Might not see new attractions until 2018-20? Wall Street wants to scale back park investment?

[PeterAlt]

Iger has done some great things. Buy Marvel and Lucasfilm...can't argue with that. But, for whatever reason, the last 6-8 years for DHS, Epcot, Animal Kindgom has received little love or attention as far as rides.
Not sure why?
Maybe the numbers are so good, they don't need to add additional attractions. Why spend money when you don't need to spend money?

For first time visitors, they are amazing parks with plenty to see. I'm just not a first time visitor anymore and it's hard to spend hard earned money on repeat after repeat viewing.

It's why Disneyland to me is looking more attractive for my family. I have never been to california adventure, my kids have never been to any Disney Park. It will be a new experience for all of us and make it that more enjoyable.

It's good what he has done for DCA but that wouldn't have happened if John Lassetter didn't kick and scream for it. It's good for China what he is doing in Shanghai and the expansion of HKDL, but at what expense at the US parks? The investment in China will pay off in the long term at the expense of US parks short term.

Do you see anything wrong with throwing the studio division as much money as they want and not match just a small portion of that to any park attraction at WDW? The $190 million Lone Ranger lose could have bought a new E-ticket at any of the four parks. And that's just one movie of dozens with that budget in recent years. The $200 million lose John Carter could have added Fire Mountain, for example. Of course they don't know which movies will make money until they are released and each is a risk. All I'm saying is they need to lessen that risk by putting some into attractions at US parks.

As of now, they are riding on investments made during the Eisner era. The next CEO will have no investments made during the Iger era to ride on. Why does Brian Roberts seems to get it and not Iger?

 

[Goofyernmost]

Wow, I wasn't expecting that to be taken so seriously. It was just an off-the-cuff statement saying how I felt for those unqualified few seconds!

Sorry, Peter but with the absence of smilies, it sure looked serious to me and that theme has been repeated many, many times. (not necessarily by you) It makes it hard to not take it seriously. But if you weren't...nothing to see here...we'll just move along.

 

[PeterAlt]

Sorry, Peter but with the absence of smilies, it sure looked serious to me and that theme has been repeated many, many times. (not necessarily by you) It makes it hard to not take it seriously. But if you weren't...nothing to see here...we'll just move along.

I was serious when I wrote it during those five few seconds. You know when I'm really really serious about something when it becomes a theme of my posts, such as monorail expansion.

 

[AndyMagic]

It's likely D - Theyre interested in money and nothing farther.

This is accurate but I would add a little more to it. "They're interested in money AND making money in the short term only. Long-term sustainability for the Parks division isn't a concern."

Investment in theme parks is tough for short-sighted CEOs like Iger because it involves spending money NOW for an unknown return years down the road. Many high level executives at a conglomerate like Disney have no clue how long they will be around so they're only concerned with the stock price and the immediate future. Five or ten years down the road, when attendance sags and spending is down, it will be someone else's problem. It's similar to politicians and big infrastructure projects. If the mayor of a city decides to fund a new subway line, all he'll get while in office is grief and aggravation during the planning process while a future mayor gets to be at the ribbon cutting when it finally opens a decade later. It takes a bold person with vision and a selfless attitude to make a good leader.

 

[PeterAlt]

Go see the movie Branded on Netflix. Is Disney becoming like the corporation The Burger of the movie?

 

[CinematicFusion]

Orange Harvest: D23 Hints At Disney's Plans For New Star Wars Theme Park Experiences
Posted by Eric on August 9, 2013 at 09:08 AM CST | 0 Comments
As Disney's D23 Expo gets underway, two Disney fan sites, Inside the Magic and MiceChat, have posted reports that suggest interesting things in the works for Star Wars experiences at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.

Inside the Magic interviewed Jason Surrell, an Imagineer (a.k.a. theme park designer) at The Walt Disney Company, and they noticed a set of crates stacked behind him that featured Star Wars-themed markings, including the label "ORANGE HARVEST" (seen above). One of the crates (also seen above) was marked "LIGHTSABER ASSORTMENT" and apparently contained six blue lightsabers, five green lightsabers, and one purple lightsaber. Another crate featured a hole in the side that was shaped like an R2 astromech droid. Still other crates referenced blue milk, C-3PO, and thermal detonators. "We've been receiving these mysterious shipments from all over the galaxy," Surrell told Inside the Magic during their interview, which took place in front of the crates. "We're really not sure what's inside them."

