Disney shuts down all future developments

[ThBa]

Hi everyone !

On a German forum I found a link to this article:

Exclusive - Future developments at Disneyland Paris in danger?

This week news has reached us that The Walt Disney Company is, for the time being, shutting down all future projects in development for the parks after the opening of the Ratatouille ride. What could this mean for the future of the resort? In this article we will try to give an answer to this question by means of logical deduction.

UPDATE
Due to some commotion surrounding the publication of this article we feel the need to update the story with some proper nuances. The article as is available right now, is an edited version of the original.

The last announced expansion for Disneyland Paris is of course the Ratatouille dark ride, opening next summer. This high-tech, state-of-the-art attraction with trackless motion-base vehicles and larger-than-life 3D projections has been in development for a number of years. At the beginning of this year EuroDisney S.C.A. itself finally confirmed the rumours: the rat is coming.

But the projects Disneyland Paris has in development for after the opening of Ratatouille are a lot less fleshed out except for some very persistent rumours. News has reached us that The Walt Disney Company has stopped investments for future projects after Ratatouille, taking effect immediately.

Since The Walt Disney Company has taken over the debt structure from the banks through the refinancing plan set into motion last September, they have gained more control over the decision making process of the French resort. Where EuroDisney S.C.A. previously needed the approval of various banks before construction on a new attraction could begin, now The Walt Disney Company in the U.S. has a final say. This could be both good or bad news.

In essence the news that has reached us of The Walt Disney Company ordering to shut down all future investments means all rumours on future plans for attractions, shows and entertainment will be put on hold for now. Rumours such as Star Tours 2, a complete mini-land with Star Wars theme, a successor to Captain EO, the addition of Captain Jack Sparrow to Pirates of the Caribbean, the extension of Hollywood Boulevard at the Walt Disney Studios Park, introducing Marvel characters at the Walt Disney Studios Park, Soarin’ Over The World, The Little Mermaid dark-ride at Fantasyland, etc. Countless rumours which have been circling the Internet for a number of years, but which have a notion of truth for some.

In regards to the news of The Walt Disney Company shutting down future investments, the future of the resort itself could be a lot more different than expected. What will the implications be for the resort in the years after the opening of the Ratatouille ride? According to our analysis it could go in two directions: either this is an indication The Walt Disney Company is acknowledging the current course set by Disneyland Paris isn’t sufficient to solve the fundamental problems of the resort which calls for a larger master plan, or it will mean the years after 2014 will be relatively calm in terms of expansion.

Personally we hope, like everybody, they have secretly been working on a large-scale rescue operation similar to Disney California Adventure and Hong Kong Disneyland. For both parks, which have been performing below expectations, large-scale rescue plans were announced that have fixed the decline in quality of the parks tremendously in a few short years. A plan Disneyland Paris desperately needs, especially since the quality of the resort has slowly been declining in the last few years. Parcorama recently managed to sum up a list of clear indicators why the resort was slowly but steadily handing in on its quality. It wouldn’t take long or Disneyland Paris couldn’t measure itself with the “Disney Standard” the parks in the U.S. and Asia happen to carry out so well.

What it needs is a big masterplan fixing the identity and capacity problems of the Walt Disney Studios Park and extending the attraction and entertainment offerings in the Disneyland Park. The Walt Disney Company can do this, has proven it can do this and has sufficient financial needs to make it happen. Let the news that has reached us be a first indication of large-scale plans that are about to happen!

End

What do you think?

What does the near future of Disneyland Paris look like?

 

[disneylandparis1974]

I think DLP needs to concentrate on getting the park back to its best and re-instate the shows and other entertainment. All this has been sadly lacking during the past 2 years.
They also shut all the waiter service restaurants in the hotels around the lake in the summer so if you don't like buffet meals you have to go back into the park to Walt's, Silver Spur etc which again are not always open or get booked up early.

 

[Jonjo]

Has this rumour been officaly confirmed by the TWDC?

 

[Lisa_C]

Has this rumour been officaly confirmed by the TWDC?

