Sweeney

Disney Media Networks Co-Chairman Anne Sweeney again stressed the importance of bringing television content to mobile devices - it is a "critical" area of growth, she said.

Sweeney, speaking this week at the Reuters Media Summit in New York, said Disney Media Networks expects that live TV on cellphones and other mobile devices will help media companies reach new audiences, Reuters reports. Disney's ABC TV network has already licensed around 250 hours of its top shows "Lost" and "Desperate Housewives" to South Korean wireless phone operator TU Media Corp., she said.

"We're learning from Korea about a transition that will be happening in the rest of the world," Sweeney added. When pressed to speculate on when live mobile TV would reach the U.S., Sweeney said " certainly within the next 12 to, on the outside, 24 months - more like 12-18."

Disney has been aggressive in pursuing new technologies to reach viewers. Its shows were the first available on Apple's iTunes, and Disney was also the first media company to make full-length feature films available on iTunes.