What is going on with the FP+ crackdown?

[AnnaKat]

They are already enforcing the same day FP rule. You now HAVE to have the FPs associated with a ticket used for entry for it to work. Disney is currently working on the 30-60 day CP "strategy." It is definitely against ToS that's why that strategy can't be discussed here. So those still using it KNOW it's against ToS and are still doing it.

Since it's already known it is against ToS I don't think there will be any "warning" when the update is going to be in place.

Disney can change(and does!) their Tech even if it has nothing to do with folks going against ToS.

For example, they changed the rules for booking FPs with an AP, when you have an onsite stay AND an offsite stay.

We made our FPs per the current rules.
We had FPs for our onsite stay (Nov. 2016).
ALSO 7 Days of FPs for our offsite stay.

Thankfully I checked my email.
The day before we checked out of our onsite stay,
we received 8 emails, saying in each's subject line, in CAPS, " action required".
We were told that if action was not taken
before the next day,
that the remaining 8 days of our FP would be deleted, with one email for each of the 8 days!
ALL 8 Days would be gone, all @ once,
not one day @ a time.
Unless we bought the appropriate ticket media, Disney said.
YET we had APs,
which was how we were able to book the
FPs in the first place!

AND the day before,
we received an email from Disney encouraging us to renew our APs!

Worse yet,
spending over $1000 to renew our APs
would not have kept Tech from deleting the
8 Days of FPs!

AKL guest services had not heard about our situation. They found it unbelievable,
and I had to show them all the emails.

GS called Tech.
Tech told them we could not have 9 days of FPs booked.
Never mind that we had 10 Days the day before that, 11 days before that, etc.
Never mind that we had 15 Days of onsite FPs the year before.
They said we could only have 7!
So GS deleted 2 of our days of FPs.

Tech did not give GS the reason.

Found out later on the boards that Disney
changed the rules for FP booking with an AP.
With onsite & offsite, you get NO Days of offsite booking until you get down to 6 or less days remaining on your onsite FPs.

IF we bought a 7 or 8-day multi-ticket in addition to our APs(overlapping the still active days),
THEN we would be allowed the 7 days of offsite FPs.

Disney could have informed us of this earlier. If I had not checked my emails that afternoon,
the very next morning,
when I went into MDE,
I would have seen our check out day's FP
gone,
and ALL the rest of our days--
8 days! All gone!

So IF whatever "strategy" you think they are working to change, they may wait until
you are 1-day from using your subsequent days of FPs, and just delete them, without even telling you,
as your multi-day ticket is OK,
but you booked the FPs too far out per the
ToS,
so they can take them away from you
@ anytime, without any email notification to that effect.

 

[Boski]

I'm just curious about how it's handled when someone gets locked out. I'm good with enforcing the rules or closing loopholes, but this lockout seems very un-Disney.

How so? They are going against the rules, this has consequences. A lockout seems like the easiest thing to do when it comes to dealing with people scamming the system. I wish instead of a blue mickey head and a lockout it flashed red, made a obnoxious alarm, and had Jiminy Cricket pop up on your locked MDE screen.

 

[adelaster]

How so? They are going against the rules, this has consequences. A lockout seems like the easiest thing to do when it comes to dealing with people scamming the system. I wish instead of a blue mickey head and a lockout it flashed red, made a obnoxious alarm, and had Jiminy Cricket pop up on your locked MDE screen.

"A magic band that can't be good might just as well be made of wood"

 

[DisneyMom93]

I'm just curious about how it's handled when someone gets locked out. I'm good with enforcing the rules or closing loopholes, but this lockout seems very un-Disney.

I think it should be a lockout and kickout.

 

[DisneyMom93]

How so? They are going against the rules, this has consequences. A lockout seems like the easiest thing to do when it comes to dealing with people scamming the system. I wish instead of a blue mickey head and a lockout it flashed red, made a obnoxious alarm, and had Jiminy Cricket pop up on your locked MDE screen.

LOL! You forgot the huge net that drops from above!

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

How so? They are going against the rules, this has consequences. A lockout seems like the easiest thing to do when it comes to dealing with people scamming the system. I wish instead of a blue mickey head and a lockout it flashed red, made a obnoxious alarm, and had Jiminy Cricket pop up on your locked MDE screen.

It just seems like not angering the customer unnecessarily is the Disney way. Making the FP+ unusable or deleting it from the account seems like enough. But I like the alarm idea. Maybe some kind of ink could be sprayed on the guest to label them as a rule-breaker.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

People should definitely do the right thing and not cheat the system. Which is actually cheating their fellow guests, not the Disney corp.

But we should keep in mind that some of their motivation for cheating the system derives from Disney having attracted larger and larger numbers of customers, charging them larger and larger amounts of money, but not building anywhere near enough new attractions in order to keep up with the larger crowds spending even larger chunks of their hard-earned.

For every new attraction that has been added there has been another one closed down, made seasonal, or else allowed to lapse into what many people would consider tired staleness, to the point where return guests rarely experience them any more. Been to Flights of Wonder lately? Country Bears?

The FP+ system is in some ways an elaborate attempt to disguise the inadequacy of the Disney experience compared to 10 or 20 years ago, from the point of view of availability of rides, novelty of attractions, length of wait times, degree of crowding, and cost.

The urge to cheat the system is partly due to a tendency for people to try to out-think and exploit any complicated system or puzzle, and partly a reaction to the massive crowds, high prices and relative lack of new, interesting and thrilling rides with which to occupy their families.