Yes . An announcement that THEY have put future investment on hold for a few years. This could simply be down to them forfilling their original obligation (they bought the debt in exchange for Ratatouille being built and were the driving force behind Dreams). NO WHERE did we see/read that this was a permanent arrangement - if they hadn't have steppped in then maybe things wouldn't be so dire now though! Along comes the awesome Dreams, but bye bye Fantillusion, Tarzan, Lion King, Mickey' s Winter Wonderland, the Castle Hub shows (love them or hate them, they bought the crowds) and less characters (unless you havexan entourage with you *groans*).
I ADORE Dreams, but the sacrifices of everthing else makes me think its a possible waste of money - families have trouble staying up late (May - Sept its 11pm) so they don't see it anyway :-/ Take it away though, and the park has nothing!!
I think what we have to remember though is that the supposedly rumours about Star Wars Land were just that. Rumours. So in effect, its business as usual for DLP.
I suspect that its either part of a bigger plan to get finances/contacts in place for a full buy out, or to let SCA get affairs on order to once again run things themselves.
I don't think its a bad thing to be honest, though things were not that bad (as they could have been) before the WDC stepped in, and lets hope the bigger picture will be revealed in the financial statements in August- before the scremoungers amongst us speculate of park closure as is happening else where *rolls eyes*.

 

[jillrobinson]

Yes . An announcement that THEY have put future investment on hold for a few years. This could simply be down to them forfilling their original obligation (they bought the debt in exchange for Ratatouille being built and were the driving force behind Dreams). NO WHERE did we see/read that this was a permanent arrangement - if they hadn't have steppped in then maybe things wouldn't be so dire now though! Along comes the awesome Dreams, but bye bye Fantillusion, Tarzan, Lion King, Mickey' s Winter Wonderland, the Castle Hub shows (love them or hate them, they bought the crowds) and less characters (unless you havexan entourage with you *groans*).
I ADORE Dreams, but the sacrifices of everthing else makes me think its a possible waste of money - families have trouble staying up late (May - Sept its 11pm) so they don't see it anyway :-/ Take it away though, and the park has nothing!!
I think what we have to remember though is that the supposedly rumours about Star Wars Land were just that. Rumours. So in effect, its business as usual for DLP.
I suspect that its either part of a bigger plan to get finances/contacts in place for a full buy out, or to let SCA get affairs on order to once again run things themselves.
I don't think its a bad thing to be honest, though things were not that bad (as they could have been) before the WDC stepped in, and lets hope the bigger picture will be revealed in the financial statements in August- before the scremoungers amongst us speculate of park closure as is happening else where *rolls eyes*.

My thoughts too, well said Lisa

 

[Jonjo]

With over 14,700 CMs employed at Disneyland Paris, and another 56,000 indirect jobs generated by the park, the French Gov would never allow the park to close. So any rumour of the park being closed can be put to bed.

Ratatouille opens next year so that will be a new E-Ticket ride opening, which will attract more visitors to the park. It is still the most visited theme park in Euope and the hotel occupany is running at over 80%. So considering Europe is in deep economic recession people are still visiting.

DLP needs pay back the debt to TWDC and not borrowing any more from them for two years will help them do that. Remember the interest rates DLP is paying to TWDC are far lower than they were paying to the banks so the capital repayments will be lowered quicker.

So basicly it's no additonal investment from TWDC for two years, so it's business as usual then.

I don't think TWDC can fully buy out EuroDisney SCA due to the way the company was set up without the aproval of the French Gov. And that would be a huge problematic political decision for any French Minister to make.

 

[chmurf]

With over 14,700 CMs employed at Disneyland Paris, and another 56,000 indirect jobs generated by the park, the French Gov would never allow the park to close. So any rumour of the park being closed can be put to bed.

remember that this option was on the table at some point, and that it is STILL on the table now.
How likely is it going to happen ? ... very unlikely, but you can be sure of one thing, if TWDC can use the threat of closing down the park for leverage against the French Govt, they will.

And if you followed French news lately, you remember what happened at Florange, in the standoff between the French Gvt and Mital.
The french govt preferred to send all Florange workers to the unemployment agency rather than doing anything about it (even when other companies were willing to buy the metalworks)

Don't be too sure with our government. they have no experience in governing, they think they know better than anyone else, and they dream of teaching the US a lesson ... if this means that 14k people be fired ... so what ... are you aware that, ever since our current governement came to power in 2012, one thousand people in france lost their jobs everyday ... that's 2 entire DLP staff each month. How would DLP have any impact ?

feel more confident now ?

