cost of programming, including for sports and other products, and diverts consumers from our products and services or to other products and services or other forms of entertainment and experiences. In addition, given the nature of travel planning, consumers sometimes delay travel to our theme parks and resorts in connection with planned major product launches of regional travel industry competitors. In addition, given the nature of travel planning, consumers typically delay their consumption of certain of our products and services, such as our theme parks and resorts, in connection with planned major product launches of regional travel industry competitors. Each of these competitive pressures could reduce our revenue and increase our marketing and other costs.
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We face risks related to the renewal of long-term programming or distribution contracts on sufficiently favorable terms.
We enter into long-term contracts for both the acquisition and the distribution of media programming and products, including contracts for the acquisition of programming rights for sporting events and other programs, and contracts for the distribution of our programming to content distributors. As these contracts expire, we renew or renegotiate the contracts, which from time to time has led to service blackouts when distribution contracts expired before renewal terms were agreed. We may lose programming rights or distribution rights if we are unable to renew these contracts on acceptable terms. Renewal negotiations with certain MVPDs for distribution contracts scheduled to expire in fiscal 2026 could lead to temporary or longer-term service blackouts, negatively impacting our results of operations. On October 30, 2025, the Company’s channels were removed from YouTube TV following the expiration of the parties’ distribution contract without agreement on renewal terms, and the Company cannot predict how long this service blackout will last or reasonably estimate the adverse impact on our results of operations. Further, as a result, our portfolio of acquired programming rights, such as sporting events, and the distributors of our programming and the portfolio of programming rights our distributors acquire have changed and will continue to change over time. As a result, our portfolio of acquired programming rights, such as sporting events, and the distributors of our programming and the portfolio of programming rights our distributors acquire have changed and will continue to change over time. Even if these contracts are renewed, the cost of obtaining certain programming rights has increased and may continue to increase (or increase at faster rates than our historical experience) and programming distributors demand terms (including with respect to the pricing for, and the nature and amount of, programming distributed) that reduce our revenue from distribution of programs or increase revenue at slower rates than our historical experience. Even if these contracts are renewed, the cost of obtaining certain programming rights has increased and may continue to increase (or increase at faster rates than our historical experience) and programming distributors, facing pressures resulting from increased subscription fees and alternative distribution channels, demand terms (including with respect to the pricing for, and the nature and amount of, programming distributed) that reduce our revenue from distribution of programs or increase revenue at slower rates than our historical experience. For example, the terms of certain renewals of carriage agreements have included fewer of our linear networks or the opportunity to offer multiple genre-specific bundle options of fewer than all our linear networks while providing for certain of our DTC streaming services to be made available to the distributor’s subscribers. For example, the terms of recent renewals of carriage agreements have included fewer of our linear networks or the opportunity to offer multiple genre-specific bundle options of fewer than all our linear networks while providing for certain of our DTC streaming services to be made available to the distributor’s subscribers. Moreover, our ability to renew these contracts on favorable terms is affected by a number of factors, such as consolidation in the market for program distribution and the entrance of new participants in the market for distribution of content on digital platforms. With respect to the acquisition of programming rights, particularly sports programming rights, the impact of these long-term contracts on our results over the term of the contracts depends on a number of factors, including the strength of advertising markets, subscription levels and programming rights costs increases, effectiveness of marketing efforts and the size of viewer audiences. There can be no assurance that revenues from programming based on these rights will exceed the cost of the rights plus the other costs of producing and distributing the programming. There can be 21TABLE OF CONTENTSno assurance that revenues from programming based on these rights will exceed the cost of the rights plus the other costs of producing and distributing the programming.
We face risks related to environmental, social and governance matters and related reporting obligations.
Domestic and international laws and regulations relating to environmental, social and governance matters, including environmental sustainability, climate change, human rights and human capital management, have been adopted or are under consideration, some of which include specific, target-driven disclosure requirements or obligations. For example, new domestic and international laws and regulations relating to environmental, social and governance matters, including environmental sustainability, climate change, human rights and human capital management, have been adopted or are under consideration, some of which include specific, target-driven disclosure requirements or obligations. Responding to these laws and regulations has increased our compliance costs, including from increased investment in technology and appropriate expertise and has required the implementation of new reporting processes, entailing additional compliance risk. Our response has increased our compliance costs, including from increased investment in technology and appropriate expertise and required the implementation of new reporting processes, entailing additional compliance risk.
