Should we still not worry?

Grizzly Hall 71

Grizzly Hall 71

New Member
Original Poster
Universal's attendance and merch sales are soaring!!

My good friend AndyMagic posted this on the Universal thread:

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/bu...posts-first-attendance-gain-in-two-years.html

This is just 2 weeks before the second quarter ended. Imagine what the 3rd quarter will look like.

Well i guess Disney is.......

well.....

doing nothing about it.

Could Potter be the reason Disney's earning are a little down? Should we still not worry?

Or is it time to worry a bit?
 
rsoxguy

rsoxguy

Well-Known Member
Truthfully, I have my own life to worry about. I never panic over WDW. It's just a place in which to have fun with my family.
 
Master Yoda

Master Yoda

Pro Star Wars geek.
Premium Member
It is ranked at 954 on my things to worry about list which puts it just below "Are Americans consuming too much oregano"
 
Pumbas Nakasak

Pumbas Nakasak

Heading for the great escape.
Much as I am a fan of Universal, and currently prefer it to WDW, I dont think too much can be read into the figures after 1 quarter.

I have always questioned why Disney Parks, a cash rich buisness I would assume, didnt maximise the economic downturn to invest in capital projects, so it was ahead of the game when things improve.

However as we have seen here, the ubber fan believes that Disney is correct in that if its No1 whay spend money if the drones will turn up anyway. Not exactly inspired management but if thats what the board accepts then only major shareholders can say otherwise.
 
wm49rs

wm49rs

A naughty bit o' crumpet
Premium Member
We get it; you're a Universal fan and down on Disney. Every thread is about how stale Disney has become, or how their ticket price increases are offensive, etc.....
 
CaptainWinter

CaptainWinter

Active Member
Grizzly Hall 71 said:
Could Potter be the reason Disney's earning are a little down? Should we still not worry?

Or is it time to worry a bit?
Click to expand...

You're free to worry if you like. But Universal exists to steal people away for Disney World for a day or two. Potter makes it better at doing that, but doesn't fundamentally change its spoiler role.
 
NedLand

NedLand

Active Member
Well, I guess i better cancel my vacation in a month since WDW will be bankrupt, closed and boarded up by then.:cry::cry::cry:
 
M

Mouse Man

New Member
Worry about what. WDW is and always will be my number one resort to vacation at. They have so much more to offer than Harry Potter. Golf, Fishing, Tennis, Horseback Riding, Bikes, Boats. Then throw in which hotel theme you would like to stay at, resteraunts, bakeries and such, then throw in the water parks and of course all the parks we love to visit and you have one heck of a good family fun vacation. Disney offers so much to do and enjoy. They constantly keep the grounds in great condition, refurbish and maintain. Before Harry Potter came around Uni was a place specially in September where you could hear the crickets chirp. Plus Uni is not one of those places where you want to go and visit from 5 to 10 days like you would in WDW. Uni is fun to visit once or twice and then gets boring the third and fourth visit. Not planning in September this year to go and visit. The DWF and I enjoy the Atmoshpere a whole lot more at WDW.
 
D

DisneyNut2007

Active Member
rsoxguy said:
Truthfully, I have my own life to worry about. I never panic over WDW. It's just a place in which to have fun with my family.
Click to expand...

I agree.

Also, is it just me or is this Grizzly Hall 71 nihilist actually the equally-nihilistic General Grizz in disguise? If so, we'd better run for our lives! :lookaroun
 
L

love disney

Active Member
Grizzly Hall 71 said:
Universal's attendance and merch sales are soaring!!

My good friend AndyMagic posted this on the Universal thread:

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/bu...posts-first-attendance-gain-in-two-years.html

This is just 2 weeks before the second quarter ended. Imagine what the 3rd quarter will look like.

Well i guess Disney is.......

well.....

doing nothing about it.

Could Potter be the reason Disney's earning are a little down? Should we still not worry?

Or is it time to worry a bit?
Click to expand...

Attendance up 2.2%, I don't think that is "soaring" at all, especially not since this is the first gain in 2 years. Merchandise up 12+%, that indeed is good, but I would bet the vast majority of that gain is WWoHP. Does WDW need to worry about this? Absolutely not, I actually believe their profits ended up higher than expected.

WWoHP will be great for Uni., but will doubtfully have any negative impacts on WDW. In fact WDW might actually get visitors who otherwise wouldn't have gone to any of their parks but went to Orlando specifically to see WWoHP and also decided to hit WDW. I seriously doubt WWoHP will have any negative impacts on WDW's financial gains. Now, hopefully it will encourage them to add some new rides, fix some existing problems, do more than the FLE, etc., but realistically Uni. does not, and probably will not ever, truly compete with WDW.
 
devoy1701

devoy1701

Well-Known Member
considering that this is the first attendance gain they've seen in 2 years and attendance is still below where it was when IoA first opened...no, nothing to worry about. Any there probably won't ever be anything to worry about...considering that they are talking about combined attendance figures, 2.6 Million people is a far cry away from attendance figures of WDW parks.
 
