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Sandra Stearns Kuba selected for the Trailblazer Award by IAOTP. October 21, 2026, 18:15 GMT The International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP) will honor Sandra Stearns Kuba at their Annual Awards Gala in NYC at the Plaza Hotel NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, October 21, 2026 / EINPresswire.com / - Sandra Stearns Kuba, Certified Public Accountant at Intuit, was recently selected as The Trailblazer Award by the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP) for her determination, integrity, and commitment to her field. The International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP), a leading global professional organization known for its prestigious annual awards gala and exclusive vetting process, honors only the most accomplished and influential professionals each year. Inclusion with the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP) is an honor in itself. The Trailblazer Award recognizes individuals who have broken barriers, pioneered innovative methods in their industry, and set new standards of excellence in their areas of expertise. In recognition of her extraordinary impact and enduring commitment to her industry, Ms. Sandra Stearns Kuba will be honored with the Trailblazer Award at IAOTP's 2026 Annual Awards Gala. With more than three decades of experience in the industry, Sandra has firmly established herself as a seasoned and trusted expert. A dynamic, results-driven leader, she has achieved success in every position she has held. Her impressive career includes roles as a certified public accountant for Intuit and Disney, as well as accounting-related positions at the American Heart Association, Belkin International, and Orange County National before assuming her current role. While working at Disney, Ms. Kuba played a pivotal role in creating the Product Online Transmission Tool in 2015, which was later dubbed "Mrs. Potts." This innovative tool became the company's central repository for all dining and tour events, and even eight years after its creation, Mrs. Potts continued to be utilized by Disney in 2023, a testament to its lasting impact and Sandra's contributions. Her areas of expertise are vast and include, but are not limited to, collaboration, conflict resolution, efficiency optimization, strategic planning, fraud detection, and tax-related matters. Before embarking on her professional career, Ms. Kuba earned her Bachelor of Accounting degree from Elmira College. She furthered her education at the Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University, where she obtained her master's degree in accounting, equipping her with the knowledge and skills that have contributed to her impressive career. Sandra demonstrated exceptional courage when she became the whistleblower regarding financial and tax fraud and internal control issues at Disney. She revealed that employees at the company had been inflating revenue for years, using methods such as falsely reporting complimentary golf games and other free or discounted promotional services and products as fully paid transactions. According to Ms. Kuba, software flaws allowed these misstatements, and many others, to be entered into Disney's records and SEC Reporting. She also claims that the company manipulated numerous small transactions - particularly at its theme parks - misrepresenting their actual value, which, when accumulated, significantly overstated the company's revenue. Sandra's discovery was made possible through her training, education, and professional experience. Unfortunately, her revelations were not well received by her colleagues, as her findings reached the highest levels of the company. However, the State of Florida's investigation has confirmed the fraud, calling it "the most egregious exhibition of corporate cronyism in modern American history." It is difficult to conceive the idea of mitigating controls when the very foundation of the accounting system is based on transactions that represent fictitious revenue and fake payments." Sandra has continued her investigation while working with the 2012 ABC whistleblower, proving the Board of Directors knew of fraud and manipulation of data within the company, thereby failing their fiduciary duties as well as failing their responsibility to protect multiple whistleblowers. She has further proven that the internal audit department was also involved in the cover up, and has provided new TIPs to the SEC, DOJ, and IRS. Sandra has also provided new information to the PwC whistleblower as well as information to the whistleblower against the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (a portion of the Department of Labor known as OSHA) to prove OSHA is a criminal organization. In 2023 she provided information to Governor Ron DeSantis on Reedy Creek which was verified by auditors for the State of Florida, provided information on several instances of Medicaid fraud to the Florida Attorney General, and has provided work to those recently terminated and blacklisted as whistleblowers. Throughout her illustrious career, Ms. Sandra Stearns Kuba has received many awards and accolades and has been recognized worldwide for her accomplishments. In 2023, she was awarded Top CPA/Chartered Global Management Accountant of the Year by IAOTP. In 2024, she was awarded Empowered Woman of the Year and in 2025 she was awarded with Top CPA/Chartered Accountant of the Decade. This year, she will be considered for a TIP (Top Industry Professionals) Magazine feature. She will be honored at IAOTP's annual awards gala this December at the iconic Plaza Hotel in New York for her selection of The Trailblazer Award. Looking back, Sandra attributes her success to her perseverance, work ethic, and the mentors she has had along the way. When not working, she enjoys traveling and spending time with her family. In the future, she hopes to inspire and give others courage; if you see something wrong, say something. About IAOTP The International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP) is an international boutique networking organization that handpicks the world's finest, most prestigious top professionals from different industries. These top professionals are given an opportunity to collaborate, share their ideas, be keynote speakers, and help influence others in their fields. This organization is not a membership that anyone can join. You have to be asked by the President or be nominated by a distinguished honorary member after a brief interview. IAOTP's experts have given thousands of top prestigious professionals worldwide the recognition and credibility that they deserve and have helped build their branding empires. IAOTP prides itself to be a one-of-a-kind boutique networking organization that handpicks only the best of the best and creates a networking platform that connects and brings these top professionals to one place. IAOTP remains one of the most elite and highly respected professional recognition organizations in the world. Legal Disclaimer: EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above. You just read: October 21, 2026, 18:15 GMT EIN Presswire's priority is author transparency. We do our best to weed out false and misleading content. The content above is the sole responsibility of the author who makes it available. If you have any complaints, kindly contact the author above. Annette Natoli + +1 212-634-4427

