Innoventions West to Close in May?

[brava_centauri]

Take this information with a pinch of salt, but CM friends of mine at Innoventions have apparently been told that West is set to close in May. No word on exact date, what will be replacing it, or whether any of the exhibits will be transferred or restored elsewhere. The Visa Card member character photo op is popular and will probably need to find relocation somewhere else, which would leave Where's the Fire, The Great Piggy Bank Adventure, the empty space from the old Segway tours, and the impressive "play video game consoles you can find at your local Best Buy" exhibit still in the building since IBM already closed. Any speculation as to what the space will be used for, if anything, and if any of the exhibits could be transferred to fill the space in East that UL just vacated?

 

[VJ]

If true, that would mean Disney's trying to get rid of Innoventions across the board, both at Disneyland and WDW... Interesting.

 

[NiarrNDisney]

Hmmm I wonder if it will be used for just one large exhibit sponsored by a large company with tons of products.
I just hope it doesn't turn out to be a makeshift Apple Store or something equally unnecessary from their competitors!

 

[Captain Neo]

If true, that would mean Disney's trying to get rid of Innoventions across the board, both at Disneyland and WDW... Interesting.

Theres still Innoventions east though and inventions at DL is being temporarily turned into a 60th. Mueseum.

 

[marni1971]

Theres still Innoventions east though and inventions at DL is being temporarily turned into a 60th. Mueseum.

Rename Inno East and it's gone.

Medium term don't expect it to return to DL.

 

[Horizons1]

Sure he wasn't talking about Innoventions on the WEST coast?

 

[DisneyDebRob]

Ok, I'll say it first. A DVC kiosk?

 

[brava_centauri]

Sure he wasn't talking about Innoventions on the WEST coast?

The CMs I worked with are located in Florida (Inno East used to be my work location), so unless wires got crossed it should be the West building in Epcot. I believe the Inno at Disneyland is supposed to close in a few weeks at the end of March, so it will be a bit of time in between the two closures if they're correct.

I'm curious how this all works in relation to sponsorship contracts. Liberty Mutual has been a sponsor of Where's the Fire for a long time, so I"m not sure if their contract expired and they didn't want to renew it or whether Disney has final say over the operation of the building and can get out of the contract early. Last I heard, the contract for the Vision House in East is supposed to expire in April and the sponsor was expressing disinterest in renewing it, so the future of that part of the building could be up in the air with the previous closure of UL and open up some real estate.

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

Oh that would suck! My 7 year old loves the Piggy Bank Adventure. If they close I wonder if we could get a pig.

 

[Monorail Lime]

Hopefully there is already a plan for its replacement. It would be such a shame for yet another space in EPCOT to sit vacant.

 

[Sage of Time]

Are we talking demolition, here?!

Rename Inno East and it's gone.

Medium term don't expect it to return to DL.

 

[Bolt]

It's true.

 

[FutureWorld1982]

I have some strong connections at Epcot, and while I haven't heard anything this specific, I heard some rumblings about Innoventions West. One of the things that made me think is the fact that they want to do away with Innoventions greeters (which, incidentally, work at the Great Piggy Bank Adventure and the walkway in front of IBM).

That said, the IBM exhibit has NOT closed down yet, and the Chase character spot is, indeed, very popular, so they would need to find a new place for that.

 

[ChesterKiwi]

the impressive "play video game consoles you can find at your local Best Buy" exhibit

I laughed harder at this than I should have.

 

[ItlngrlBella]

SPECIAL. EVENT. SPACE.

...Because they don't have enough empty buildings for private/special events.

((She said sarcastically))

 

[culturenthrills]

Cuts, cuts, cuts, cuts. TDO gotta make their bonuses.

 

[t3techcom18]

I can second the confirmation.

From my understanding, it's because neither Liberty Mutual nor T. Rowe Price opted to renew their contracts. If they opted not to renew and IBM THINK is going away as well, it's pointless to keep that building running. Believe it or not, The Great Piggy Adventure is actually quite expensive, not necessarily in running it but the components involved (you wouldn't believe me if I told you how much those individual piggy banks cost).

 

[Cmdr_Crimson]

This won't affect the Epcot Character spot side of Innoventions and the open window hallway?
Just as long as that is open...I'll be happy...

Also let's just hope they keep the Innoventions loop going!

 

[stini228]

Well boo. My go-to restrooms are in there. Also appreciate the A/C break when leaving the park from the Land area.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Cuts, cuts, cuts, cuts. TDO gotta make their bonuses.

Yeah... no.

1. Let's think about how sponsorship works. Sponsors pay to place and operate the things in Innoventions. They're net money-makers for Disney. Losing sponsors is a bad thing, not a cost cut that leads to savings.

2. You obviously have no idea what "TDO" is or how it operates.

3. Nobody is earning a bonus for cutting a handful of minimum wage heads, even if those heads weren't being paid for by the sponsors.