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Disney, Facebook And Twitter Are Having Trouble Avoiding Conflicts

Disney announced Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg won't seek re-election to its board.
Posted at 11:42 AM, Jan 13, 2018
and last updated 2018-01-13 11:42:49-05

Twitter and Facebook executives are running into some problems with Disney.

Disney says Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg won't seek re-election to its board over conflicts of interests.

The decision has a lot to do with the social media giants branching into Disney territory — news outlets point to Twitter and Facebook vying to stream live sports events and other media.

Twitter struck a deal with the NFL last year to air a 30-minute live show during football season. Facebook also streamed 15 college football games in 2017 as part of a deal with Stadium.

That's a big deal for Disney, which owns ESPN. The company said it's getting more difficult to avoid these types of conflicts.

The news of Dorsey and Sandberg's exit is somewhat of an acknowledgment of Twitter and Facebook's roles as media companies — something Facebook, at least, has been reluctant to publicly embrace.