In addition, we have undertaken or announced a number of related actions and goals, which will require changes to operations and ongoing investment. There is no assurance that our initiatives will achieve their intended outcomes or that we will achieve any of these goals. Consumer, government and other stakeholder perceptions of our initiatives often differ widely and present risks to our reputation and brands. In addition, our ability to implement some initiatives or achieve some goals is dependent on external factors. For example, our ability to meet certain environmental sustainability goals or initiatives will depend in part on third-party collaboration, the availability of suppliers that can satisfy new requirements, mitigation innovations and/or the availability of economically feasible solutions at scale.
We face risks related to damage to our reputation or brands.
Our reputation and globally recognizable brands are integral to the success of our businesses. Because our brands engage consumers across our businesses, some types of damage to our reputation or brands have an impact on all of our businesses. Because some of our brands are globally recognized, some types of brand damage are not locally contained. Maintenance of the reputation of our Company and brands depends on many factors, including the quality of our offerings, maintenance of trust with our customers and our ability to successfully innovate. In addition, we may pursue brand or product integration combining previously separate brands or products targeting different audiences under one brand or pursue other business initiatives inconsistent with one or more of our brands, and there is no assurance that these initiatives will be accepted by our customers and not adversely impact one or more of our brands. Significant negative claims or publicity regarding the Company or its operations, products, management, employees, practices, business partners, business decisions, social responsibility and culture, which may be amplified by social media, adversely impact our brands or reputation, even if such claims are untrue. From time to time, these negative claims and publicity have led, and may lead in the future, to calls for consumer or other action, including boycotts, litigation, investigations or regulatory actions. These negative perceptions and other damage to our reputation or brands could persist, negatively impacting our sales, business opportunities, results of operations, financial condition and price of our common stock.
Various risks may impact the success of our DTC streaming services.
The success of our DTC streaming services will be impacted by the success of our content curation and investment decisions and ability to offer compelling content and product features; our ability to grow subscription and advertising
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revenues, including by increasing subscriber and viewership levels and managing churn; our pricing, bundling, product features and content distribution determinations, including across windows; and our ability to contain costs. The initial costs of marketing campaigns are generally recognized in the business of initial exploitation, and amortization of capitalized production costs and licensed programming rights are generally allocated across businesses based on the estimated relative value of the distribution windows. Accordingly, our distribution determinations impact the costs of each business, including the applicable DTC service. There are a number of competing DTC businesses. Consumers may not be willing to pay for an expanding set of DTC services at increasing prices, potentially exacerbated by challenging economic conditions, such as during periods of high inflation or declines in economic activity. In addition, such economic conditions negatively impact the purchase of and price for advertising on our DTC streaming services. We face competition for creative talent and sports and other programming rights and are sometimes not successful in recruiting and retaining talent and obtaining desired programming rights and face increased costs to do so. We have experienced flat subscriber growth or net losses of subscribers in periods. Our content does not always successfully attract and retain subscribers in the quantities that we expect. Our content is subject to cost pressures and may cost more than we expect. We may not successfully manage our costs to meet our goals. We may not successfully manage our costs to meet our profitability goals. Government regulations, including revised foreign content and ownership regulations as well as government-imposed content restrictions, impact the implementation of our DTC business plans and increase our costs. Government regulation, including revised foreign content and ownership regulations as well as government-imposed content restrictions, impacts the implementation of our DTC business plans. The highly competitive environment in which we operate puts pricing pressure on our DTC offerings and may require us to lower our prices or not increase our prices to attract or retain customers or lead to higher churn rates. These and other risks may impact the success of our DTC streaming services and our results of operations. These and other risks may impact the profitability and success of our DTC streaming services.
Potential credit ratings actions, increases in interest rates, volatility in the U.S. and global financial markets or periods of elevated indebtedness could impede access to, or increase the cost of, financing our operations and investments and have the effect of decreasing of business flexibility.
