News Round Up

[rteetz]

But the only thing that has the rat's attention is that very key 3% loss of market share number. That's the whole ballgame because it represents year over year of losses in revenue and profits.

Seaworld has gotten destroyed by a documentary for going on 3 years...and yet still Disney has lost part of its share of the pie.

That's a big deal...all else is comparatively smoke and mirrors.

Yep agree 100% this means a lot and really goes unnoticed by many here.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

It's not just a roller coaster park for sure. The key question with Universal is how much tolerance people have towards simulators. There's a reason behind Disney's huge success even at their current prices: they have something for every single member of your family regardless of their age, which is not necessarily the case at Universal. And this is not criticism towards Universal at all. It's just that Disney and Uni cater to different markets, and that's perfectly fine. You probably won't see many grandparents having the time of their lives on Popeye's or Ripsaw Falls.

Anyone still referring to universal as "less quality" in defense of Disney is just making excuses. Blame
Disney for staying fat and content.

Comcast has done a fantastic job of managing the property and there is no way to deny it.

And most of the "quality" difference that Disney still enjoys was built at the magic kingdom, Epcot, and the early groundwork that allows the resorts to be possible...

Those were due to more
Talented people doing it - frankly.

Are you amazed at the "quality" difference between a half closed MGM and a half finished animal kingdom?

Be honest.

Comcast took a couple of neglected "roller coaster type" parks and is doing a pretty amazing job of turning it around.

Not what joe potter and Joe fowler did in the swamps over in lbv...
But it ain't great adventure either.

 

[rteetz]

More Launch Bay Photos

http://micechat.com/116226-star-wars-disne-hollywood-studios/

 

[Eoghann]

Star Wars is part of that move but I doubt this prompts Disney to build a fifth gate yet. I also don't think Disney does anything until an official gate announcement from universal for all we know they may not have immediate plans for another gate yet. I doubt that but I'm sure we will see more info within the next year.

I'm not convinced a 5th Gate makes sense for Disney any time soon. Universal could expand their reach with a 3rd gate so mostly that's been down to getting land at a reasonable price. In Disney's case they'd be better sticking to rejuvinating and enhancing existing parks rather than adding another one.

 

[nkosiek]

I read a lot of people talking about the "nostalgia factor"...we do realize that nostalgia only matters to certain generations. I've got family and friends whose kids LOVE Universal parks due to Minions and HP and that will create a nostalgia factor with those groups. The one thing Comcast has going against them down in Orlando is the lack of land, but I don't think they'll go hurting for customers. I think the the DHS stuff is going to be a huge boon to WDW in that it will play to people in their youth as well as older (Star Wars), so that park may be considered a classic 30 years from now (if these expansions are done right/well).

 

[Eoghann]

Also, working with Peter Jackson and crew on Kong, imagine if they were to get the rights to Lord of the Rings.

It's a big if because there are legal issues over who actually has theme park licensing rights but a Lord of the Rings land is every bit as big a draw as Harry Potter or Star Wars.

 

[rteetz]

I read a lot of people talking about the "nostalgia factor"...we do realize that nostalgia only matters to certain generations. I've got family and friends whose kids LOVE Universal parks due to Minions and HP and that will create a nostalgia factor with those groups. The one thing Comcast has going against them down in Orlando is the lack of land, but I don't think they'll go hurting for customers. I think the the DHS stuff is going to be a huge boon to WDW in that it will play to people in their youth as well as older (Star Wars), so that park may be considered a classic 30 years from now (if these expansions are done right/well).

They are closing a deal to buy 400 acres that's plenty land for another park.

Also Disney characters have been around for generations and keep returning. Disney owns all of the things in their parks except for now avatar. Universal licenses most of their IP.

 

[rteetz]

It's a big if because there are legal issues over who actually has theme park licensing rights but a Lord of the Rings land is every bit as big a draw as Harry Potter or Star Wars.

Lord of the rings would really help universal.

 

[MommaBerd]

We were in the Disneyland Hotel. Wifi was available in the common areas but not in our rooms and definitely not in the parks. Not a true complaint as we were hardly in the room. I just would have expected them to update their parks wifi prior to releasing the app. The majority of people I saw on their phones were using the app.

We were there for a short trip in October and DH was very frustrated that we didn't have WiFi in room as he needed to transfer some files to his office. It wasn't the end of the world (he's the boss ), but certainly an unexpected inconvenience.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

I'm not convinced a 5th Gate makes sense for Disney any time soon. Universal could expand their reach with a 3rd gate so mostly that's been down to getting land at a reasonable price. In Disney's case they'd be better sticking to rejuvinating and enhancing existing parks rather than adding another one.

This is fundamentally true...

When you control 65% of the market and already have experienced park cannibalizing patterns...
Increasing the infrastructure and logistics costs for a fifth gate makes little to no sense.

Especially when you have a skeleton MGM there
Now and at most a 2/3 finished park at animal kingdom even after the current additions open.

 

[RAD]

I'm not convinced a 5th Gate makes sense for Disney any time soon. Universal could expand their reach with a 3rd gate so mostly that's been down to getting land at a reasonable price. In Disney's case they'd be better sticking to rejuvinating and enhancing existing parks rather than adding another one.

Why not spend the money and do both things?

