Disney to stop Go.com

The Walt Disney Co. Monday announced that it will discontinue its Go.com portal as part of its new Internet strategy, which will also convert stock for The Walt Disney Internet Group into common stock for the parent company.

“The Internet continues to be a central focus of our company’s business strategy,” said Michael D. Eisner, chairman and CEO. Other sites that are part of the Walt Disney Internet Group include Family.com, ESPN.com, NFL.com, Soccernet.com, ABC.com, ABCnews.com, Mr. Showbiz, Movies.com and Wall of Sound. These sites will continue to operate.

In the statement, the company said 400 Go.com employees, mostly based in Sunnyvale, Calif., would be “affected,” but it didn’t say whether they would be laid off. The statement also said a “streamlined version of Go.com” will continue to run for an undetermined period of time so users can find content and e-mail services elsewhere. Go.com will also operate the Infoseek search engine as long as the portal is still active.

Disney bought the Infoseek engine in November 1999 and as a result formed the separate business, Go.com, which was later named the Walt Disney Internet Group.

Some of Go.com’s content and services will be found on other Disney-owned sites, according to the statement. E-mail users, for example, can continue service at ABC.com. Disney is evaluating various alternatives for the Go.com assets, including the sale of the Infoseek search engine and site traffic.

The Walt Disney Internet Group will continue to operate under its current management structure as a business segment of The Walt Disney Co. As a result of the conversion of the Disney Internet Group common stock to Disney common stock, The Walt Disney Co. would no longer report separate financial statements for the Disney Internet Group.

Would you recommend this article?

Share

Thanks for taking the time to let us know what you think of this article!
We'd love to hear your opinion about this or any other story you read in our publication.


Jim Love, Chief Content Officer, IT World Canada

Featured Download

Featured Articles

Empowering the hybrid workforce: how technology can build a better employee experience

Across the country, employees from organizations of all sizes expect flexibility...

What’s behind the best customer experience: How to make it real for your business

The best customer experience – the kind that builds businesses and...

Overcoming the obstacles to optimized operations

Network-driven optimization is a top priority for many Canadian business leaders...

Thriving amid Canada’s tech talent shortage

With today’s tight labour market, rising customer demands, fast-evolving cyber threats...

Staying protected and compliant in an evolving IT landscape

Canadian businesses have changed remarkably and quickly over the last few...

Related Tech News

Tech Jobs

Our experienced team of journalists and bloggers bring you engaging in-depth interviews, videos and content targeted to IT professionals and line-of-business executives.

Tech Companies Hiring Right Now