Our borrowing costs have been and can be affected by short- and long-term debt ratings assigned by nationally recognized ratings agencies that are based, in part, on the Company’s performance as measured by credit metrics such as leverage and interest coverage ratios. For example, our elevated indebtedness and leverage ratios in response to the financial impact of COVID-19 on our businesses resulted in certain rating agencies downgrading our debt ratings. As of September 27, 2025, Moody’s Ratings’ long- and short-term debt ratings for the Company were A2 and P-1 (Stable), respectively; and S&P Global Ratings’ long- and short-term debt ratings for the Company were A and A-1 (Stable), respectively. Any future downgrades could increase our cost of borrowing and/or make it more difficult for us to obtain financing on acceptable terms.
In addition, increases in interest rates have increased our cost of borrowing and volatility in U.S. and global financial markets could impact our access to, or further increase the cost of, financing. Past disruptions in the U.S. and global credit and equity markets made it more difficult for many businesses to obtain financing on acceptable terms. These conditions tended to increase the cost of borrowing and if they recur, our cost of borrowing could increase and it may be more difficult to obtain financing for our operations or investments.
Further, periods of elevated indebtedness could have the effect of, among other things, reducing our financial flexibility and our ability to respond to changing business and economic conditions and other uncontrollable events, including by reducing funds available for investments, capital expenditures, share repurchases and dividends and other activities, and putting us at a competitive disadvantage relative to companies with lower debt levels. These developments have impacted the business model for certain traditional forms of distribution, as evidenced by the industry-wide decline in ratings for broadcast and cable television, the reduction in demand for home entertainment sales of theatrical content, the development of alternative distribution channels for broadcast and cable programming and declines in subscriber levels for traditional cable channels.
Labor disputes disrupt our operations and adversely affect the profitability of our businesses.
A significant number of employees in various parts of our businesses, including employees of our theme parks, and writers, directors, actors and production personnel for our productions are covered by collective bargaining agreements. In addition, some of our employees outside the U.S. are represented by works councils, trade unions or other employee associations. Further, some employees of licensees who manufacture and retailers who sell our licensed consumer products, and employees of providers of programming content (such as sports leagues) are covered by labor agreements with their employers. From time to time, collective bargaining agreements and other labor agreements expire, requiring renegotiation of their terms. In general, labor disputes and work stoppages involving our employees; persons employed on our productions; athletes or others employed by, or otherwise connected with, sports leagues or organizers; or the employees of our licensees or retailers who sell our licensed consumer products or providers of programming content may disrupt or lead to closure of certain operations and reduce our revenues and the profitability of our businesses. For example, in fiscal 2023, members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) commenced a work stoppage, which lasted for almost five months, and members of SAG-AFTRA, the union representing television and movie actors, also commenced a work stoppage, which lasted for almost four months. These work stoppages affected our productions and the pipeline for programming and theatrical releases, which resulted in reduced revenue for the impacted businesses. The resulting collective bargaining agreements with these and other entertainment guilds, some of which are scheduled to expire in fiscal 2026, and with certain labor unions at our domestic parks and resorts will increase our costs to create our content and to operate our domestic parks and resorts, respectively. The new collective bargaining agreements with these and another entertainment guild and recently with certain labor unions at our domestic parks and resorts will increase our costs to create our content and to operate our domestic parks and resorts, respectively. As a general matter, resolution of labor disputes and negotiation of new collective bargaining agreements, including as a result of rate increases and other changes to employee benefits, has in the past increased our costs and may increase our costs in the future.
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The seasonality of certain of our businesses and timing of certain of our product offerings could exacerbate negative impacts on our operations.
Each of our businesses is normally subject to seasonal variations and variations in connection with the timing of our product offerings, including as follows:
•Revenues at the Experiences segment fluctuate with changes in theme park attendance and resort occupancy resulting from the seasonal nature of vacation travel and leisure activities and seasonal consumer purchasing behavior, which generally results in increased revenues during the Company’s first and fourth fiscal quarters. Peak attendance and resort occupancy generally occur during the summer months when school vacations occur and during early winter and spring holiday periods. Revenues at the Experiences segment also sometimes fluctuate with changes in theme park attendance and resort occupancy resulting from special celebrations or events that increase demand in the applicable periods and decrease demand in prior or later periods as guests time their vacations to occur during such special celebrations or events. In addition, licensing revenues fluctuate with the timing and performance of our theatrical releases and cable programming broadcasts.