Disney+ faces compensation demands over missing 4K HDR. The multinational consumer group Euroconsumers is demanding automatic price reductions and compensation for subscribers affected by the loss of 4K HDR and 3D on Disney+. On many devices, Disney+ has been without Dolby Vision and 3D since mid-June, and without 4K and HDR10 since July in 11 EU countries (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania and Sweden) due to a patent dispute with InterDigital. Disney+ has tried to restore 4K streaming using an alternative to HEVC, namely the VP9 video codec, but the process is slow because all affected content must be re-encoded to VP9. VP9 is also supported on only select devices, and the patent dispute has already been expanded to include VP9, while Disney+ has also lost Google Cast and AirPlay 2 support in some countries. 00:00/01:00 Demands compensation Euroconsumers is a multinational umbrella organization representing consumer groups in six countries, including Altroconsumo (Italy), Testachats/Testaankoop (Belgium) and DECO PROteste (Portugal). On October 6, it sent Disney+ a formal notice of default and cease-and-desist demand, calling for automatic price reductions and compensation of at least €5 per month for affected subscribers, potentially up to 62.8 million Euro for all 11 countries combined. Breach of EU consumer law It has given Disney 14 days to act before filing complaints with the EU's Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Network and national authorities. Euroconsumers said Disney risks fines of up to 4% of its annual turnover in the countries concerned. Euroconsumers further argued that Disney had breached EU consumer law: * Under the Digital Content Directive, a patent dispute does not release a company from its obligation to deliver the service it sold. Consumers are entitled to a proportionate price reduction, and Disney was required to give clear notice of a significant change to the service, along with the right to cancel free of charge. * Under the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, continuing to advertise "4K UHD & HDR" while those features were unavailable, and failing to inform subscribers prominently, may constitute misleading practices. * Providing partial refunds only on request, without objective criteria, is itself an unfair practice. - "Patent disputes cannot come at the expense of consumers' rights. When a company charges a premium price for a service it can no longer fully deliver, it must take responsibility. Under EU consumer law, subscribers are entitled to appropriate remedies, not merely refunds they have to chase. We expect Disney+ to ensure fair, transparent and automatic compensation for all affected consumers," said Marco Scialdone, Head of Litigation and Academic Outreach at Euroconsumers. Disney responds In a response to FlatpanelsHD, Disney said that it shares Euroconsumers' goals, but cannot accept InterDigital's patent demands, as the terms would lead to higher costs for consumers. Disney+ is in the process of restoring 4K and HDR in Europe using alternative technology. - "We will respond to Euroconsumers directly and look forward to working with them. Disney is committed to meeting its obligations and providing a high-quality service. We acted quickly to put solutions in place to support affected customers. We have complied fully with the court rulings while continuing to challenge the underlying claims and meet our obligations to consumers. Disney supports the protection of intellectual property and has always been willing to pay reasonable licence fees for patents," a Disney spokesperson told FlatpanelsHD.

Christopher Nolan's 'The Prestige' sets re-release with first-ever IMAX and 70mm screenings. The 2006 magician thriller marks its 20th anniversary with debuts on premium large-format screens. Warner Bros. Summary. Christopher Nolan's 2006 thriller 'The Prestige' is heading back to theaters for its 20th anniversary Disney will re-release the film for the first time across 70mm and IMAX screens The re-release follows Nolan's record-setting large-format box-office milestones with Oppenheimer and The Odyssey Disney has announced the theatrical re-release of Christopher Nolan's The Prestige in celebration of the film's 20th anniversary. The upcoming run will mark the first time the acclaimed 2006 mystery thriller is presented on 70mm and IMAX screens. Originally debuting on October 20, 2006, The Prestige chronicles the obsessive, decades-long rivalry between two Victorian-era stage magicians, portrayed by Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman. The ensemble cast features Michael Caine, Scarlett Johansson, Rebecca Hall, Andy Serkis, and David Bowie. The film earned roughly $100 million USD at the global box office and secured two Academy Award nominations. In addition to directing, Nolan co-wrote the screenplay alongside his brother, Jonathan Nolan, and produced the feature alongside Emma Thomas and Aaron Ryder. "I'm very excited to bring The Prestige back to the big screen, and particularly thrilled to offer audiences the chance to see it on 70mm film, and on Imax for the first time," Nolan said in a statement. Over the past two decades, Nolan has emerged as one of cinema's most prominent champions of large-format film presentation, driving audience demand for IMAX through titles like The Dark Knight trilogy, Inception, Interstellar, Oppenheimer, and The Odyssey. Following his Best Director and Best Picture wins for 2023's Oppenheimer, Nolan's latest feature The Odyssey has generated $1.788 billion USD worldwide, including a record-breaking $550 million USD in IMAX ticket sales. Disney will officially re-release The Prestige in theaters on January 29, 2027.