Disney Playing catch up with Universal... Potter Disney's biggest mistake in 20 years...

[lazyboy97o]

Given that it was such a 'bland' observation, one wonders why you guys jumped all over it. It wasn't because it was a slight negative against Universal, was it?

I jumped on the repetition that was supposedly without motive. No point in constantly repeating something if it is of little consequence.

 

[seascape]

Why wouldn't you count the books? That'd be like not counting Frozen's DVD sales.

And the in store Potter merch isn't as prolific as it once was, but there are still sections of toy aisles dedicate to it. To be fair, though, I live in Orlando, so they may be tapping into the fan base that makes the pilgrimage here. Can anyone confirm or deny Potter stuff at their Target or Walmart?

Either way, there are still popular video games and Lego sets in addition to the books and movies.

In the stores Universal gets nothing from HP sales. They only make money in their parks. HP was not a Universal movie and the rights to the charachters are owned my JKR. This is just like Six Flags contract with DC and the Universal contract with Marvel.

 

[TubaGeek]

Given that it was such a 'bland' observation, one wonders why you guys jumped all over it. It wasn't because it was a slight negative against Universal, was it?

I jumped on the repetition that was supposedly without motive. No point in constantly repeating something if it is of little consequence.

Exactly. Plus, he kept defending himself saying that it wasn't a criticism, but an observation. What is a criticism if not a negative observation?

We are all aware that both resorts have pros and cons (Disney has an absolute monopoly on nighttime shows. The area music at USF is TERRIBLE. See?), it's just that his criticism is a flimsy attempt at finding fault in the Next Big Thing.

In the stores Universal gets nothing from HP sales. They only make money in their parks. HP was not a Universal movie and the rights to the charachters are owned my JKR. This is just like Six Flags contract with DC and the Universal contract with Marvel.

Yeah, but your original question was who sold more merch between Potter and Frozen. It specified nothing about who got the Potter money.

 

[Beholder]

Why wouldn't you count the books? That'd be like not counting Frozen's DVD sales.

And the in store Potter merch isn't as prolific as it once was, but there are still sections of toy aisles dedicate to it. To be fair, though, I live in Orlando, so they may be tapping into the fan base that makes the pilgrimage here. Can anyone confirm or deny Potter stuff at their Target or Walmart?

Either way, there are still popular video games and Lego sets in addition to the books and movies.

Speaking for my own little corner of the U.S. in the south east, I haven't seen HP merch in a LONG time. The books are always readily available as are the movies, but the toys and related things are not there, at least on my radar. Even the local comic/game (yes, I'm a geek, amongst other things) shops have zero HP presence. Hope this helps.

 

[Tony Perkis]

Speaking for my own little corner of the U.S. in the south east, I haven't seen HP merch in a LONG time. The books are always readily available as are the movies, but the toys and related things are not there, at least on my radar. Even the local comic/game (yes, I'm a geek, amongst other things) shops have zero HP presence. Hope this helps.

The LEGO Harry Potter games are all over the place.

 

[raymusiccity]

Exactly. Plus, he kept defending himself saying that it wasn't a criticism, but an observation. What is a criticism if not a negative observation?

We are all aware that both resorts have pros and cons (Disney has an absolute monopoly on nighttime shows. The area music at USF is TERRIBLE. See?), it's just that his criticism is a flimsy attempt at finding fault in the Next Big Thing.

Yeah, but your original question was who sold more merch between Potter and Frozen. It specified nothing about who got the Potter money.

 

[Beholder]

The LEGO Harry Potter games are all over the place.

Yeah, I wasn't thinking about video games, like I said, not on my radar. I wonder if people are drawn to this type of game because of HP or because it's Lego? Both perhaps.

 

[ABQ]

The LEGO Harry Potter games are all over the place.

Including the Lego store in DTD. Ironic as it may be. Though I saw in a picture from yesterday's Diagon opening that Maleficent was playing at the Uni AMC theater. Also sort of ironic. Though I'm sure AMC chooses what to run, not Uni.

 

[TubaGeek]

Yeah, I wasn't thinking about video games, like I said, not on my radar. I wonder if people are drawn to this type of game because of HP or because it's Lego? Both perhaps.

The Lego games tend to only feature the game-changing franchises. HP, Star Wars, Indy, Tolkien, DC superheroes, and (on the bottom of the totem pole) PotC. And Rock Band and the Lego Movie, but those don't fall under the "franchise" unbrella the same way.

 

[Beholder]

I just think the very nature of HP, at least at this point, doesn't lend itself to a long term toy/collectibility scenario. All that could change with various other licensing opportunities. Star Wars has taken on a life of its own, outside the movies, and, something important to consider, SW came along when (help create the market for) action figures were the toy of choice for lots of us kids. G.I. Joe, He-Man, Micronauts, Shogun Warriors, Battlestar Galactica and Stretch Armstrong were what boys played with, not video games. That association between those franchises and action figures has never gone away, and I think that has a lot to do wether or not a toy line is successful. There are always exceptions, but I don't if we will ever see the craze that surrounds the SW universe.

 

[TubaGeek]

I just think the very nature of HP, at least at this point, doesn't lend itself to a long term toy/collectibility scenario. All that could change with various other licensing opportunities. Star Wars has taken on a life of its own, outside the movies, and, something important to consider, SW came along when (help create the market for) action figures were the toy of choice for lots of us kids. G.I. Joe, He-Man, Micronauts, Shogun Warriors, Battlestar Galactica and Stretch Armstrong were what boys played with, not video games. That association between those franchises and action figures has never gone away, and I think that has a lot to do wether or not a toy line is successful. There are always exceptions, but I don't if we will ever see the craze that surrounds the SW universe.

