• Orlando Sentinel/Bloomberg News, Thursday, April 26, 2007 1:45 PM

Seeking to simplify the company's marketing and reduce costs by narrowing most brand names to Disney, ABC and ESPN, Disney CEO Robert Iger will change the name of its Buena Vista entertainment divisions to Disney within weeks, sources say.

Buena Vista was the third-largest domestic film distributor in 2006. The name dates from 1953, when Walt Disney and his brother Roy founded an in-house operation to sell the company's live-action and animated films to cinema owners. Named for the street in Burbank, Calif., where the studios and corporate headquarters are located, Buena Vista later became Disney's name for divisions such as its music group and software publisher.

The change affects Buena Vista Distribution and Buena Vista Home Entertainment, say the sources. While the change has yet to be announced, the company will continue to use the Touchstone, Miramax and Pixar film studio names.

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