•Revenues from television networks and stations are subject to seasonal and other cyclical advertising patterns and changes in viewership levels, including related to certain sporting events. In general, domestic general entertainment linear networks advertising revenues are typically somewhat higher during the fall and somewhat lower during the summer months, domestic advertising revenues are typically higher during election cycles and sports advertising revenues are impacted by the timing of sports seasons and events, which varies throughout the year and/or take place periodically. In general, domestic general entertainment linear networks advertising revenues are typically somewhat higher during the fall and somewhat lower during the summer months, 23TABLE OF CONTENTSand sports advertising revenues are impacted by the timing of sports seasons and events, which varies throughout the year and/or take place periodically.
•Revenues from content sales/licensing fluctuate due to the timing of content releases across various distribution markets. Release dates and methods are determined by a number of factors, including, among others, competition, and the timing of vacation and holiday periods.
•DTC revenues fluctuate based on changes in the number of subscribers, mix of subscribers to different offerings and subscriber fees; viewership levels; and the demand for sports and film and television content. Each of these is sensitive to the availability of content, which varies from time to time throughout the year based on, among other things, sports seasons, content production schedules and sports league work stoppages.
Accordingly, negative impacts on our business occurring during a time of typical high seasonal demand such as our park closures due to hurricane damage during the summer travel season or other high seasons, could have a disproportionate effect on the results of that business for the year.
Our operations are impacted by our ability to attract and retain employees and costs of employee wages and health, welfare and retirement benefits, including postretirement medical benefits for some employees and retirees, may negatively impact our results of operations and financial condition.
With approximately 231,000 employees, the success of our businesses is substantially affected by our ability to attract and retain a workforce with the necessary skills for our varied businesses, including executing successfully on succession planning for the talent at all levels necessary to advance the Company’s key objectives and strategies. Further, our results of operations are substantially affected by labor costs, including wages and our health, welfare and retirement benefits, including the costs of medical benefits for current employees and the costs of postretirement medical benefits for some current employees and retirees. Further, our profitability is substantially affected by labor costs, including wages and our health, welfare and retirement benefits, including the costs of medical benefits for current employees and the costs of postretirement medical benefits for some current employees and retirees. We may experience significant increases in these costs as a result of macroeconomic, regulatory, competitive and other factors. For example, labor costs in our parks and resorts have increased, and we expect will continue to increase, as a result of collective bargaining agreements and wage laws and regulations where we operate. Further, the cost of providing medical insurance and other medical benefits for our employees have increased, and we expect will continue to increase. In addition, for benefits provided to certain employees, changes in asset values, investment returns and discount rates used to calculate pension and postretirement medical expense and related assets and liabilities can be volatile and may have an unfavorable impact on our costs in some years. These factors may also increase future funding requirements for these benefit plans. There can be no assurance that we will succeed in attracting and retaining the human resources necessary for the success of our businesses or in limiting cost increases from wages and other employee benefits, negatively impacting our results of operations and financial condition.
RISKS RELATED TO INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, LITIGATION, CYBERSECURITY AND REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS
The success of our businesses is highly dependent on the existence and maintenance of intellectual property rights in the entertainment products and services we create.
The value to us of our IP is dependent on the scope and duration of our rights as defined by applicable laws in the U.S. and abroad and the manner in which those laws are construed. Where those laws are drafted or interpreted in ways that limit the extent or duration of our rights, or if existing laws are changed, our ability to generate revenue from our IP may decrease, or the cost of obtaining and maintaining rights may increase. In the United States and countries that look to the United States
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copyright term when shorter than their own, the copyright term for early works and the specific early versions of characters depicted in those works expires at the end of the 95th calendar year after the date the copyright was originally secured in the United States. The terms of some copyrights for IP related to some of our products and services have expired, and other copyrights will expire in the future. The terms of some copyrights for IP related to some of our products and services have expired, including the copyright term for the short film Steamboat Willie (1928) and early versions of characters depicted in this film, and other copyrights will expire in the future. For example, the copyright term for the short film Steamboat Willie (1928) and early versions of characters depicted in this film have expired. As copyrights expire, we expect that revenues generated from such IP will be negatively impacted to some extent.