Ratatouille opens next year so that will be a new E-Ticket ride opening, which will attract more visitors to the park.

the park already operates at near full capacity.
If Ratatouille brings more guests, it's a complete catastrophe if nothing is done to give those guests something to do (characters, stage show, you name it)

DLP is plagued by the volume policy that's been going on for the last 5 years.
adding even more volume will only add insult to injury.
Something has to be done prior to Ratatouille's opening, and that's more things for the guest to do, to keep them occupied. Or you'll get 4 or 5 hour lines at ratatouille on a day to day basis, which will negate the ratatouille effect, or make the situation even worse from a corporate image standpoint.

 

[Lisa_C]

remember that this option was on the table at some point, and that it is STILL on the table now.
How likely is it going to happen ? ... very unlikely, but you can be sure of one thing, if TWDC can use the threat of closing down the park for leverage against the French Govt, they will.

And if you followed French news lately, you remember what happened at Florange, in the standoff between the French Gvt and Mital.
The french govt preferred to send all Florange workers to the unemployment agency rather than doing anything about it (even when other companies were willing to buy the metalworks)

Don't be too sure with our government. they have no experience in governing, they think they know better than anyone else, and they dream of teaching the US a lesson ... if this means that 14k people be fired ... so what ... are you aware that, ever since our current governement came to power in 2012, one thousand people in france lost their jobs everyday ... that's 2 entire DLP staff each month. How would DLP have any impact ?

feel more confident now ?
.

Good grief. Really???? You honestly think the French Government are that stupid to use DLP to teach America a lesson?? The park wouldn't even BE THERE if that was the case. And yes I'm fully aware of the job situation - I've already said my Fiance works in Central Paris yet there are also jobs advertised everywhere too.

And I'm beginning to wonder where all this info comes from that the WDC would threaten to close the park as leverage - unless you are part of that company and know something else, this all sounds like the speculation that I mentioned earlier. Blooming heck , Jonjo is right to say put those rumours of park closure to bed. It would just never happen this way!

Until we know more (I'm still onside that there is a bigger plan here) all we can do is wait for more official info. Its good to discuss things but there is a limit to what we actually know.

 

[chmurf]

Good grief. Really???? You honestly think the French Government are that stupid to use DLP to teach America a lesson??

yes, absolutely, 100% positive that they would.
Especially after the strong words of our presidents re: spying and other trade "concerns"

The park wouldn't even BE THERE if that was the case.

The funny thing was that the park was first negociated and a compromise was signed in december 1985 (after 1 year and a half of talks) by Eisner and French Prime Minister Laurent Fabius.

But the wind changed in France, and Fabius got kicked out and replaced by Chirac (who will later become president) under what was called "cohabitation", meaning we had a left wing president with a right wing prime minister.

The preliminary work has been conducted by the left wing (la gauche) and the credit went to the right wing (la droite)

the right wing then seized power in France (chirac then sarkozy), and the Left never regained power until 2012. (hollande)
And the first thing the Left wing governement did was to systematically undo all that was done during the "Right" years.

Today, the Foreign Affairs Minister is Laurant Fabius, the very same who spent 1 year and a half negociating, just to see the project slip between his fingers.
The governement is very anti american.
And if you followed the news, you must have seen that European Comittee Chairman (Barosso) had a clash with our president, over the "French Cutlural Exception"

Now, with all this in place. Try to imagine, under the current political climate, that a US company, such as Disney, tried to bully the French governement, with the ultimate intent to get more control over the parks in Marne la Vallée, thus renegociating the contracts with the very same political figures who made sure to secure a "french control" within the parks 25 years ago

That would be a big (yet diplomatic ) "up yours" no matter the consequences. (and it happened before with other companies, during this presidential mandate, e.g. Florange as previously stated)

so yes, that would be ugly.

 

[Jonjo]

Hense the reason I don't think TWDC would ever buy Euro Disney SCA. They have no need to. They hold the debt and now the purse strings, and executives from the Parks Division have been drafted in to DLP.

