Is this just someone's guess, rumor, theory or wishful thinking? Or is it based on fact? I don't know where that much detail would come from without an official announcement unless it's just a guess.
In the comments of the Orlando Theme Parks News article, a guy named Jeff stated that he worked on the project and he answered a lot of questions about the new system. While there is always a chance that he was lying, from the way he spoke, he appeared to know a lot about the system and how it would be implemented, so I think he was telling the truth. The site thanked him for assisting them with answering questions. I would hope that they would check him out to make sure he was being honest, but who knows. Disney knows that many of their guests do split stays, and they have always allowed guests to use the same mug for their entire length of stay to this point. I don't expect that to change with the new system.
Here are his comments along with the site's word of thanks...
Jeff said...
I'll try to answer as many questions as possible. I was on this project just over a year ago, so some of the details were still in the works.
Green/Re-Using RFID mugs: There was talk of this, currently they waterparks do this, but the resorts will not, initially. However, the savings would only be about 2.00-3.00. I know that for a family of four this adds up, but most people might rather have a new mug.
Size/Design: They are not changing, no idea why, but that was a F&B decision. So it's still a 16 Oz pour, with a same design (minus new logo) but with new colors.
Split Stays: If you are on DDP on both stays, you will receive two mugs. If you are only on DDP for part of your stay, you'll need to buy a mug for the rest of your stay if you'd like to have the free refills. However, if you are on a split stay, and do not have DDP, you may buy the mug, (and with a designed workaround) you'll be able to have the 4+ days refill. Since the mugs will now work from resort to resort, the second resort will just need to verify your Length Of Stay.
As to the question of the increased price, it's tricky. This was ultimately decided by WDW Pricing and Strategy, but, some costs came down, some went up. After 3 days, it becomes a uniform price and you're looking at guests who may be in house for 14-21 days. These costs need to be considered. Most guests staying more than 7 days are not on DDP, meaning that these guests would have a higher usage impact. Remember, guests on DDP will still receive their mug for the length of their stay.
Contrary to popular belief, Disney buys all of their product and machines. The new technology comes at a cost, and to wire all of the fountains so that the cup will work from machine to machine created a greater cost.
Paper cups will have a chip and the plan was 4, 20 oz pours in 60 minutes (use it or lose it) The cups will work at the fountain stations, just like today.
Beverage Stations: More are on the way, mostly at pool bars, but some areas like All Star Resorts will get an additional unit with 10 heads.
Tea/Coffee: I don't have an answer for that, but at some point, even if not initially, they too will be RFID controlled.
Sunday, July 7, 2013 at 10:36:00 PM EDT
Jeff said...
Continued....
Mugs in general and DDP- This is further down the road, and this will likely rile up some more folks, but the DDP will no longer include a drink at QSRs. Now hear me out. Your mug in conjunction with your MagicBand WILL allow you to access soda in the parks. But there is a ot of work that still needs to happen, and more fountain machines added before this can happen. So you can take your mug with you, and use it all day long. Until that happens, there will be no change to the current set up.
And to speak on behalf of WDW Pricing and Strategy, sodas are what we refer to as "lightning rods". you as a guest know about how much you'd expect to pay in a retail environment (7-11, Walgreens etc) and WDW knows that you also know, you're going to pay a premium inside park, an NFL game, Airport etc. There is an "acceptable" range for selling these items. Locally, WDW has kept it's F&B a la carte pricing below the other parks. SeaWorld and Universal both charge in excess of 3.00 for a bottle. If we widen our scope and look at other national chains, Cedar Fair is selling 20 oz bottles for 5.00!!! The cost of soda has always been expensive, but I think we've reached a pretty good compromise. For those guests willing to save some money in exchange for inconvenience, the WDW parks allow coolers of food to be brought in (SeaWorld and Universal do not, but provide picnic areas outside their gates)
I'd also like to talk about labor costs at WDW. While everyone seems to think that our operators make minimum wage, they do not. They are covered under collective bargaining units, receive free healthcare (both full and part time) overtime for any hours over 8 hours in a day, and more. Walt Disney Parks and Resorts have a significant amount of overhead in labor. These 18 cents Cokes are far from it. There is a cost from product/straws/lids/napkins/ice/electric/water etc. So again, while I agree that soda makes a lot of money, it's not the freebie some claim it to be.
Ok, thanks for listening and letting me shed some light on this.
Sunday, July 7, 2013 at 10:37:00 PM EDT
OTPN Administrator said...
We just wanted to thank Jeff for answering some of the questions of our Readers. We will continue read all the comments tomorrow, and see if we can answer some of the other general questions (we don't have any insider info, but we will try to help).
Just one warning to our Readers: please, keep the conversation always respectful, thank you!
Sunday, July 7, 2013 at 11:19:00 PM EDT
Here is a link to the entire article and comments...
http://www.orlandoparksnews.com/2013/07/rapid-fill-mugs-coming-to-walt-disney.html
As I said before, no way to really know if this is fact, but the same could be said for most other posts on this site. Until the machines are flipped on and actually used, it is anyone's guess as to what is and isn't going to happen.