Theme parks and cable lift Disney profits Walt Disney's theme parks and cable networks powered fourth-quarter profits at the media group as Bob Iger, chief executive, sounded a warning about the looming fiscal cliff, when spending cuts and tax increases are due to hit the US economy at the beginning of 2013. "My exhortation to our government is don't even get close to the fiscal cliff," Mr Iger said in an interview with CNBC. Deal with it immediately and deal with it productively. Don't threaten the country and our economy. Disney benefited from a more benign economic environment in its last fiscal year. Healthy spending buoyed Disney's results in the fourth quarter, particularly in the theme parks division, which reported increases in revenues and profits driven by increased guest spending and attendance. Disney is on track to open its next theme park in Shanghai in 2015, Mr Iger told an investor call. ESPN, Disney's sports cable network, lifted profits in the quarter, thanks to higher fees from cable operators that carry the channels. The outlook was less favourable at ABC, Disney's broadcast network, where advertising revenues fell on lower ratings for its programmes. Mr Iger said ratings were being affected by increased use of digital video recorders - which allow viewers to watch programmes when they choose and skip through commercials - but also said there was an "absence of new, buzz-worthy hits . . . Because of that, I would say it is too early to write the epitaph [of broadcasting]. Mr Iger hailed the potential impact on the company of the Star Wars series, following last week's $4bn acquisition of George Lucas's Lucasfilm. "Star Wars is an incredibly relevant, vibrant franchise and a tremendous opportunity for global growth," he said. The purchase, which adds Lucasfilm to other Disney-owned brands, including Pixar, ESPN and Marvel, "will continue to fuel Disney's creative engine." The deal compared with the acquisitions of Pixar and Marvel, he added; Pixar revived the animated output of Disney's own animation studio, which scored at the boxoffice this weekend with Wreck-it Ralph. Revenues for the quarter rose to $10.8bn from $10.4bn last time, while net income increased from $1.09bn to $1.24bn. For the full year, revenues rose from $40.89bn to $42.28bn while net income increased to $5.68bn from $4.8bn the previous year. Diluted earnings per share for the quarter were within analyst expectations at 68 cents, compared with 58 cents last time. For the full year, earnings per share were $3.13 compared with $2.52. The shares fell 2.6 per cent in after-market trading to $48.75.