Couple this intriguing development with the report from MiceChat, which says the following about plans to remake Disneyland's Tomorowland area (emphasis ours):
The first phase is planned to get underway this winter with the closing of Captain EO and major “placemaking” work on the existing buildings that mostly date from 1967. The 15 months of work would wrap up by early spring 2015 in time for the 60th, and leave a new Star Wars 3D movie in the old Captain EO theater, new destinations programmed into Star Tours based on the seventh Star Wars movie to be released in summer 2015, and a freshened aesthetic to the buildings surrounding Space Mountain. Once the 60th Anniversary begins to wind down, the real work begins on plans to build a Star Wars speeder bike coaster on the old PeopleMover tracks, plus more Star Wars eye candy and freshened facilities throughout the land.

So the Star Wars speeder bike coaster is phase two? Phase two doesn't start until 2015...if it takes The mine train 3 years to finish..then Star Wars speeder bike at DHS won't be finished until 2018. Now, maybe the plans are different for WDW then for Disney Land...but basically Disney is telling you be prepared for an amazing ride 5 years down the road???

So far, looks like the title of this thread is right on track. Please be wrong, please be wrong! Hopefully they start building as soon as this show is over.

 

[rd805]

So the Star Wars speeder bike coaster is phase two? Phase two doesn't start until 2015...if it takes The mine train 3 years to finish..then Star Wars speeder bike at DHS won't be finished until 2018. Now, maybe the plans are different for WDW then for Disney Land...but basically Disney is telling you be prepared for an amazing ride 5 years down the road???

So far, looks like the title of this thread is right on track. Please be wrong, please be wrong! Hopefully they start building as soon as this show is over.[/quote]


My hopes are 1/2 the time needed - if they are using some pre made track from another ride, shouldn't it be a little quicker?

 

[CinematicFusion]

So the Star Wars speeder bike coaster is phase two? Phase two doesn't start until 2015...if it takes The mine train 3 years to finish..then Star Wars speeder bike at DHS won't be finished until 2018. Now, maybe the plans are different for WDW then for Disney Land...but basically Disney is telling you be prepared for an amazing ride 5 years down the road???

So far, looks like the title of this thread is right on track. Please be wrong, please be wrong! Hopefully they start building as soon as this show is over.

My hopes are 1/2 the time needed - if they are using some pre made track from another ride, shouldn't it be a little quicker?[/quote]

I would hope, they could build a ride in a years time. The information I'm giving is coming from a article on MiceAge...by the end of the show I'm hoping this thread is irrelevant, the MiceAge article was wrong and Disney shows off plans of the new DHS park with guidance on when production starts this year. It would be unbelievable to have to wait till 2018 for new attractions.

 

[Acolli18]

never thought of that...the teams name was not inspired by the area attractions was it?

It was actually!
http://www.nba.com/magic/news/behindthename.html

 

[CinematicFusion]

When do they start building Avatar????

 

[CinematicFusion]

Star Wars Teased...

 

[matt9112]

Star Wars Teased...

amazing how well they dodge real questions...soft questions at that...they look almost like if they say something they will get gunned down by a sniper.

 

[CinematicFusion]

amazing how well they dodge real questions...soft questions at that...they look almost like if they say something they will get gunned down by a sniper.

Yeah...sad but it looks like they aren't going to say anything this weekend. I guess with the boxes, Disney is saying, "look we just got Lucasfilm and we are still exploring what we can do...you need to give us time...so...see you in 2020."
Hope I'm wrong.

 

[Goofnut1980]

It's like high school all over! hahahaha

 

[willtravel]

I was just reading an article that was written on this website called "Walt Disney World History". Boy the 1990's was a busy year for WDW. Whether you liked or disliked Eisner and what was built, a lot of money went into WDW that decade.

