LaBerge’s Departure Marks Another Chapter in Disney’s Streaming Evolution as ESPN Prepares to Launch New Sports Streaming Platform

Disney’s streaming services have been greatly impacted by the work of LaBerge, who has played a significant role in integrating advertising into Disney+ and unifying Hulu and Disney+ within one streaming application. LaBerge’s contributions have been instrumental in the success of Disney’s streaming platforms. At ESPN, he has also been a key figure behind the company’s streaming services, including ESPN+ and the upcoming sports streaming application co-owned by Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, and Fox.

LaBerge’s departure from Disney adds to a list of veteran executives who have left the company in recent years, including former CEO Bob Chapek, former head of streaming Kevin Mayer, and others. ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro and Disney Entertainment co-Chairmen Dana Walden and Alan Bergman thanked LaBerge for his contributions over his 20 years at Disney. They expressed confidence that his transition to a role at PENN Entertainment would continue to benefit Disney and ESPN.

Throughout his career at Disney, LaBerge has been instrumental in setting the vision and strategic leadership for the company’s use of technology to enable storytelling and innovation. As a result of his departure, a search for his successor is already underway, with Chris Lawson, Disney’s executive vice president of content operations set to take on the role on an interim basis. LaBerge first joined Disney in the late 1990s as part of the company’s takeover of Starwave, a Paul Allen-founded company that partnered with ESPN before Disney fully acquired it in 1998.