Item 1A. Risk Factors
ITEM 1A. Risk Factors
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 factors discussed in our 2025 Annual Report on Form 10-K under Item 1A, “Risk Factors” as updated below. These disclosures reflect the Company’s beliefs and opinions as to factors that could materially and adversely affect the Company and its securities in the future. References to past events are provided by way of example only and are not intended to be a complete listing or a representation as to all events that have occurred in the past or their likelihood of occurring in the future.
RISKS RELATED TO OUR BUSINESSES AND INDUSTRY
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. For example, in the first quarter of fiscal 2026, the Company’s channels were temporarily removed from YouTube TV following the expiration of the parties’ distribution contract without agreement on renewal terms. Further, 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. 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 direct-to-consumer (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.
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. See our 2025 Annual Report on Form 10-K under Item 1 – ENTERTAINMENT – Competition and Seasonality; – SPORTS – Competition and Seasonality; and – EXPERIENCES – Competition and Seasonality and Part 1, Item 2 – SEASONALITY in this Form 10-Q for a discussion of seasonal and other timing variations, as well as certain other fluctuations, on our results of operations. Further, 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 or sports league work stoppages during that sports season, could have a disproportionate effect on the results of that business for the year.
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RISKS RELATED TO INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, LITIGATION, CYBERSECURITY AND REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS
We face risks related to the intellectual property rights that we hold as well as rights asserted by third parties.
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 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. 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. 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.
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.
The Company is also subject to the risk of claims and litigation asserting 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, the Company’s streaming services and technology are subject to patent infringement claims and litigation both in the United States and outside the United States. In defending such matters, we have developed, and may in the future develop, alternatives to features, functionalities and services in the relevant jurisdictions or more broadly, which increase our costs through investment of engineering and other resources and may result in some customers discontinuing use of our services. Adverse results in these matters and other matters asserting infringement of other types of third-party IP rights may include substantial payments by us, including royalties, licensing fees or monetary awards, and orders preventing us from offering or requiring us to change certain features, functionalities or services, which could harm our businesses and in aggregate 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; broadcasting; 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 12 to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for more details regarding this lawsuit and our 2025 Annual Report on Form 10-K under Item 1A, “Risk Factors”, as updated by these
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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.
Regulations 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 our 2025 Annual Report on Form 10-K under Item 1 — Federal Communications Commission Regulation.
• Federal, state and foreign privacy and data protection laws and regulations, including with respect to child safety. See our 2025 Annual Report on Form 10-K under 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 our 2025 Annual Report on Form 10-K under 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. 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, 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. Tariffs announced with respect to and by certain U.S. trading partners, 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. In April 2026, the FCC ordered the Company to file early license renewal applications for all of our owned television stations by May 28, 2026.
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.
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Text extracted from the filing as submitted to EDGAR. Formatting, tables and exhibits are simplified for reading; the original document is authoritative for anything you rely on.