 

[CinematicFusion]

I was just reading an article that was written on this website called "Walt Disney World History". Boy the 1990's was a busy year for WDW. Whether you liked or disliked Eisner and what was built, a lot of money went into WDW that decade.

yeah...you get the feeling WDW is sitting there wondering how to keep the huge crowds rolling in without spending a dime on anything new.
No one would have believed that in May of 2005 after soaring opened that you wouldn't see another new ride up to this point.
9 Years in Epcot...no new ride. Think about that for a second. (Unless I'm forgetting something...which is possible) Now, they did CLOSE a huge pavilion in 2007...never to be opened again..so that is something recent according to Disney's timeline.
Again, I don't count refurbs (or closings) as something new...you have to keep rides relevant and up to date.

When was the last new ride at DHS? Toy Story Mania in 2008. When was the last ride before that? (Again, I don't count refurbs like Star Tours, every once in awhile you need to remodel your home...sometimes the remodel goes very very wrong like Journey into Imagination.)
So the last ride before Toy Story Mania was...RNR Roller Coaster??? No way that is it...that was opened in 1999. In 14 years, Disney has opened up one new ride at DHS...One! And that was 6 years ago.
Fantasmic opened in 1998...15 years ago.

Animal Kingdom opened in 1998...15 years ago...and they have introduced 1 new ride into the park. Expedition Everest...great ride...opened April, 2006...8 years ago.

These are great parks, the reason people are starting to feel they are a little stale is because they are. There hasn't been anything exciting or new to these parks is a long long long time.

Maybe this weekend changes all that and they drop some surprise announcement, but the teasers are lame.

 

[willtravel]

yeah...you get the feeling WDW is sitting there wondering how to keep the huge crowds rolling in without spending a dime on anything new.
No one would have believed that in May of 2005 after soaring opened that you wouldn't see another new ride up to this point.
9 Years in Epcot...no new ride. Think about that for a second. (Unless I'm forgetting something...which is possible) Now, they did CLOSE a huge pavilion in 2007...never to be opened again..so that is something recent according to Disney's timeline.
Again, I don't count refurbs (or closings) as something new...you have to keep rides relevant and up to date.

When was the last new ride at DHS? Toy Story Mania in 2008. When was the last ride before that? (Again, I don't count refurbs like Star Tours, every once in awhile you need to remodel your home...sometimes the remodel goes very very wrong like Journey into Imagination.)
So the last ride before Toy Story Mania was...RNR Roller Coaster??? No way that is it...that was opened in 1999. In 14 years, Disney has opened up one new ride at DHS...One! And that was 6 years ago.
Fantasmic opened in 1998...15 years ago.

Animal Kingdom opened in 1998...15 years ago...and they have introduced 1 new ride into the park. Expedition Everest...great ride...opened April, 2006...8 years ago.

These are great parks, the reason people are starting to feel they are a little stale is because they are. There hasn't been anything exciting or new to these parks is a long long long time.

Maybe this weekend changes all that and they drop some surprise announcement, but the teasers are lame.

If MM+ is going to do tracking of when, where, what, and how much while we are at WDW. And from what I read on this site with the lack of interest in DHS and AK (not enough to do). And then not put anything into Imagination pavilion. They might as we well just make AK, DHS, and Epcot with shorter hours because we are all over at MK. I would think that is what there data mining is going to show.

 

[CinematicFusion]

If MM+ is going to do tracking of when, where, what, and how much while we are at WDW. And from what I read on this site with the lack of interest in DHS and AK (not enough to do). And then not put anything into Imagination pavilion. They might as we well just make AK, DHS, and Epcot with shorter hours because we are all over at MK. I would think that is what there data mining is going to show.

Data mining is going to show MK and Universal...they are going to the new and exciting stuff first. Everything else will be second. Their research will show that the Parks are way too expensive to not be bringing new and exciting rides to the park every 5 years.

I feel I'm a normal guy with a family of two young girls (almost 2...twins) When we go to Disney, it will be the park that offers the most compelling reason to go for me and my wife. The Kids are going to be happy at Universal, Disney Land, Disney World.
If I'm going to pay for a $10,000.00 trip (maybe that's a little high, but I have a feeling I'm not too far off), I want to see the latest and greatest. Not something I've see in 2005...I'm a kid at heart to, Daddy wants to ride the new stuff.

 

[brucie]

As much as I would like new things at Epcot, DHS and AK. They just reported record attendance. This is why they never need to be in a rush to add new things. As long as attendance is going up they can relax.

 

[Captain Neo]

That Brandon guy in the Avatar video talks like a Bronie