NORMNB8S

NORMNB8S

Member
I would agree that this is hardly something to worry about. That's good for Universal that they're experiencing some success. As someone who enjoys going to Universal and a fan of the Harry Potter books and films, I am very interested in going to Universal Studios to see the new part of the park. However, when I make my vist from North Carolina to see the new HP land, I will be staying at a Disney resort and visiting each of the Disney parks and spending more time on Disney property than I wills pend on Universal Studios property. Universal is a fun two days at a fun amusement park but it still is not a vacation destination the way Disney is.
 
durangojim

durangojim

Well-Known Member
Meh, give it two years and I'm sure Universal will be back where it used to be. Not worried because there aren't many people who have a connection with Universal like they do with Disney.
 
garyhoov

garyhoov

Trophy Husband
Oh hell . . .

. . . if this keeps up, Disney might have to create some cool new attractions.

That would stink.:lookaroun
 
AndyMagic

AndyMagic

Well-Known Member
devoy1701 said:
considering that this is the first attendance gain they've seen in 2 years and attendance is still below where it was when IoA first opened...no, nothing to worry about. Any there probably won't ever be anything to worry about...considering that they are talking about combined attendance figures, 2.6 Million people is a far cry away from attendance figures of WDW parks.
Click to expand...

The 2.2 increase is notable because Wizarding World was open for only 2 weeks of the quarter that is being reported. The sales increase of 12% is HUGE.
 
AndyMagic

AndyMagic

Well-Known Member
Even more illuminating information was reported HERE!

So it looks like the actual effect of Potter is more like a 30% - 40% increase in attendance for the months it was actually open. :eek::eek::lookaroun
 
Thrill

Thrill

Well-Known Member
love disney said:
Attendance up 2.2%, I don't think that is "soaring" at all, especially not since this is the first gain in 2 years. Merchandise up 12+%, that indeed is good, but I would bet the vast majority of that gain is WWoHP. Does WDW need to worry about this? Absolutely not, I actually believe their profits ended up higher than expected.

WWoHP will be great for Uni., but will doubtfully have any negative impacts on WDW. In fact WDW might actually get visitors who otherwise wouldn't have gone to any of their parks but went to Orlando specifically to see WWoHP and also decided to hit WDW. I seriously doubt WWoHP will have any negative impacts on WDW's financial gains. Now, hopefully it will encourage them to add some new rides, fix some existing problems, do more than the FLE, etc., but realistically Uni. does not, and probably will not ever, truly compete with WDW.
Click to expand...

Agreed. It's not hurting Disney, it could be helping them. If you think about it, they don't need to respond to WWoHP. They have projects that should bring in new markets (Four Seasons, for example). Star Tours 2 might be a way of bringing in fans of a franchise (albeit smaller). In a few months/years, the WWoHP hype will wear off and we'll see Universal's numbers start to level out. At the same time, FLE should be opening up, and WDW could see some increases.

In the long run, WDW will always have an edge because Disney beats Universal in two important areas: land and money.
 
The Incredible Schmulk

The Incredible Schmulk

Well-Known Member
love disney said:
Attendance up 2.2%, I don't think that is "soaring" at all, especially not since this is the first gain in 2 years. Merchandise up 12+%, that indeed is good, but I would bet the vast majority of that gain is WWoHP. Does WDW need to worry about this? Absolutely not, I actually believe their profits ended up higher than expected.

WWoHP will be great for Uni., but will doubtfully have any negative impacts on WDW. In fact WDW might actually get visitors who otherwise wouldn't have gone to any of their parks but went to Orlando specifically to see WWoHP and also decided to hit WDW. I seriously doubt WWoHP will have any negative impacts on WDW's financial gains. Now, hopefully it will encourage them to add some new rides, fix some existing problems, do more than the FLE, etc., but realistically Uni. does not, and probably will not ever, truly compete with WDW.
Click to expand...

I think that is probably the most likely outcome of the new addition. Harry Potter or no, it doesn't change the fact that Universal is a two-day park, at the most. Most people spend more than double that amount of time in Orlando, so it stands to reason that most people who are specifically going to Universal to see the new Harry Potter addition are also going to stay (probably longer) in the Disney resort area. Like you said, if anything, this only bolsters business.

I bet Disney, while maybe not too happy about being slightly upstaged, is thrilled about the boost in attendance the new attraction provides.
 
AndyMagic

AndyMagic

Well-Known Member
Thrill said:
Agreed. It's not hurting Disney, it could be helping them. If you think about it, they don't need to respond to WWoHP. They have projects that should bring in new markets (Four Seasons, for example). Star Tours 2 might be a way of bringing in fans of a franchise (albeit smaller). In a few months/years, the WWoHP hype will wear off and we'll see Universal's numbers start to level out. At the same time, FLE should be opening up, and WDW could see some increases.

In the long run, WDW will always have an edge because Disney beats Universal in two important areas: land and money.
Click to expand...

FLE won't be fully open until 2013. That's basically three years of Harry Potter merchandise flying off the shelves at Universal with almost nothing new offered by Disney except some new projectors and a new ride film for Star Tours.
 

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