This is gonna shock everyone...but I believe that 98.862574% of the reason is identified in the selected passages above.

90's = overbuilt (as of 1998)
2000-2020 = embarrassingly underbuilt

You can't take facilities for 30-40 million people, pack 55 into them...and BS it with terms like "magical"

 

[lockedoutlogic]

It just seems like not angering the customer unnecessarily is the Disney way. Making the FP+ unusable or deleting it from the account seems like enough. But I like the alarm idea. Maybe some kind of ink could be sprayed on the guest to label them as a rule-breaker.

I say you brand them with a "Scarlet D"...right in line for rocknrollercoaster

 

[DisneyMom93]

It just seems like not angering the customer unnecessarily is the Disney way. Making the FP+ unusable or deleting it from the account seems like enough. But I like the alarm idea. Maybe some kind of ink could be sprayed on the guest to label them as a rule-breaker.

It won't be enough. Do you see how many people want to know what the repercussions of using the cheat are? The cheaters will keep trying unless they will lose something for just trying. Meanwhile they will hold those unusable FPs in their accounts, removing them from valid use for others. And for nothing. I say lock them out and kick them out just for attempting to cheat.

You try robbing a bank or store you get arrested and go to prison if caught. The fact that you didn't actually get the money doesn't matter.

 

[DisneyMom93]

Maybe if Disney didn't have to spend so much time, energy, resources, and money on stopping people from cheating the system they could concentrate on improving the fun stuff, like rides and experiences.

 

[adelaster]

This is gonna shock everyone...but I believe that 98.862574% of the reason is identified in the selected passages above.

90's = overbuilt (as of 1998)
2000-2020 = embarrassingly underbuilt

You can't take facilities for 30-40 million people, pack 55 into them...and BS it with terms like "magical"

I am so entertained by the Nietzsche of the Disboards thing you've got going.

 

[rteetz]

Maybe if Disney didn't have to spend so much time, energy, resources, and money on stopping people from cheating the system they could concentrate on improving the fun stuff, like rides and experiences.

They aren't improving anything? There are cranes, walls and construction vehicles all over WDW property.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

It won't be enough. Do you see how many people want to know what the repercussions of using the cheat are? The cheaters will keep trying unless they will lose something for just trying. Meanwhile they will hold those unusable FPs in their accounts, removing them from valid use for others. And for nothing. I say lock them out and kick them out just for attempting to cheat.

You try robbing a bank or store you get arrested and go to prison if caught. The fact that you didn't actually get the money doesn't matter.

Harsh...but I like it

 

[DisneyMom93]

They aren't improving anything? There are cranes, walls and construction vehicles all over WDW property.

They are. Apparently not enough for some people. And I wouldn't mind those resources to go toward even more fun stuff. Just think how much more they could be doing. But my comment was in reply to these comments:

• "People should definitely do the right thing and not cheat the system. Which is actually cheating their fellow guests, not the Disney corp.
• But we should keep in mind that some of their motivation for cheating the system derives from Disney having attracted larger and larger numbers of customers, charging them larger and larger amounts of money, but not building anywhere near enough new attractions in order to keep up with the larger crowds spending even larger chunks of their hard-earned.
• For every new attraction that has been added there has been another one closed down, made seasonal, or else allowed to lapse into what many people would consider tired staleness, to the point where return guests rarely experience them any more. Been to Flights of Wonder lately? Country Bears?
• The FP+ system is in some ways an elaborate attempt to disguise the inadequacy of the Disney experience compared to 10 or 20 years ago, from the point of view of availability of rides, novelty of attractions, length of wait times, degree of crowding, and cost.
• The urge to cheat the system is partly due to a tendency for people to try to out-think and exploit any complicated system or puzzle, and partly a reaction to the massive crowds, high prices and relative lack of new, interesting and thrilling rides with which to occupy their families.
• This is gonna shock everyone...but I believe that 98.862574% of the reason is identified in the selected passages above.

• 90's = overbuilt (as of 1998)
• 2000-2020 = embarrassingly underbuilt
• You can't take facilities for 30-40 million people, pack 55 into them...and BS it with terms like "magical""

 

[lockedoutlogic]

They aren't improving anything? There are cranes, walls and construction vehicles all over WDW property.

Pretty much a net zero since AK opened...

...just can't sit for 10 years for any reason as an entertainment operator

 

[rteetz]

Pretty much a net zero since AK opened...

...just can't sit for 10 years for any reason as an entertainment operator

Pandora opened two new attractions in an area that was meet and greet before.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

I am so entertained by the Nietzsche of the Disboards thing you've got going.

Huh? Nietzsche?

...is that like the beans at Chipotle?

 

[lockedoutlogic]

Pandora opened two new attractions in an area that was meet and greet before.

You mean on the footprint of the canceled land in the original concept/masterplan?

 

[rteetz]

You mean on the footprint of the canceled land in the original concept/masterplan?

You said net 0 since AK opened. That's false. You cannot count unbuilt things. There have been dozens and dozens of unbuilt things.

 

[TheDisneyNurse]

Okay, I'm confused by this. Does that mean as an AP holder I'm now only eligible to make 7 days of fp, even though I'm staying onsite for 2 weeks?

That seemed to be the case with me! Thankfully I was able to get the Pandora FP's at 60 days out cause I was going there in the begining of my 8 day trip. Sucks