As most of Disney's (NYSE: DIS) media juggernaut moves forward like a well-oiled machine, the Interactive Media division has struggled to gain the same traction. Now, after muddling through years of operating losses, the group's leader, Steve Wadsworth, is leaving Disney.

Performance at Interactive Media, which makes video games and Disney's online products, has been mixed in Wadsworth's time there. The division saw 74% revenue growth in the most recent quarter, to $197 million, but it also posted an operating loss of $65 million.

Video games aren't exactly Disney's bread and butter, so it's hardly a surprise this group is struggling. As we've seen in Electronic Arts (Nasdaq: ERTS), a video game maker with a similar one-time sales model, the development of a good game or great characters doesn't necessarily drive profits to the bottom line. Disney has tried to move to a subscription model, similar to Activision Blizzard (Nasdaq: ATVI), at ClubPenguin.com, seeing some success but not meaningful enough to get to profitability.

This may be an opportunity to bring fresh ideas to the group as CEO Bob Iger looks for new leadership. Disney's recent purchase of Playdom, with a series of Facebook, MySpace, and iPhone apps, could push the interactive group in another direction if its CEO, John Pleasants, is chosen for the top spot.

Video games and online interactive games are a tough business to do profitably, even for companies dedicated to it. With that in mind, I don't know if Interactive Media will ever be a meaningful contributor to Disney's bottom line. It strikes me as a business where Disney is trying to find a niche, but where movie brands and characters have not translated well. With the upcoming release of Epic Mickey, we'll see if consumers get a little more excited about Disney's interactive offerings, but investors shouldn't get their hopes up for a wildly profitable future. Break even might be the best Disney can hope for.

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