Disney Expands Metaverse Plans

Disney has poached a top gaming executive from Apple to oversee the media giant’s foray into the metaverse.

The Burbank-based company has hired Mark Bozon to be its vice president of Next Generation Storytelling creative experiences. In that role, Bozon will play a key part in crafting Disney’s strategy for the metaverse—the loosely-defined term for immersive, virtual reality-aided online experiences.

Who is Mark Bozon, and why has he been hired? Bozon is a 12-year Apple veteran who worked in the company’s creative and gaming business. His official title at Disney is VP of next generation storytelling and creative experiences, and he was hired to build a team which will work on interconnected consumer experiences across immersive storytelling mediums. His team will collaborate with colleagues from across all of Disney’s businesses.

That echoes what Disney CEO Bob Chapek told CNBC in February, when he described the metaverse as “a third dimension of the canvas that we let our creative people paint.” Chapek noted that the company could parlay the digital realm across its wide array of assets, from film and media to theme parks and resorts. Thus far, Disney’s moves include bringing augmented reality to its theme parks and selling digital artwork using its vast trove of intellectual property.

“If the metaverse is the blending of the physical and the digital in one environment, who can do it better than Disney?” Chapek said.