Is disney parks and resorts for sale?

[FigmentJedi]

Maybe the prince just wants to buy the hat and take it home with him.

 

[jhastings74]

Maybe the prince just wants to buy the hat and take it home with him.

Shoot...he could have it for free and I'd be okay with that.

 

[boufa]

Silliest thread of the week. What a joke. Guy with lots of money comes to Disney world. Great. Owner (err CEO) of Disney spends entire week on his knees kissing his butt.

Where is this news? Nothing is going on here. Maybe they are just wining and dining the guy to invest in something else. Maybe the guy wants to open Disney Saudi Arabia. Maybe, and I am just saying maybe, he is already a big investor and he is getting the "royal" treatment. Happens every day with many companies, in many places.

 

[stitch2008]

Because most of these board members are presidents and CEOs of other companies and gabe plenty of other things to be doing. Getting them ALL together at once is a big deal. What that big deal is is anyones guess!

It is anyones guess. I'm just trying to put two and two together. A day ago, we were all interested in why Iger and Staggs were in the park. D23 Expo is 6weeks away. Disney has to be finalizing plans for the event now. And that would probably include knowing what projects they are gonna announce at the Expo. Theres a lot of projects that we've heard rumors about. Brazil, WoC type show at DtD, new land/attraction at AK, new DVC at GF. Who knows what other projects they have that we dont know about. But they all need approval. And depending on their budgets, they may need approval by the board.

Just thinking outside the box.

 

[kramden88]

By the way, the (wildly speculative and 7th-hand) word over at LP is that Steve Jobs was also among the big wigs spotted this weekend.

I'm a Disney purist and would never want to see the parks sold but something to do with Jobs would be the exception in my book. He has the Midas touch and the wherewithall to do things well and without a laser focus on bottom line like some other people :lookaroun

 

[Pioneer Hall]

To be completely honest, I am not at all worried about this. We tend to go a little overboard as fans when it comes to analyzing a situation, and no one here can really say what is going on here. For all we know they could be discussing Disneyland Paris business and happened to meet there because the Prince wanted to visit. They could be discussing other types of funding agreements, potential third party opportunities at the resort, and a myriad of other things. Not exactly sure why we as a community are sitting and focusing on what is probably the least likely of what they are discussing.

 

[SleepingMonk]

I know this is all just crazy rumors, but you can bet your last dollar there would be a major uproar from many people here in the states if that were to happen. I know that the current Disney isn't really Walt's anymore either, but selling it to a Middle Eastern family would be a horrific PR nightmare for Disney.

Even if they made it light years better people would have a problem with it. As tolerant as many people here in the U.S. are, this would not be the case considering the nation's history out that way.

You're fooling yourself and vastly overestimating the general population.

Bread and circuses my friend.

 

[Condorman]

The Prince is not in Walt Disney World to buy into, purchase whole or expand any part of the resort. He is there to investigate the possibility of Disney being a partner and/or cooperating with the Mile-High Tower project in Jeddah. What the Prince hopes to accomplish there is basically what Walt Disney set out to do with the original plans of Epcot, and he would like a Disney park/Disneyland to represent the amusement aspect of that area.

I don't doubt the idea of selling all or part of the domestic parks has been discussed as Lee has stated, but that's not what the Prince was doing in WDW. Whether or not he ever accomplishes the community of his dreams is another story. It didn't work out for Disney.

 

[ScoutN]

He has the Midas touch and the wherewithall to do things well and without a laser focus on bottom line like some other people :lookaroun

Open an attraction operating 25% of its effects... add 25% in six months apart... It is the Jobs way.

I saw the thread on Laughing Place when it popped up and could do nothing but face palm. I have watched 76 post some outrageous scenarios but this takes the cake.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

Silliest thread of the week. What a joke. Guy with lots of money comes to Disney world. Great. Owner (err CEO) of Disney spends entire week on his knees kissing his butt.

But if the entire board really was at WDW together, it means something. Thirteen very busy, self-important people all meeting up 3,000 miles from corporate HQ? It's no accident.

Also, why nothing on the DisneyParks blog? Seems like they would take two minutes to take a picture: "Here's CEO Bob Iger Enjoying Kilimanjaro Safaris!!!!!! He's Really Cares!!!!!!!" Maybe his stay isn't over yet?


Not that those things haven't been mentioned on the thread, but I think it's the crux of the discussion: why are they there and why is it secret?

 

[Pioneer Hall]

But if the entire board really was at WDW together, it means something. Thirteen very busy, self-important people all meeting up 3,000 miles from corporate HQ? It's no accident.

Also, why nothing on the DisneyParks blog? Seems like they would take two minutes to take a picture: "Here's CEO Bob Iger Enjoying Kilimanjaro Safaris!!!!!! He's Really Cares!!!!!!!" Maybe his stay isn't over yet?


Not that those things haven't been mentioned on the thread, but I think it's the crux of the discussion: why are they there and why is it secret?

