Disney looks beyond traditional studio model

Walt Disney Co is developing an Internet subscription service and may consider trimming studio output, executives said on Tuesday after the division posted a 97 percent decline in operating income. Disney said on Tuesday it will continue to reposition itself for a changing marketplace as industrywide DVD sales slump and as more and more consumers look online for content, even though a clear business model for online distribution has not yet emerged. "We realize that monetizing at a rate that is as robust as the traditional platforms doesn't exist yet, but we believe... that eventually it will," Disney chief executive officer Bob Iger said. Disney last week announced it would buy a 30 percent stake in Hulu.com, bringing popular TV shows such as "Lost" and "Grey's Anatomy" to the video Web site founded by General Electric's NBC Universal and News Corp. Disney became the third major U.S. broadcast network to take a stake in Hulu.