The whole financial set up of DLP / Euro Disney as it was, was created to milk money from DLP at every opertunity, from very high licenses and royalties fees to the way the financing of the hotels and convention centers was organised.

Eisner has hoping to make a fortune for Disney out of DLP, but things never turned out that way.

The Villages Nature, joint venture between Euro Disney and Pierre & Vacances Center Parcs is set to open in 2016, which will also see another revenue stream into Euro Disney, and Val d'Europe is still making money for the company as well.

But chmurf is correct we do need to see some shows brought back to DLP and the sooner the better. Hopfuly we will know more in August when the summer accounts are published or at next years AGM.

Maybe there is a New Master Plan under consideration for the resort, they have worked for DCA in the past. Only time will tell.

 

[Florida2012]

Sorry chmurf, never going to happen, and if it did countries all around Europe would queue up to take its place!!


Direct and indirect employees, local amenities, the wider economy it would affect everything!! ANY country would be made to turn that sort of business away.

In fact I would love to know how much business DLRP brings to the area and France in general?

However, if it did, there is a site that was identified when Paris was originally chosen, in Barcelona, and it hasn't had much business since the Olympics in '92! The weather is a bit better as well! Lol

 

[briandclement]

yes, absolutely, 100% positive that they would.
Especially after the strong words of our presidents re: spying and other trade "concerns"

The funny thing was that the park was first negociated and a compromise was signed in december 1985 (after 1 year and a half of talks) by Eisner and French Prime Minister Laurent Fabius.

But the wind changed in France, and Fabius got kicked out and replaced by Chirac (who will later become president) under what was called "cohabitation", meaning we had a left wing president with a right wing prime minister.

The preliminary work has been conducted by the left wing (la gauche) and the credit went to the right wing (la droite)

the right wing then seized power in France (chirac then sarkozy), and the Left never regained power until 2012. (hollande)
And the first thing the Left wing governement did was to systematically undo all that was done during the "Right" years.

Today, the Foreign Affairs Minister is Laurant Fabius, the very same who spent 1 year and a half negociating, just to see the project slip between his fingers.
The governement is very anti american.
And if you followed the news, you must have seen that European Comittee Chairman (Barosso) had a clash with our president, over the "French Cutlural Exception"

Now, with all this in place. Try to imagine, under the current political climate, that a US company, such as Disney, tried to bully the French governement, with the ultimate intent to get more control over the parks in Marne la Vallée, thus renegociating the contracts with the very same political figures who made sure to secure a "french control" within the parks 25 years ago

That would be a big (yet diplomatic ) "up yours" no matter the consequences. (and it happened before with other companies, during this presidential mandate, e.g. Florange as previously stated)

so yes, that would be ugly.

What you need to remember is gat DLP is a french company working under french law. It is THE economical asset of the whole area there. It attracts tourists. The companies that closed were industrial factories who wrent making enough money anymore because it is unfortunately cheaper to make things in other countries...
I think it is very unlikely to see the park close anytime soon. But you are all right, it needs to bring.back shows and characters to keep people busy during the day and make them come.back in the future as entertainment will change ! I guess people would come back if there are new shows because attractions are not.gonna change that much !

 

[chmurf]

In fact I would love to know how much business DLRP brings to the area and France in general?

14,000 direct, and 56,000 indirect jobs (give or take)

 

[anthony2k7]

I wonder if all these actions by TWDC are purely reacting to outside influences.

There's many rumours out there that Frances economy is hiding some very big issues at the moment. There's also rumours that at least one french bank came very close to collapsing last year. If that bank held one of DLP's major credit lines then maybe TWDC thought they had absolutely no choice than to step in before things spiraled completely out of control

And now TWDC do have a closer eye on everything from the parks through to all other aspects of the French economy, maybe they've uncovered a lot more that has called for further immediate action.

I'm not convinced by this new master plan idea. I'm a little more pessimistic and think its more a case of putting a halt to any more hemorrhaging of cash and just kinda staying in a holding pattern for a while to see what direction the economies of Europe take.

