Disney chief technology officer (CTO) Aaron LaBerge, who held the same role at ESPN, is leaving the company for the same job at Penn Entertainment.
Penn runs ESPN Bet, the digital sportsbook licensed by ESPN.
Per CNBC, LaBerge will remain with Disney through the end of June and is departing the company for “personal reasons.”
ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro and Disney co-Chairmen Dana Walden and Alan Bergman praised LaBerge in a note to employees.
“We want to thank Aaron for the contributions he has made and the leadership he has provided at Disney over his 20 years,” said ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro and Disney Entertainment co-Chairmen Dana Walden and Alan Bergman in an internal note to employees. “It is a silver lining that he will continue to help Disney and ESPN win, as he transitions to a role at PENN Entertainment — where he will be a key partner in the continued growth and success of ESPN BET (and the rest of their Interactive business).”
This was LaBerge’s second tenure with the company. His first run was from 1997 to 2007, and he returned in 2013 as the SVP of technology and product development. In 2014, LaBerge was named as the successor to ESPN CTO Chuck Pagano, taking over the CTO role in 2015. He was named the first CTO of Disney Direct-To-Consumer and International (DTCI) in 2018.