The unauthorized use of our IP typically increases our costs, including in connection with our efforts to protect rights in our IP, and may reduce our revenues. The convergence of computing, communications and entertainment devices, increased broadband internet speed and penetration, increased availability and speed of mobile data transmission and increasingly sophisticated attempts to obtain unauthorized access to data systems have made the unauthorized digital copying and distribution of our films, television productions and other creative works easier and faster and protection and the enforcement of IP rights more challenging. The unauthorized distribution and access to entertainment content generally continues to be a significant challenge for IP rights holders. Further, the availability of certain AI tools has facilitated the creation of infringing works based on the unauthorized use of our IP. Inadequate laws or weak enforcement mechanisms to protect entertainment industry IP in one country can adversely affect the results of the Company’s operations worldwide, despite the Company’s efforts to protect its IP rights. Distribution innovations have increased opportunities to access content in unauthorized ways. Additionally, negative economic conditions or a shift in government priorities or policies could lead to less enforcement. Additionally, negative economic conditions coupled with a shift in government priorities could lead to less enforcement. These developments require us to devote substantial resources to protecting our IP against unlicensed use and present the risk of increased losses of revenue as a result of unlicensed distribution of our content and other commercial misuses of our IP. The legal landscape for some new technologies, including some AI tools, remains uncertain, and development of the law or other regulatory frameworks in this area could impact our ability to protect against unauthorized uses. The legal landscape for some new technologies, including some AI tools, remains uncertain, and development of the law in this area could impact our ability to protect against infringing uses.
With respect to IP developed by the Company and rights acquired by the Company from others, the Company is subject to the risk of challenges to our copyright, trademark and patent rights by third parties. In addition, the availability of copyright protection and other legal protections for IP generated by certain new technologies, such as generative AI, is uncertain. Successful challenges to our rights in IP typically result in increased costs for obtaining rights or the loss of the opportunity to earn revenue from or utilize the IP that is the subject of challenged rights. Routinely, third parties allege that the Company is infringing certain third-party IP rights. Technological changes in industries in which the Company operates and extensive patent coverage in those areas increase the risk of such claims being brought and prevailing. For example, from time to time, the Company’s streaming services and technology are the subject of patent infringement litigation and other claims seeking damages and injunctive relief, and the resolution of these matters in aggregate may negatively impact our results of operations.
We face risks from claims, litigation, governmental investigations and other proceedings to our businesses, reputation, results of operation and financial condition.
We are subject to various actual and threatened claims, litigation, investigations and other proceedings, including private individual actions, class actions and actions and investigations by governmental and other regulatory authorities, relating to a range of issues, including securities; competition and antitrust; intellectual property, including patent and copyright; employment and labor; taxes; privacy and data protection; data security; personal injury and property damage; consumer protection; contractual and commercial disputes; the production, distribution and licensing of our content; and other matters. For example, a private securities class action lawsuit was filed in federal court against the Company and certain current and former senior management on behalf of certain purchasers of securities of the Company seeking unspecified damages, plus interest and costs and fees, and an adverse final judgment or the terms of a settlement of such matter could result in the payment of substantial monetary damages. See Note 14 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for more details regarding this lawsuit and above in these risk factors regarding patent infringement litigation and other claims. In addition, from time to time, we pursue litigation against third parties seeking to vindicate our rights.
