Disney Plans to Launch Publishing Unit

Walt Disney Co., seeking to expand its magic kingdom, on Monday announced plans to open a general-interest publishing division next year.

Charles P. Wickham, group vice president for Disney Publishing, said the company will release about 50 titles its first year. The New York-based division, which has yet to be named, will offer books geared to adults as well as children, he added.

“The adult business seemed like a natural,” Wickham said. “Strategically, with Touchstone and Hollywood Pictures we already go far.” “They start out 10 steps ahead of anybody else, in that they have a built-in back-list,” Newberg said. “All they have to do is convert the creatures they’ve created into books.”

Newberg and others in publishing circles said it’s doubtful that Disney will drive up industrywide costs by engaging in bidding wars for top-selling authors, who often command multimillion-dollar advances. The company is more likely to pattern itself after Touchstone Pictures, they said, which is known for producing very profitable films on relatively modest budgets.

Roger Straus Jr. of Farrar, Straus & Giroux Inc. publishers said it’s difficult to argue with Disney’s track record in other areas in recent years.

“Betting against the Disney of the moment is like betting against the New York Yankees of the 1950s,” Straus said. “They always seem to be in the World Series. And if they want to play in this ballpark, history would seem to be on their side.”

beyond family fare, and it seems that the same opportunities are available in publishing.”

The new Disney division, which has yet to sign any authors, will merge with a children’s publishing wing formed in July. Robert Miller, formerly vice president of Dell Publishing, will head the operation.

Wickham declined to say how much Disney will invest in the new arm. Publishing profit tends to be far below what Disney realizes from its theme park and retailing operations, where pretax profit margins exceed 30%. But news of the Burbank-based company’s plans was well received in financial and publishing circles.

Peter Appert, a securities analyst with C. J. Lawrence, Morgan Grenfell Inc. in New York, said Disney’s deep pockets and aggressive marketing techniques should make the company highly competitive. Appert said publishing also fits well with Disney’s other entertainment ventures, such as film, television, theme parks and retailing.

“It’s another way to grow the business,” Appert said. “They’ve already got great brand awareness and management strength, so I would give them good odds of success.”

Esther Newberg, who co-heads the literary division of the talent agency International Creative Management, called the idea “brilliant.” Newberg said Disney can rely on strong revenue from its children’s division while it builds the rest of the business.