Disney CTO Aaron LaBerge leaves the company for personal reasons | Wilnesh News

Disney Entertainment and ESPN chief technology officer Aaron LaBerge is leaving the company, according to an internal memo.

LaBerge serves as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Penn Entertainment, which operates ESPN Bet, an online sportsbook licensed by the sports media company. He will be responsible for driving technology strategy as a senior executive in the company’s interactive division. Laberge is leaving for personal reasons related to his family and will remain at Disney until June, the memo said.

Laberge has been a key figure in developing Disney’s streaming service and, more recently, integrating advertising into Disney+. He also led the effort to unify Hulu and Disney+ into a single streaming app, debuted last month.

At ESPN, LaBerge has been a central figure behind the company’s streaming services, including the upcoming sports streaming app ESPN+, co-owned by Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery Channel and Fox, and ESPN’s flagship series, which will launch in 2025. Streaming services.

His departure adds to a growing list of senior Disney executives who have left the company in recent years. They include former CEO Bob Chapek, former streaming chief Kevin Mayer, former finance chief Christine McCarthy, former Walt Disney Pictures of office chairman Alan Horn, former Disney general counsel Alan Braverman, former communications chief Zenia Mucha and former president of Walt Disney, Sean Bailey.

“We would like to thank Aaron for his 20 years of service and leadership at Disney,” ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro, Disney Entertainment Co-Chairmen Dana Walden and Alan Bergman said in an internal note to employees. “As he moves into his role at PENN Entertainment, there is a silver lining that he will continue to help Disney and ESPN win – he will be a key partner in the continued growth and success of ESPN BET (and their other interactive businesses).” ).

According to his biography, LaBerge has been responsible for “helping set the vision and strategic leadership of the company, guiding how the company uses technology to enable storytelling and innovation, drive business growth, and create amazing consumer experiences through entertainment and sports content.” experience.

The search for LaBerge’s successor is already underway, according to a person familiar with the matter. Chris Lawson, currently Disney’s executive vice president of content operations and one of Laberge’s direct reports, will take over on an interim basis after Laberge leaves.

Laberge first joined Disney as part of the company in the late 1990s. Acquisition of Xingbois a company founded by Paul Allen that worked with ESPN before Disney fully acquired ESPN in 1998.

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