The one thing I do fear though is that its possible we've still not seen the end of the cuts yet. It wouldnt surprise me if they got to the stage of off peak hotel partial/total closures even.

 

[chmurf]

There's also rumours that at least one french bank came very close to collapsing last year.

It's not a rumor at all.

And now TWDC do have a closer eye on everything from the parks through to all other aspects of the French economy, maybe they've uncovered a lot more that has called for further immediate action.

TWDC is very much aware of the situation. They had to step in, in 2004, when DLP was days away from filing for bankrupcy and closing its doors ...
They've been keeping a watchful eye over DLP ever since.

its more a case of putting a halt to any more hemorrhaging of cash

the only hemmorage is twofold.
80 million euros per year go towards financial fees (interests paid to banks, not even talking about reimbursing here, just the bank fees)
and 6% of the parks income go to TWDC for royalties only.

The total amount of the debt is 1.8 billion euros ( $2.4 billion, that's 2 times the cost of the whole placemaking in DCA, and 6 times what it cost to build DCA in the first place. That's enough money to build a 3rd park in Paris and to revamp the other 2 parks ... too bad that's debt and not asset.)

To manage to get things right and restore "normal" operations in the park, the investment would need to be enough to cover for several new parks around the world ... guess what, shanghai is nearly opened.

The one thing I do fear though is that its possible we've still not seen the end of the cuts yet. It wouldnt surprise me if they got to the stage of off peak hotel partial/total closures even.

at the very beginning, DLP was designed to be shut down during off peak seasons.
They decided to change that, very early in the park's life and open year round, and that's probably where everything started to go wrong, financially.

At some point, they used delayed land opening. The lands of DLP opened at different hours, to get guests to tour the park in a certain way, and to limit the expenses.
Imagine if tomorrow. Fantasyland opened from 10 to 5, adventureland opened from 12 to 7, frontierland opened from 1pm to 8pm, and so on.(hours are just for the example)
That might sound silly, but this was once tested in DLP to cut costs.

 

[anthony2k7]

At some point, they used delayed land opening. The lands of DLP opened at different hours, to get guests to tour the park in a certain way, and to limit the expenses.
Imagine if tomorrow. Fantasyland opened from 10 to 5, adventureland opened from 12 to 7, frontierland opened from 1pm to 8pm, and so on.(hours are just for the example)
That might sound silly, but this was once tested in DLP to cut costs.

As apparently main street shops now dont open until lunch, and restaurants are shutting early, it kinda sounds like they're nearly back to that anyway.

 

[chmurf]

As apparently main street shops now dont open until lunch, and restaurants are shutting early, it kinda sounds like they're nearly back to that anyway.

I didn't cross that line, because right now it seems that the closures do not happen everyday. Some DISers have reported that shops were opened in the morning (did they miss the closed shops, did they simply not notice and assumed they were opened, or did they visit on a day the shops were opened, that's another story)

but you get the general picture. Yes, seasonal closings are in effect, even during the summer, which is rather problematic, as summer means extended hours, not reduced one

the other thing that guests who have visited the resort also have noted, is the unusual low crowds for a month of july. Many here trip-report that they were surprised by how low the wait times were ... and it's even more surprising that there is no stage show and many ride temporary closures (break downs), and still guests who come back tell us how manageable the crowds were. They report off peak wait times when the attendance should be a bit over average to very crowded

We'll see what the 3rd quarter results tell us in a few days when they are released, but many of us here in Paris fear that they will be terrible.

 

[Jonjo]

We had a discussion on these boards earlier this year which came to the conclusion that closing DLP during the off season winter months of Feb and March, or only opening at weekends in those months would not be a bad thing.

The parks are normally very quite and there are usually lots of rides closed for refurbishment during these months.

 

[chmurf]

safety nettings now cover an undisclosed number of buildings.
They're designed to prevent objects from falling onto the ground (and guests below)
Such a measure is a long term safety when there is no plan for maintenance.

Some of those buildings are litteraly falling to pieces.

some guests have joked that this was phase 1 of "Marvel Land", with a Spiderman thema ...

just FYI

 

[HappyPanda]

I saw those pics on the InsideDLP page - it certainly doesn't fill you with confidence when buildings are having to have that sort of netting up for safety.