I might have missed it...but has anyone actually said that they saw the board there or is this just rumor as well. Last I read was someone say "they heard" that Jobs was there, then somehow it turned into the whole BoD being there. Something tells me that the board is probably not there.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

I might have missed it...but has anyone actually said that they saw the board there or is this just rumor as well. Last I read was someone say "they heard" that Jobs was there, then somehow it turned into the whole BoD being there. Something tells me that the board is probably not there.

Well the whole thing started with seeing Iger and Staggs I thought; even if it was just those two, I would expect a publicity shot to show up on the blog. If they're still in WDW, though, that could be an excuse to keep it secret for now.

 

[stitch2008]

I might have missed it...but has anyone actually said that they saw the board there or is this just rumor as well. Last I read was someone say "they heard" that Jobs was there, then somehow it turned into the whole BoD being there. Something tells me that the board is probably not there.

I'm pretty sure its just a rumor. I've just been assuming they've been there for arguments sake.

Well the whole thing started with seeing Iger and Staggs I thought; even if it was just those two, I would expect a publicity shot to show up on the blog. If they're still in WDW, though, that could be an excuse to keep it secret for now.

I wouldnt. We've heard reports of Iger and Staggs being at WDW before and the blog hasnt said a word about it. :shrug:

 

[xdan0920]

The Prince is not in Walt Disney World to buy into, purchase whole or expand any part of the resort. He is there to investigate the possibility of Disney being a partner and/or cooperating with the Mile-High Tower project in Jeddah. What the Prince hopes to accomplish there is basically what Walt Disney set out to do with the original plans of Epcot, and he would like a Disney park/Disneyland to represent the amusement aspect of that area.

I don't doubt the idea of selling all or part of the domestic parks has been discussed as Lee has stated, but that's not what the Prince was doing in WDW. Whether or not he ever accomplishes the community of his dreams is another story. It didn't work out for Disney.

There is no way on earth this is what is happening. Disney is not in the venture capital business. Why would a company like Disney become partners in an office building?

 

[wizards8507]

Because most of these board members are presidents and CEOs of other companies and gabe plenty of other things to be doing. Getting them ALL together at once is a big deal. What that big deal is is anyones guess!

Haha we've reached an agreement on an issue at last. That's exactly right. Boards of Directors are hardly concerned exclusively with the company of which they happen to be board members. These guys serve on several different boards apiece in addition to having companies (and families) of their own.

 

[DocMcHulk]

Maybe the prince just wants to buy the hat and take it home with him.

I he pays for shipping and handeling, he can have it fir $5.

 

[DocMcHulk]

P&R as a stand-alone business held by an entity other than TWDC is not nearly as valuable as it is to TWDC. If there were a valuation of P&R, a lot of that value would be attributable to the parks as they add to Disney's "business goodwill" and as marketing vehicles for Disney intellectual property.

Obviously if you sell off that arm of the company, the business goodwill (to the rest of the company) and IP inside of P&R does not go with it. Unless Disney pays royalties to the new owner (highly unlikely and Disney might actually have the expectation that the converse occurs) for the marketing value those entities provide, I can't see any deal to sell working out.

The economics of this type of transaction just don't add up. I think it's far more likely that Staggs and Iger are in town for multiple reasons, including a meet and greet with this Prince, who potentially has investment interest in substantial third party investments on property.

The three of them certainly would not come to town to discuss a World Showcase country or new Disney themed hotel.

That would seem to be the most likely logical and sane reasoning.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I do not see how this sounds so crazy when it is the model used everywhere but the United States.

About 6 or 7 years ago, when there was A HUGE rumor about Comcast merging or buying Disney...never happened and then a few other times there was rumor about it....

That was no rumor. Comcast publicly announced their intention to buy The Walt Disney Company.

Not to say NEVER but I really don't see the value of this for Disney..... If Disney did sell to someone offshore, especially an Arab...... that would be a MAJOR PR nightmare....especially after 9/11 and the many lives lost since then....

He is not just some "Arab" but a world known business man who is the second largest owner of Euro Disney SCA, not second largest individual, second largest.

 

[wizards8507]

^^^ Wow, I missed the post you just quoted.

This is a super interesting thread for the purposes of wasting time jabbing about something that might amount to nothing. Can we keep the racism out of the thread?

 

[erasure fan1]

Especially in the current business/political climate, I cannot imagine a situation in which Disney sells the controlling stake of the US parks to a foreign investor - let alone a Saudi. The realities of the geopolitical situation just do not support this particular business deal. I would argue that there are few companies that, to the average household, are as quintessentially "American" as Disney, particularly the parks. Even if the financials made perfect sense, the resulting PR fallout would be an unmitigated disaster for the company, the parks, and likely the shareholders. Imagine the headlines like "Disney sells Main St USA to Middle East." There are other reasons that I think this would become a political football, but at the very least I would expect significant protests from the governors of FL and CA. In short, if true, this story is truly too big to have slipped under the radar, only to be discovered by internet fan websites.

I completely agree. For the reasons highlighted this just couldnt happen.

Now, lets look at something a bit more realistic. I believe that Disney is looking at investors to once and for all eliminate the need for disco yeti. :lookaroun

Well someone had to say it. :lol: