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Disney to begin allowing purchase of MagicBands without linking to a ticket
- Thread starter wdwmagic
- Start date
Unplugged
Well-Known Member
If you get a free band per person when you book a trip, why would anyone buy them for someone else for a trip not yet booked? Is this for people who stay off property to buy so they can log-in and add a park ticket, perhaps for a the week they're in town? Am I missing something?
lazyboy97o
Well-Known Member
No, you're not missing anything because advance FastPass+ reservations require admission. That people are willing to buy $13 bracelets is simply amazing. No new benefits are offered except for the feeling of being included.
snayak
New Member
For an offsite guest the only real utility I can see for these is photopass/memory maker and maybe not having to fumble around with multiple tickets at a FP+ checkpoint (for parents & kids or whatever).
I would absolutely definitely buy them if Swan/Dolphin guests could use them for charging (hello 4x starpoints!) but not much other than that.
I would absolutely definitely buy them if Swan/Dolphin guests could use them for charging (hello 4x starpoints!) but not much other than that.
flynnibus
Premium Member
Exactly - this is nothing but Disney trying to move merchandise at the expense of customer experience. They want to be able to cash in on people wanting to buy the various LE bands.
lazyboy97o
Well-Known Member
They'll probably get there, but right now it is just the regular MagicBands.
Unplugged
Well-Known Member
Thanks. I was following along with the band nonsense pretty well, went on holiday for a week, and came back to this. I know Diz does some weird cash grabs, but this seemed blatant even for them. My mistake as that's simply what it appears to be. Hopefully they'll back it with the "FP$" option where off site folks are paying big bucks for passes. The rest of the industry does it, hard to believe Diz doesn't. I'm sure it's part of a "subtle" roll out.
JordanKing
Active Member
Wait. This is just NOW happening? Someone must have pulled some strings when I was there because I already did this back in April...
Rob562
Well-Known Member
Ignoring whether or not it's worth it to buy the Band in the first place (which I think is up to the individual consumer whether the convenience factor is worth $13 to *them*)...
One valid scenario I can see where this might come into play is a parent visiting the park by themselves and decides to buy a Band for their child for their next trip to the parks. Under the old rules they wouldn't have been allowed to buy one if they didn't have the child's ticket on them.
But we all knew this was coming. There's been a function all along to specifically "link a purchased Magic Band" in both the app and the MDE website.
-Rob
One valid scenario I can see where this might come into play is a parent visiting the park by themselves and decides to buy a Band for their child for their next trip to the parks. Under the old rules they wouldn't have been allowed to buy one if they didn't have the child's ticket on them.
But we all knew this was coming. There's been a function all along to specifically "link a purchased Magic Band" in both the app and the MDE website.
-Rob
FrostyNaples
Well-Known Member
In its further evolution, since your Magic Band is managed by you on your individual MDE, it would be nice for those offsite folks to be able to link a CC within MDE direct to their Magic Band. Then they too, can partake in the versatility that is the Magic Band.
FrostyNaples
Well-Known Member
They "should" be available right on Disney's own website...
lazyboy97o
Well-Known Member
That is not something new, special or unique to the MagicBand.
Rob562
Well-Known Member
While that would indeed be an added level of convenience for the off-site Guests, there are a number of logistical and legal issues involved with doing that.
First, it opens up new courses for credit card fraud. The credit card companies would most likely have an issue of each transaction being pushed through to the credit card without the physical card being used as verification. The card companies would have to agree that Disney's PIN-based system is secure enough for their requirements.
With the current form of charging using the Bands, you're not really charging directly to the credit card you gave to the hotel. Instead, you're charging against an in-house charge account. Disney is the one in control of the charges and credits to that account. If they want to say that the PIN is enough security to protect themselves against fraud, that's fine. But the card companies may not.
Also, correcting errors is a simple and free matter for Disney to deal with when they're talking about their own accounting system. A few clicks of the keyboard and an errant charge is removed from a Guest's account without any actual money being moved around. It gets more complicated when they deal with crediting back to a credit card for any errors.
As I've said in other threads, I think the more likely/easy option for Disney would be to link the Bands into their existing Disney Gift Card system and set it up as pre-paid accounts. I do that now with Dunkin Donuts. You sign up for an account on their site, and then you can link either a physical gift card or buy a virtual one through their phone app. I can then either use the physical card or they scan a code I display on my phone in the app to use that gift card. I can also reload the card (both a physical one and a virtual one) via the app, website or in-store. There's no reason Disney couldn't do the same thing but substitute the Band for the app screen. (They could even let you re-charge your gift card balance from inside the MDE app)
-Rob
FrostyNaples
Well-Known Member
It would be no different than using your mobile phone's NFC (or other) payment capabilities that have been steadily making progress in the retail environment for years now. Which are directly tied to your CC's. Your cell phone is yours, your magic band it yours. No difference in fraud situations, your item was stolen, be it band, phone or card.
Disney would just need to jump on the bandwagon.
So many transactions are completed using third party payment and hardware systems, the act of swiping the credit card is no longer a requirement, the legal hurdles have been jumped.
SpeedPass, Google Wallet, Apple's Passport, Paypal, etc. Disney could make the Magic Band its own merchant for all they wanted, and rule the world, lol.
flynnibus
Premium Member
It would be no different than using your mobile phone's NFC (or other) payment capabilities that have been steadily making progress in the retail environment for years now. Which are directly tied to your CC's. Your cell phone is yours, your magic band it yours. No difference in fraud situations, your item was stolen, be it band, phone or card.
Disney would just need to jump on the bandwagon.
So many transactions are completed using third party payment and hardware systems, the act of swiping the credit card is no longer a requirement, the legal hurdles have been jumped.
SpeedPass, Google Wallet, Apple's Passport, Paypal, etc. Disney could make the Magic Band its own merchant for all they wanted, and rule the world, lol.
All the examples you gave are not direct Credit Card charging. They are charging to a billing account you setup, that you have authorized the vendor to settle by charging your credit card. It's an important distinction because how fraud is handled is different. The credit card rules on what the merchant is responsible for vs the customer have not changed. Those vendors have assumed greater risk by allowing transactions to be charged without the CC company mandated elements that would protect the merchant.
When you pay with Google Wallet, Paypal, etc.. you are not using your credit card. You are using a charge account that you have linked to your credit card. You are not protected in the same manner.. nor is the merchant.
FrostyNaples
Well-Known Member
My original idea of having MDE use your CC, MDE itself would be the middle man. So i guess Disney?
In any case, this has really blown out of proportion and off topic.
Happy to see Disney making this move, and hopefully they will expand soon allowing online purchase of Magic Bands as well as LE versions.
flynnibus
Premium Member
The point would be is that the users need to setup charging profiles and Disney would need to assume greater liability. Its not impossible, but its not the same either.. and all likelyhood, it's probably more of a 'product' decision than liability. Wanting to keep that perk for the resort guests.
FrostyNaples
Well-Known Member
So when I log into MDE currently, and book a resort reservation, tickets, etc, and during checkout it asks me to use my CC that currently exists on file (within my MDE login), and i say yes, THAT is not the same as having the ability to log into my MDE, and linking my Magic Band to my already stored CC, so when i checkout with my Magic Band, it charges my CC on file?
I don't see the difference, or the 'Charging Profile' in topic. MDE 'is' my charging profile, is it not? It already has CC stored information.
Are we beating a dead horse?
Does anyone know if the non-linked magicbands work with Disney's Infinity game system?