Actual and threatened proceedings and investigations increase our costs, divert management resources and disrupt business operations and may negatively impact our reputation and brands. The outcomes of such matters are inherently unpredictable, and determining legal reserves or potential losses from such matters involves judgment. If the losses to resolve such matters exceed the amounts recorded in any given reporting period, our results of operations for that interim or annual reporting period could be materially adversely affected. Further, from time to time, adverse resolutions or settlements of such matters result in substantial monetary damages or substantial future payment obligations and injunctive relief or other orders or actions that limit or prevent our implementation of our business plans, including our ability to complete strategic transactions and offer certain products and services, impact the enforcement or validity of our property and other (including intellectual property) rights, franchises and licenses or cause us to alter our business practices, which individually or taken together, negatively impact our business prospects, our results of operations, our financial condition and price of our common stock. While we maintain insurance for certain types of claims, our insurance may not be adequate to cover all losses and does not cover all types of claims that may arise.
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Cybersecurity and other data compromises and/or attempted compromises increase our costs, disrupt our services and business plans, lead to the disclosure of our confidential information, including unauthorized use of our intellectual property, and negatively impact our reputation.
We maintain information necessary to conduct our businesses, including confidential and proprietary information as well as personal information regarding our customers and employees, in digital form.We maintain information necessary to conduct our business, including confidential and proprietary information as well as personal information regarding our customers and employees, in digital form. We also use computer and cloud-based systems to deliver our products and services and operate our businesses. Such data and systems are subject to the risk of compromise and other cyberattacks, including unauthorized access, modification, exfiltration, destruction or denial of access, which also can result in disruptions in service. We also provide confidential, proprietary and personal information to third parties in certain cases and use many third-party systems and software, which are also subject to compromise and other cyberattacks.
We have developed and maintain an information security program to assess, identify and manage cyber risks and the continued development and maintenance of this program is costly and requires ongoing monitoring and updating as technologies change, including as a result of the proliferation of AI tools, and efforts to overcome security measures become more sophisticated. We face an increasingly challenging cybersecurity environment with expanding and evolving threats from a variety of potential bad actors. While we employ various tools in an effort to protect our data and systems, certain aspects of our defenses remain subject to human error. Remote work by our employees and contractors and those of the third parties with whom we engage create additional risks. Despite our efforts, the risk of a potentially material incident as a result of unauthorized access, modification, exfiltration, destruction or denial of access with respect to data or systems and other cybersecurity attacks cannot be eliminated, and from time to time our systems and third-party systems have been compromised in this manner, and are subject to the risk of future compromise. Despite our efforts, the risk of a potentially material incident as a result of unauthorized access, modification, exfiltration, destruction or denial of access with respect to data or systems and other cybersecurity attacks cannot be eliminated, and from time to time our systems have been compromised and may in the future be compromised.
If our information or cyber security systems or data are compromised in a material way, our ability to conduct our business may be impaired, we may lose profitable opportunities or the value of those opportunities may be diminished and, as described above, we may lose revenue as a result of unlicensed use of our intellectual property. We have experienced and may in the future experience cybersecurity attacks that result in the misappropriation of personal information of our customers and/or employees, which may result in reputational damage, loss of business and/or harm to employee morale. Related remediation of harm to our customers and employees or damages arising from litigation and/or fines or other actions we take with respect to judicial or regulatory actions arising out of an incident create additional costs and/or impacts to our businesses. Insurance does not cover all potential losses or damages associated with such attacks or events. Our systems and users and those of third parties with whom we engage are continually attacked, sometimes successfully, and there can be no assurance that future incidents will not have material adverse effects on our operations or financial results.
Regulations applicable to our businesses impact the profitability of our businesses.25TABLE OF CONTENTSRegulations applicable to our businesses impact the profitability of our businesses.
Each of our businesses, including our broadcast networks and television stations, is subject to a variety of U.S. and international regulations, which impact the operations and profitability of our businesses. Some of these regulations include:
•U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulation of our television and radio networks, our national programming networks and our owned television stations. See Item 1 — Federal Communications Commission Regulation.
•Federal, state and foreign privacy and data protection laws and regulations, including with respect to child safety. See Item 1 — Privacy and Data Protection Regulation.
•Regulation of the safety and supply chain of consumer products and theme park operations, including regulation regarding the sourcing, importation and the sale of goods.
•Land planning, use and development regulations applicable to our theme parks operations.
•Environmental protection and sustainability regulations.
