Legacy FastPass Question

A

aaronml

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Does anyone know what the purpose was of the barcodes that used to be on legacy (pre-MaxPass) FastPasses?

As far as I can recall, CMs would just collect FPs at the merge point, but I don’t ever recall them being scanned. I always assumed they just threw out the FPs after collecting them but maybe they scanned them after the fact for reporting purposes?
 
TP2000

TP2000

Well-Known Member
What an excellent question!

It's late on a Friday evening, where I watched a few old episodes of Agatha Christie's Poirot instead of tuning in to the Winter Olympics Opening Ceremonies Hosted By Murderous & Evil Communism and had two martinis and a glass of Malbec, so my brain is a bit foggy right now. But there had to be a reason for those barcodes. I remember CM's having iPhone type devices, probably just an iPhone Touch, and occasionally scanning the Fastpass tickets. But not always. And Fastpass had been around for over a decade before widespread iPhone use was in place by CM's.

What was that barcode for?
 
R

Ryan120420

Well-Known Member
They would occasionally scan them after they were collected with handheld scanners. It would allow them to see how many FastPasses were redeemed vs distributed.

Leading up to FastPass going digital with MaxPass, there would some times be Cast Members with handheld scanners at the FP entrance scanning the barcodes.
 
S

Sailor310

Well-Known Member
I seem to remember at the end of FP that you would walk up to the ride, put the FP under a scanner and a big green light would light up if you were legit. If the red light lit, the CMs would put you in Disney jail. Saved CMs having to check every pass.
 
S

Sailor310

Well-Known Member
In 2015, DL installed fastpass scanners in a few sites. Folks thought it might be a precursor to Magic Bands at DL. I think they were BTMRR, SM and IASW.

dapsmagic.com

New FastPass Scanners Unveiled at Disneyland

@BeciMahnken on Twitter found some new posts without covers on them at Big Thunder Mountain at Disneyland. Look what was just unveiled at Big Thunder Railroad @disneylandtoday. pic.twitter.com/awTTD5javr — Beci Mahnken (@BeciMahnken) June 10, 2017 In 2015, Disneyland began testing new...
dapsmagic.com dapsmagic.com

In 2015, Disneyland began testing new “self-serve” FastPass entrances at Space Mountain. Guests were given a barcode card to gain access to the FastPass line. It started the speculation that changes would come to Disneyland regarding FastPass in the near future. Many assumed it would be similar to Walt Disney World’s system which incorporates Magic Bands with RFID and their app to schedule FastPass times. But, this test didn’t use any RFID technology.

MaxPass Announcement​

Then, at the beginning of the year, Disneyland announced the coming of MaxPass which would allow guests to schedule FastPasses in advance for a fee. But, the system itself was not announced. It’s been assumed that there would be an overhaul of the system to accommodate the new upsell passes. Slowly there have been small posts popping up next to FastPass entrances, but kept under covers.

Unveiled Now​

With @BeciMahnken’s photo it’s clear that these new posts are in view of guests. From what is seen there is a barcode scanner to scan FastPass tickets. This is consistent with the testing at Space Mountain. But, there is an unusual bump on the post underneath. This bump seems consistent with the Magic Band technology in Walt Disney World. Those posts do not have a scanner above the bump, however.

Could RFID technology come to Disneyland? Maybe. If anything is clear it’s that there will be a barcode system in place for FastPass and especially MaxPass. It could also use the wireless technology for more security with MaxPasses.

So far Big Thunder Mountain is the only location to have these unveiled and testing. Posts can be seen at other attractions, but, again, under covers to hide the machines.

Related​

https://dapsmagic.com/2017/12/disne...tedposts_origin=95433&relatedposts_position=0
 
Phroobar

Phroobar

Well-Known Member
DavidDL said:
Fantastic question. I was a CM for just over 5 years and collected more Fastpasses at Splash and Mansion than I care to recount. Not once did I ever, ever scan a barcode on one of them. They always went straight into a collection bin which would then just go straight into the trash.
Click to expand...
I remember the good old days when CMs wouldn't even look at the date on the FP. If it was after the time from six months ago, you were good to go.
 
chadwpalm

chadwpalm

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
I always assumed the barcode was equivalent to a serial number that simply linked the Fastpass back to the main system. Something that was there and available, but rarely used. It was simply quicker and easier just to take them and eyeball the times (if they even did like Phroobar said).

I think the RFID portion of the scanner was installed for one of several reasons (or more than one).

1. That's how they were manufactured and they didn't want to redesign them.
2. They could have been overstock from WDW's warehouse and that's easier than manufacturing more.
3. They wanted to use them because of the ring light around the RFID scanner so guests know their FP was good (although there is a sound and CMs can see it on their screens).
4. (The least likely) They were preparing for a possibility of adding an RFID method of scanning in the future and didn't want to have to replace them again. If not with magic bands then with cell phones.
 
Disney Irish

Disney Irish

Premium Member
The long running rumor that I heard was originally the barcodes were meant to prevent/combat the reselling of FPs. The barcode on the FP was linked to the ticket used to get the FP, and so if FP didn't match the ticket then you weren't allowed entry to the attraction (or so the rumor goes).

In practice, if the rumor is true, it likely didn't have the desired effect as after awhile most CMs just collected them and didn't check anything other than return times.
 
TP2000

TP2000

Well-Known Member
DavidDL said:
Fantastic question. I was a CM for just over 5 years and collected more Fastpasses at Splash and Mansion than I care to recount. Not once did I ever, ever scan a barcode on one of them. They always went straight into a collection bin which would then just go straight into the trash.
Click to expand...

I'd used Fastpass since it started at Disneyland in 2000, and that was my experience as well; not once did any CM ever scan that barcode on my Fastpass. And yet there that barcode sat, since the early 2000's when Britney Spears was at the top of the charts, gas was $1.25 per gallon, and boot cut jeans were in style.
 
Figments Friend

Figments Friend

Well-Known Member
TP2000 said:
I'd used Fastpass since it started at Disneyland in 2000, and that was my experience as well; not once did any CM ever scan that barcode on my Fastpass. And yet there that barcode sat, since the early 2000's when Britney Spears was at the top of the charts, gas was $1.25 per gallon, and boot cut jeans were in style.
Click to expand...

TP, I bet you looked really sharp in boot cut jeans back in the day.

😎

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