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AT&T on Spaceship Earth
- Thread starter ToTBellHop
- Start date
jaimjaim25
New Member
ok as a FORMER AT&T employee (got laid off last year
) I know they are making major cuts. My friend that still works at AT&T said his 2 friends got laid off today! So I'm saying that they dropped sponsership because they can't afford to keep it going. Which sucks, since they just built that network neighborhood not too long ago.. now it has to be changed with no AT&T words in sight. I don't know if the lounge is still opened, but if it is, I doubt it will be opened much longer. Maybe it still says AT&T there, because the sponcership has a specific cut off date and that didn't happen yet, but it's 100% definate they dropped it.
) I know they are making major cuts. My friend that still works at AT&T said his 2 friends got laid off today! So I'm saying that they dropped sponsership because they can't afford to keep it going. Which sucks, since they just built that network neighborhood not too long ago.. now it has to be changed with no AT&T words in sight. I don't know if the lounge is still opened, but if it is, I doubt it will be opened much longer. Maybe it still says AT&T there, because the sponcership has a specific cut off date and that didn't happen yet, but it's 100% definate they dropped it.
thedisneyfan
Member
I wonder if WDW and Disney in general will be getting a new telecommunications partner?
thedisneyfan
Member
Boy based upon that theory, I guess it's time to get rid of PoC, IaSW, Cinderella's Castle, WDWRR, Dumbo, etc., etc., etc., etc......
There's nothing wrong with SE, and no need to mess with a great one, especially when there are plenty other things to mess with like Wonders of Life!
Originally posted by thedisneyfan
Boy based upon that theory, I guess it's time to get rid of PoC, IaSW, Cinderella's Castle, WDWRR, Dumbo, etc., etc., etc., etc......
Spaceship Earth is closing. There is no getting around it, you can argue it all you want, but it is one of the most poorly kept secrets in Disney history that AT&T is leaving in September, and the day after they leave, Disney will hold a press event announcing Microsoft's new alliance with Disney and the new Time Racer attraction...have you not noticed the fact that every Future World attraction has been going through a major change over the past 10 years? It was only a matter of time for the big ball.
thedisneyfan
Member
have you not noticed how the attendance at EPCOT has also along these same lines gotten worse over these past ten years?
That can't possibly be due to the same reasons that attendance has dropped at the other four parks, can it? With the exception of the Magic Kingdom, the other parks have seen rather large drops in attendance over the past few years...thus profits are way down this quarter. Keeping the parks stagnant does not help ANYTHING. People do not want to see the same Epcot now that they did twenty years ago; this is what happens when you build a park themed as a much larger Tomorrowland--people want change. The lines for Test Track would suggest people aren't all that annoyed with its addition (regardless of your feelings, the general public likes this ride, so we see two hour waits during the off season), and we can expect a similar reaction to SPACE. The lines (or lack thereof) for Spaceship Earth show the need for change--even though we all love the ride, it needs a change.
Slinky Dog
New Member
Agreed Dogsrule.
PotC, Splash, Hm etc are timeless rides. Futureworld at EPCOT needs to be evolving and changing otherwise it loses it's purpose.
SE especially needs a proper update due to it being an attraction about communication and technology, an area where we have seen massive advances in the last 20 years, and who better to sponsor it? Microsoft, who have been at the forefront of these advances (begrudgingly giving Microsoft credit there).
If SE does change to Time Racers, lets wait and see what form the entire ride will take, lets hope the ride system and theme is as revolutionary (no pun intended) as Mission:Space.
PotC, Splash, Hm etc are timeless rides. Futureworld at EPCOT needs to be evolving and changing otherwise it loses it's purpose.
SE especially needs a proper update due to it being an attraction about communication and technology, an area where we have seen massive advances in the last 20 years, and who better to sponsor it? Microsoft, who have been at the forefront of these advances (begrudgingly giving Microsoft credit there
).If SE does change to Time Racers, lets wait and see what form the entire ride will take, lets hope the ride system and theme is as revolutionary (no pun intended) as Mission:Space.
Ok.. Based on everything I've heard I suppose it's finally time to accept the fact that spaceship earth will eventually be a thing of the past. But, what would happen to that giant golf ball should Disney and Microsoft go through with their Time Racers idea? From what I've heard on the boards, the ride is supposed to be not too different from RnRc... I just can't see how you can fit somehting like that within the geosphere. But they can't possably get rid of a theme park icon. Im still upset over the giant hat right infront of the gmr.... Any thoughts?