•U.S. and international anti-corruption laws, sanction programs, trade restrictions, tariffs, anti-money laundering laws or currency controls.
•Restrictions on the manner in which content is currently licensed and distributed, ownership restrictions or film or television content requirements, investment obligations or quotas. See Item 1 — International Content Regulation.
•Domestic and international labor laws, tax laws and antitrust laws.
Laws and regulations in any of these and other areas and changes in judicial and agency interpretation or regulatory priorities, actions or initiatives (or, if applicable, private litigation to enforce such laws and regulations), as well as an increasingly unpredictable regulatory landscape, require us to incur additional costs and may limit our ability to implement our business strategies as planned or offer products and services in ways that are profitable, or at all.New laws and regulations, as well as changes in any of these current laws and regulations or regulator activities (or, if applicable, private litigation to enforce such laws and regulations) in any of these areas, or others, may require us to incur additional compliance costs, may restrict our ability to execute on our business strategies as planned or offer products and services in ways that are profitable, and create an increasingly unpredictable regulatory landscape. In addition, ongoing and future developments in international political, trade and security policy may lead to new regulations that increase the cost of providing our products and services, negatively impact demand for our products and services and limit international trade and investment,
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disrupting our operations in and outside the U.S., including our international theme parks and resorts operations in France, mainland China and Hong Kong.
For example, in 2022 the U.S. and other countries implemented a series of sanctions against Russia in response to events in Russia and Ukraine; U.S. agencies have enhanced trade restrictions, including new prohibitions on the importation of goods from certain regions and other jurisdictions are considering similar measures; and U.S. state governments have become more active in passing legislation targeted at specific sectors and companies and applying existing laws in novel ways to new technologies, including streaming and online commerce. In 2025, tariffs were announced with respect to and by certain U.S. trading partners, which could, depending on how these or future tariffs or other regulations with respect to trade are implemented, have a significant impact on our results of operations, including by impacting the macroeconomic environment, increasing costs or adversely affecting demand for our products and services. Further, the legal and regulatory landscape for certain new technologies, such as AI, is uncertain and evolving and our compliance obligations could increase our costs or limit how we may use these technologies in one or more of our businesses.
Our operations outside the U.S. are affected by the operation of laws in those jurisdictions.
Our operations outside the U.S. are in many cases subject to the laws of the jurisdictions in which they operate rather than, or in addition to, U.S. law. Laws in some international jurisdictions differ in significant respects from those in the U.S. These differences can affect our ability to react to changes in our businesses, and our rights or ability to enforce rights are sometimes different than would be expected under U.S. law. Moreover, enforcement of laws in some international jurisdictions can be inconsistent and unpredictable, which can affect both our ability to enforce our rights and to undertake activities that we believe are beneficial to our businesses. In addition, the business and political climate in some jurisdictions may encourage corruption, which could reduce our ability to compete successfully in those jurisdictions while remaining in compliance with local laws or U.S. anti-corruption laws applicable to our businesses. As a result, our ability to generate revenue and our expenses in non-U.S. jurisdictions may differ from what would be expected if U.S. law alone governed these operations.
RISKS RELATED TO OWNERSHIP OF OUR STOCK
The price of our common stock has been, and may continue to be, volatile.
The price of our common stock has experienced substantial volatility and may continue to be volatile. Various factors have impacted, and may continue to impact, the price of our common stock, including, among others, changes in management; variations in our operating results; variations between our actual results and expectations of securities analysts; changes in our estimates, guidance or business plans; changes in financial estimates and recommendations by securities analysts; the activities, operating results or stock price of our competitors or other industry participants in the industries in which we operate; the announcement or completion of significant transactions by us or a competitor; events affecting the stock market generally; and the economic, trade and political conditions in the U.S. and internationally, as well as other factors described in this Item 1A. Some of these factors may adversely impact the price of our common stock, regardless of our operating performance. Further, volatility in the price of our common stock may negatively impact one or more of our businesses, including by increasing stock awards for our employees who participate in our stock incentive programs or limiting our financing options for acquisitions and other business expansion.
