Streaming Wars: Bob Iger Quits Apple Board

Bob Iger and Tim Cook

Walt Disney Co.’s Chief Executive Robert Iger resigned from Apple Inc. board of directors, the tech giant said on Friday, severing a years-long connection between the two companies as they prepare to launch competing video-streaming services.

He resigned on Tuesday, Apple said in a one-sentence filing to securities regulators, reports The Wall Street Journal.

Iger, who has led Disney as CEO since 2005, joined Apple’s board in 2012 and had a close relationship with Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, born out of the 2006 sale of Pixar Animation Studios to Disney. Mr. Jobs was Pixar’s chairman.

The resignation came on the day Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook announced a $4.99 monthly price for its streaming service, Apple TV+, and said it would become available on Nov. 1. The price undercut Disney’s plan to charge $6.99 for its Disney+ service, also coming in November.

Iger said in a statement that his time on the Apple board was an “extraordinary privilege.” He added: “I have the utmost respect for Tim Cook, his team at Apple, and for my fellow board members.” He didn’t specify why he resigned.

Apple’s price for TV+ was widely seen as an attempt to catch up with established media competitors, including Disney and Netflix Inc., in the intensifying streaming wars and compensate for its smaller programming library. Apple plans to launch TV+ with a handful of original shows, including “The Morning Show,” a drama about a morning TV news show that stars Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston. The tech giant also will try to leverage its huge existing customer base, with more than 1.4 billion devices in use world-wide.

The two companies’ plans to launch competing subscription-video services made it difficult for Iger to remain on the Apple board, according to a person familiar with Iger’s thinking.