 

[lockedoutlogic]

It's a big if because there are legal issues over who actually has theme park licensing rights but a Lord of the Rings land is every bit as big a draw as Harry Potter or Star Wars.

Nothing would be as big of a draw as a properly executed Star Wars land with new, HIGH QUALITY ip backing it up in theaters...

The Star Wars fanbase is still a largely young sect that will be around a long time...

Even the history and widespread popularity of Tolkien doesn't have the gravitas.

Do you know that Disney has licensed a reported 5,000,000,000 worth of Star Wars products in the 3 year ownership of lucasfilm already?

They bought it for 4...

 

[lockedoutlogic]

Why not spend the money and do both things?

Employees...disney has struggled to find them since animal kingdom, doesn't want to pay them, and will probably have to outsource more things before too long.

A new park area will require on the order of 10,000 new employees...if you get lucky. Could be more.

They Already have 63,000 ish in the swamp already

 

[adam.adbe]

Employees...disney has struggled to find them since animal kingdom, doesn't want to pay them, and will probably have to outsource more things before too long.

A new park area will require on the order of 10,000 new employees...if you get lucky. Could be more.

They Already have 63,000 ish in the swamp already

And as someone else already pointed out, it's not like people will choose to stay in Orlando an extra two days. Most people are already traveling for as long as they can, either because of vacation/timing constraints, or the cost of adding an extra couple of days. If people are currently spending one to two days of their Orlando vacation at Universal, it's not due to the lack of a fifth gate, it's just that two (three?) of the existing parks are lackluster.

So yeah, adding a whole new park requires a lot more personnel than extending an existing park, adds costly transit infrastructure, adds little of value for the average five day traveller, and increases the time spent commuting between parks. Since none of this seems to be moving merchandise, I can't see Disney loving the idea.

 

[skier_pete]

I'm not convinced a 5th Gate makes sense for Disney any time soon. Universal could expand their reach with a 3rd gate so mostly that's been down to getting land at a reasonable price. In Disney's case they'd be better sticking to rejuvinating and enhancing existing parks rather than adding another one.

Really IF Universal becomes real competition for Disney, what Disney needs to do is make all 4 parks "must do" events again. I think they are headed in the right direction, as the DAK additions will hopefully bring that park up to that level, and DHS once complete could be as well. This leave Epcot, which one can only hope will get much overdo love in another 4-5 years.

Edit: Plus a new gate just at first cannibalizes the old gate. Disney learned this with AK. Universal SHOULD have learned this with IOA, but I bet they will be in for a shock none-the-less if they open a 3rd gate and their 1st two gates drop significantly in attendance.

 

[soniam]

It's a big if because there are legal issues over who actually has theme park licensing rights but a Lord of the Rings land is every bit as big a draw as Harry Potter or Star Wars.

I'm not sure if LOR would be as big of a draw. It would be big though. In any case, until the family that currently resists this dies off, nothing will happen. I don't actually think the family, current or future generations (well in my lifetime), will allow it to happen.

 

[luisov]

Anyone still referring to universal as "less quality" in defense of Disney is just making excuses. Blame
Disney for staying fat and content.

Comcast has done a fantastic job of managing the property and there is no way to deny it.

And most of the "quality" difference that Disney still enjoys was built at the magic kingdom, Epcot, and the early groundwork that allows the resorts to be possible...

Those were due to more
Talented people doing it - frankly.

Are you amazed at the "quality" difference between a half closed MGM and a half finished animal kingdom?

Be honest.

Comcast took a couple of neglected "roller coaster type" parks and is doing a pretty amazing job of turning it around.

Not what joe potter and Joe fowler did in the swamps over in lbv...
But it ain't great adventure either.

And I totally agree. Universal parks felt pretty dated prior to the Comcast acquisition, and now they are arguably among the best theme parks in the world. My argument is that Disney remains as the top player because, unlike Universal, Disney offers experiences for every single member of the family. You can confidently pay a $100 ticket for your grandparents to enter because you are assured that there's plenty of stuff to do for them at Disney. Add to that the fact that many people are intolerant to jerky movements and simulator type of rides. My point is, this is not a matter of quality anymore. They are just focusing their efforts into appealing to different markets.

 

[sachilles]

It's a matter of how much revenue you can secure of the average Orlando visitor. I don't think Disney cares to add a 5th gate, if they can add content to their other per-existing gates. Turn a park that holds your attention for one-day into a two-day park. I think this is why you see the emphasis on Disney Springs, and the added content to AK and DHS.
Incentivize vacationers to stay on DISNEY property. Make it easy to not need/want a car. You then force people to choose between the companies.
If Disney can add content, and do it in a way to conserve labor costs, adding guest capacity, then it's a no brainer. I don't think Disney suffers from the lack of design ideas, more the lack of space in the correct spots.
Putting it another way. It would cost a lot more to add a new 4000 acre gate, than adding 1000 acres to each of MK, DHS, AK and EP. Not only would it cost more to construct up front, it would cost more to maintain. Transportation costs alone would be enough to make some gasp.

 

[rteetz]

Now and at most a 2/3 finished park at animal kingdom even after the current additions open.

This I disagree with. I really like AK as it is after the addition I truly believe it is a full day park.

 

[rteetz]

Why not spend the money and do both things?

This is Disney not Comcast...