GENERAL RISKS
The Company’s amended and restated bylaws provide to the fullest extent permitted by law that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will be the exclusive forum for certain legal actions between the Company and its stockholders, which could increase costs to bring a claim, discourage claims or limit the ability of the Company’s stockholders to bring a claim in a judicial forum viewed by the stockholders as more favorable for disputes with the Company or the Company’s directors, officers or other employees.
The Company’s amended and restated bylaws provide to the fullest extent permitted by law that unless the Company consents in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will be the sole and exclusive forum for any (i) derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of the Company, (ii) any action or proceeding asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any current or former director, officer or stockholder of the Company to the Company or the Company’s stockholders, (iii) any action or proceeding asserting a claim arising pursuant to, or seeking to enforce any right, obligation or remedy under, any provision of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the “DGCL”), the Certificate of Incorporation or these Bylaws (as each may be amended from time to time), (iv) any action or proceeding as to which the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware confers jurisdiction on the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware, (v) or any action or proceeding asserting a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine. The choice of forum provision may increase costs to bring a claim, discourage claims or limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with the Company or the Company’s directors, officers or other employees, which may discourage such lawsuits against the Company or the Company’s directors, officers and other employees. Alternatively, if a court were to find the choice of forum provision contained in the Company’s amended and restated bylaws to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, the Company may incur additional costs associated with resolving such action in
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other jurisdictions. The exclusive forum provision in the Company’s amended and restated bylaws will not preclude or contract the scope of exclusive federal or concurrent jurisdiction for actions brought under the federal securities laws including the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the respective rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
ITEM 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments
The Company has received no written comments regarding its periodic or current reports from the staff of the SEC that were issued 180 days or more preceding the end of fiscal 2025 that remain unresolved.
ITEM 1C. Cybersecurity
Risk Management and Strategy
Further, as part of our cybersecurity risk management processes, we maintain a cybersecurity incident response plan (CIRP) that establishes a set of procedures for reporting and handling cybersecurity events.Further, as part of our cybersecurity risk management processes, we maintain an incident response plan (IRP) that establishes a set of procedures for reporting and handling cybersecurity events. The CIRP delegates to an internal incident response team the initial assessment, investigation and remediation of the event and includes, among other procedures, guidelines for escalation to senior management and engagement with law enforcement. In certain instances, events are escalated to the Cybersecurity Incident Disclosure Subcommittee, which is a subcommittee of the Company’s Risk Management Committee (RMC) (discussed further below) and is responsible for, among other things, the accurate and timely disclosure of material cybersecurity incidents under the federal securities laws, including making the materiality determination and approving related securities disclosures.
As discussed in further detail in Item 1A – Risk Factors, the Company faces an increasingly challenging cybersecurity environment, and from time to time the persistent efforts of bad actors to gain unauthorized access to our and our service providers’ information systems and our confidential and proprietary information are successful. In fiscal 2025, we did not identify any cybersecurity threats that have materially affected or are reasonably likely to materially affect our business strategy, results of operations or financial condition. However, despite our efforts, we cannot eliminate all risks from cybersecurity threats or provide assurances that we have not experienced undetected cybersecurity incidents or will not discover additional information about previously detected events.
Governance
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Day-to-day management of our information security strategy and operations is currently the responsibility of our CISO, who reports to our Chief Information and Data Officer and our Chief Security Officer, both of whom report to our Chief Financial Officer. Our CISO has approximately 15 years of experience working in information security positions, including having served as CISO for publicly traded companies. That experience is supplemented by the collective experience and expertise of our dedicated internal teams of cybersecurity personnel.
In addition, the Company’s RMC, a management level committee that includes, among others, the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Legal and Compliance Officer, oversees and supports the Company’s ongoing efforts to identify, assess and prioritize, manage and monitor the Company’s enterprise risks, including risks related to privacy and cybersecurity, and periodically reports certain discussions to the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Audit Committee. The RMC’s Cybersecurity Incident Disclosure Subcommittee, whose members include the members of the RMC, the CISO and lead securities counsel, is tasked with assessing significant events for materiality, related timely and accurate disclosure under the securities laws and, as appropriate, escalating such events to the Audit Committee and the Board of Directors.
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