Disney Poaches Apple Games Exec for Metaverse Plays
06 JUNE 2022 - News of a mind-blowing hire for Disney. A piece from Variety says Mark Bozon, “a top gaming executive from Apple,” has been fitted with a pair of mouse ears. The piece says he’ll now serve “as a senior creative leader for [Disney’s] cross-divisional Next Generation Storytelling initiative — which encompasses Disney’s ‘metaverse’ ambitions.” According to Variety:
As Disney’s VP of Next Generation Storytelling creative experiences, Bozon will be responsible for leading the creative vision for the group and to turn that strategy into executable plans. He’s expected to build a multidisciplinary team that will work with Disney businesses across gaming, film, TV, toys, parks and more to deliver interconnected consumer experiences.
What is it they say about porn? Faced with defining it, a former Supreme Court Justice said he could not, “but I know it when I seen it?” See also: the metaverse. “According to Disney,” according to Variety:
…because the term “metaverse” means different things to different people, the company (…) has coalesced efforts under the Next Generation Storytelling banner and defined a strategy focused on creating “new canvases for storytelling and audience engagement” spanning digital, physical and virtual experiences.
You kind of wonder what Apple’s been working on between realityOS, its anticipated mixed-reality headset, Services, and its storytelling side that made Bozon seem the right fit for Disney. According to a piece over the weekend from the New York Times:
[Apple] has enlisted Hollywood directors such as Jon Favreau to develop video content for a headset that it is expected to ship next year, according to three people familiar with that work. Mr. Favreau, an executive producer of “Prehistoric Planet” on Apple TV+, is working to bring that show’s dinosaurs to life on the headset, (…) and aims to offer virtual- and augmented-reality experiences, these people said.
Entertainment, TV, and Apple TV+ are going to look wildly different in ten-years time. Curious to see what Bozon does at Disney. And whether the company will give him more time than it gave Disney Infinity.
As a matter of fact I am still upset.