A major aspect of the equation is that Rowling, since becoming more powerful than... pretty much anyone, has cinched tightly the rights to merchandise Harry Potter. Before the shift of power, there were all sorts of board games, card games, and low-quality merch. As the series got more popular and she became more powerful, she got very restrictive about what could be sold with the Potter name.

 

[GLaDOS]

A thought on the lack of Potter merchandise outside of the Wizarding World locations:

Personally, I think it may be why Universal makes so damn much off of it. Don't get me wrong, the high quality and huge variety they offer is also a huge part of that, but the fact that you don't see it on every store shelf across the country makes people stop and really check it out. It's why the Cars Land specific merch does so well too. You can't find it everywhere else. Compare that to Marvel merch or Star Wars merch that you can find in every WalMart and Target across the country. Why would people spend 50 bucks on a lightsaber here when they can buy the same one at home for 30?

Not saying a Star Wars land wouldn't sell a ton of merch, but they'd have to work hard to differentiate it from the stuff you can find at every store in the US.

 

[Beholder]

A major aspect of the equation is that Rowling, since becoming more powerful than... pretty much anyone, has cinched tightly the rights to merchandise Harry Potter. Before the shift of power, there were all sorts of board games, card games, and low-quality merch. As the series got more popular and she became more powerful, she got very restrictive about what could be sold with the Potter name.

I guess she didn't want to see any Harry Potter Underoos

 

[TubaGeek]

I guess she didn't want to see any Harry Potter Underoos

I can't imagine why not.

 

[Beholder]

A thought on the lack of Potter merchandise outside of the Wizarding World locations:

Personally, I think it may be why Universal makes so damn much off of it. Don't get me wrong, the high quality and huge variety they offer is also a huge part of that, but the fact that you don't see it on every store shelf across the country makes people stop and really check it out. It's why the Cars Land specific merch does so well too. You can't find it everywhere else. Compare that to Marvel merch or Star Wars merch that you can find in every WalMart and Target across the country. Why would people spend 50 bucks on a lightsaber here when they can buy the same one at home for 30?

Not saying a Star Wars land wouldn't sell a ton of merch, but they'd have to work hard to differentiate it from the stuff you can find at every store in the US.

I think creating park only type merchandise is key. Disney is sitting on their merchandising dream and (so far) doing nothing with it. They want to sell merchandise to a built in global fan base? You couldn't ask for a bigger franchise. Create a few DHS only collectibles and there you go. Charge just about what you want and it'll make bank all day long. Selling the same crap that you can get at every single Walmart isn't going to cut it. Not anymore.

 

[Beholder]

I can't imagine why not.
View attachment 58575

That's funny! I imagine there's a pair with a magic wand reference somewhere...

 

[ABQ]

A thought on the lack of Potter merchandise outside of the Wizarding World locations:

Personally, I think it may be why Universal makes so damn much off of it. Don't get me wrong, the high quality and huge variety they offer is also a huge part of that, but the fact that you don't see it on every store shelf across the country makes people stop and really check it out. It's why the Cars Land specific merch does so well too. You can't find it everywhere else. Compare that to Marvel merch or Star Wars merch that you can find in every WalMart and Target across the country. Why would people spend 50 bucks on a lightsaber here when they can buy the same one at home for 30?

Not saying a Star Wars land wouldn't sell a ton of merch, but they'd have to work hard to differentiate it from the stuff you can find at every store in the US.

In a way, WDW has shown that they can do that. There's a good deal of higher priced loot available at the Tatooine Traders store that I've never seen outside of that location. Not that I've bought anything and I'm not specifically looking for it, but I've never seen it. Someone more aware can correct me. If they can keep that exclusivity to any growth of a SW land they'll create even more of a draw for guests. The cheaper crap, well, as others have said, SW was selling everywhere for a long time. I know my first trip to WDW back in 1977 I was sitting in the back seat of a rented Plymouth Hornet playing with a die cast R2-D2 (though even that toy was of better quality than some made today)

 

[GLaDOS]

In a way, WDW has shown that they can do that. There's a good deal of higher priced loot available at the Tatooine Traders store that I've never seen outside of that location. Not that I've bought anything and I'm not specifically looking for it, but I've never seen it. Someone more aware can correct me. If they can keep that exclusivity to any growth of a SW land they'll create even more of a draw for guests. The cheaper crap, well, as others have said, SW was selling everywhere for a long time. I know my first trip to WDW back in 1977 I was sitting in the back seat of a rented Plymouth Hornet playing with a die cast R2-D2 (though even that toy was of better quality than some made today)

Then they should also look to make the "cheaper crap" better. Cars Land and WWOHP have fantastically well designed t-shirts and smaller things available. The wands that sell for 30-45 bucks are also surprisingly well crafted (though unfortunately a bit fragile due to their material), and definitely don't feel like a crappy piece of merchandise.

Disney's biggest weakness in generating money is their merch, IMO. Yes, they sell a TON of the junk they produce, but imagine what they'd make if they started producing some real, quality stuff at a reasonable price to go along with it!

 

[Tony Perkis]

Including the Lego store in DTD. Ironic as it may be. Though I saw in a picture from yesterday's Diagon opening that Maleficent was playing at the Uni AMC theater. Also sort of ironic. Though I'm sure AMC chooses what to run, not Uni.

Disney and Universal have little control over the offerings each store sells. Citywalk and DTD are malls, more or less.

 

[Tony Perkis]

Yeah, I wasn't thinking about video games, like I said, not on my radar. I wonder if people are drawn to this type of game because of HP or because it's Lego? Both perhaps.

They're just great games, incredibly clever. Same goes for Lego Star Wars, Lego Marvel, Lego Batman, and even Lego Movie.