Disney Plus Head Kevin Mayer Resigns To Become TikTok CEO

Kevin Mayer, former chairman of the Direct-to-Consumer & International (DTCI) division of The Walt Disney Company, will soon become the CEO of TikTok, the popular video-sharing social networking service owned by Chinese company, ByteDance. He will also become ByteDance's COO.

Both these positions were created just for him, and Mayer will join the Chinese firms June 1. Founded in 2012 by Zhang Yiming, TikTok is used to create short dance, lip-sync, comedy and talent videos.

Before he resigned, Mayer was considered a leading contender to succeed Bob Iger as Disney CEO, but was passed over in favor of Bob Chapek, former head of parks and resorts.

Mayer will report to Zhang and will be tasked with driving ByteDance's global development. He will also be responsible for corporate development, sales, marketing, public affairs, security and legal affairs.

In addition, Mayer will oversee TikTok’s global expansion and lead its push into music, gaming and emerging businesses. At TikTok, Mayer will have his hands full keeping TikTok competitive against Facebook, Snapchat and other social media giants.

“I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to join the amazing team at ByteDance,” said Mayer. “Like everyone else, I’ve been impressed watching the company build something incredibly rare in TikTok -- a creative, positive online global community – and I’m excited to help lead the next phase of ByteDance’s journey as the company continues to expand its breadth of products across every region of the world.”

Zhang said Mayer's wealth of experience building successful global businesses makes him an outstanding fit for the company's mission of inspiring creativity among users globally.

"As one of the world’s most accomplished entertainment executives, Kevin is incredibly well placed to take ByteDance’s portfolio of products to the next level," said Zhang. "I look forward to working very closely with Kevin on our global development and the next chapter of the ByteDance story."

Analysts said Mayer’s greatest achievement at Disney was leading the development of Disney Plus, the company’s wildly successful streaming service launched in November 2019. Disney Plus now has more than 50 million subscribers. Mayer also played key roles in Disney’s four major acquisitions alongside Iger: Pixar, Lucasfilm, Marvel Studios and 21st Century Fox.

“Kevin has had an extraordinary impact on our company over the years, most recently as head of our direct-to-consumer business,” said Chapek.

Mayer’s job as DTCI chairman will be taken over by Rebecca Campbell. Josh D’Amaro will become chairman of Disney’s parks, experiences, and products (PEP).

Campbell will drive the next phase of Disney Plus' growth as the service rolls out in new global markets. Disney Plus will launch in Western Europe and India this spring, and will debut in Japan in June. Disney Plus will then open in the Nordics, Belgium, Luxembourg and Portugal in September, and Latin America later in the year.

D’Amaro will drive innovation and enhance the guest experience across PEP’s theme parks, cruise line, retail and other operations. He continues to focus on leading teams that deliver the “Disney Difference” to guests around the world.