SirNim
Well-Known Member
IMHO there is no way SE is going to be gutted to make way for a traditional RnRC-style roller coaster. If the rehab happens, the ride system will probably be a radical "moving theater"-style attraction, maybe like the EMVs at TT, Dino, and Indy, only, well, different, just due to the amount of space inside the geosphere and how the supports inside the geosphere are positioned. SE is supported by a giant screw wrapping around the middle, and this screw doubles as the floor the omnimover traverses across. Any other ride vehicle that's going to go inside it will have to traverse the same screw-like floor, all the way up to the top, or else the geosphere will not have enough support, if the floor is cut out or something like that. A roller coaster replacement to SE is, to me, is very improbable.
The ride system that will make up SE, if the renovation actually happens, will probably be something we have not seen yet, only because I cannot think of a currently existing system (other than omnimover) that would be able to go fast, then slow, yet tell a story with the use of scenes and (*crosses fingers* hopefully) A-As inside a building like SE. (pardon the pun) Time will only tell.
Turn SE into a Treasure planet ride!
Just kidding......:lol:
I would think the sphere would make an excellant 3D ride like Spiderman, perhaps a journey to the Center of the Earth theme?
More of an approach to earth internally, tectonic plates, earthquakes,the dtrimental effects of draining the oil reserves, mysterious creatures at fathomless depths, etc.
Would balance out Mission Space of exploring Inner Earth.
Just kidding......:lol:
I would think the sphere would make an excellant 3D ride like Spiderman, perhaps a journey to the Center of the Earth theme?
More of an approach to earth internally, tectonic plates, earthquakes,the dtrimental effects of draining the oil reserves, mysterious creatures at fathomless depths, etc.
Would balance out Mission Space of exploring Inner Earth.
check a bunch of the rumor websites, including this one, and you will find I am not the only one who thinks this.
Examples:
http://www.wdwmagic.com/project_gemini.htm
http://www.screamscape.com/html/walt_disney_world.html
Is the fact that Disney already has a trademark on the name and that a big event is planned for Epcot in September, the month AT&T leaves, entitled "Journey through Time" not enough confirmation?
jaimjaim25
New Member
No I got the employee email on saying it was over
Dayma
Well-Known Member
OK I check them and like it said "rumor" but I am of the general belif as you something is goning to happen to SSE. Why does everyone assume Time Racers is a roller coaster? Is there something on this that I am missing?
Also why trademark SSE: TIME RACERS? They plan on keeping the name Spaceship Earth?
darthdarrel
New Member
I agree with you!
Untill I see it for myself I will not believe any rumor and noone from Disney has said that Space ship earth is going to be turned into a roller coaster,so to me that is just someones fantasy untill I see it with my own eyes.
DarkMeasures
New Member
I still think Microsoft will just make the new SSE ride a giant XBOX advertisement.
darthdarrel
New Member
:lol: :lol:
There were 2 Expedition Everest names trademarked. They can still change to a better name. It's better to have more than one name. Sort of like ESPN has several names with ESPN in them so in case they ever use them, they have them and they won't have to pay to get the rights to the name.
thedisneyfan
Member
As for the other park drops, could they also be because they made stupid "refreshing changes" to prevent the park from becoming stagnant like "Doug Live" for Superstar Television....yeah that was definitely keeping the park from being stagnant....good choice there. Let's see like the stupid hat at MGM, yeah that's done a real good job at preventing the park from being stagnant! Oh wait that's right attendance has dropped with the stupid "refreshing" changes! Did you ever stop and take one microsecond and think why Magic Kingdom is the biggest park with attendance and attendance growth? Could it be that people need a certain amount of familiarity in the parks that they want to revisit again and again. Epcot needs to keep some of this familiarity by not changing everything in site, ESPECIALLY SPACESHIP EARTH! Maybe the reason attendance is down, is because it no longer has any strong connection of familiarity to keep enough repeat visitors! This is not to say that no changes or no refurbishments of some degree can ever be made, but when they are made they must not demolish everything that is familiar. The most familiar thing about EPCOT is SPACESHIP EARTH!
And another thing, it should be noted that Spaceship Earth gets more riders than your precious marvel of Test Track that will be so stale within five years because of the lack of imagination, artistry, and awe that didn't go into it unlike that of Spaceship Earth! How many people go around humming the Test Track theme, as opposed to Spaceship Earth? And I don't know what lines you see for Test Track during off peak season at Test Track that last two hours? You've got to be kidding!