By Gary Symons
TLL Editor in Chief
The Walt Disney Company is moving its lucrative consumer products division under the umbrella of Disney Entertainment.
It’s a huge move for Disney, as Disney Consumer Products (DCP) is the largest licensor in the world by revenue, earning an astounding $63 billion in retail sales in 2025.
The plan to shift DCP under Disney Entertainment was first unveiled yesterday (Tuesday), just prior to today’s earnings report. The plan will see Disney Consumer Products moving from the Experiences division to Disney Entertainment, and more specifically under the company’s Studios operation, according to a joint memo from Thomas Mazloum, chairman of Disney Experiences and Alan Bergman, chairman of Disney Entertainment Studios.
“Disney Consumer Products will shift the majority of its businesses to Disney Entertainment, sitting within the Studios, beginning October 2026,” the memo says. “This evolution reflects how these businesses operate today and strengthens that model by more directly linking our consumer products businesses with the creative and business teams behind the content.”
In essence, that means Disney wants to create more synergies between its content creators and its consumer product licensing business by putting its IP creators in the same room as the people who subsequently create or license products based on that IP.
“At its best, this work happens when storytelling, commerce and experiences come together from the very beginning, creating cohesion across the entire Disney ecosystem and extending the relevance of our franchises for generations,” the memo said.
Disney also described the restructuring as a “work in progress,” indicating more changes will likely be announced in coming weeks. Right now the details are still pretty slim, but the changes won’t take full effect for roughly two months. It is known that Disney Consumer Products president Lisa Baldzicki will continue running the division. She was appointed to that position in March by new CEO Josh D’Amaro,
This is also D’Amaro’s second major move in terms of restructuring Disney’s operations. Shortly after taking on the role of CEO, D’Amaro announced the Games and Digital Entertainment division under Sean Shoptaw was moved from Disney Experiences to become part of Disney Entertainment. Shoptaw now reports to Dana Walden, who is Disney Entertainment’s Co-Chairman, and is also the president and Chief Creative Officer for The Walt Disney Company.
The changes will certainly have a major impact on the global licensing industry, as Disney Consumer Products is the world’s largest licensor by a wide margin. In fact, the Disney memo says DCP is “outperforming its nearest competitor by nearly three to one.”
The other companies in the list of the top five global licensors is made up of Authentic Brands Group ($36 billion), People Inc.($27 billion) NBCUniversal ($20 billion), and Hasbro ($17.5 billion).
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