MM+ Why we can't have nice things.

[asianway]

Surprised no one noted this here...

Editors note on micechat about layoffs at TDA ordered by Colglazier to offset MM+ losses in FL. Among other things, buried by a poster on the message board thread, the local social media team responsible for @dcatoday & @disneylandtoday will be laid off as of Jan 4. Possibly to be rolled into the social media cabal of Celebration Place.

Guess this little plussing will never make it to FL

 

[COProgressFan]

Surprised no one noted this here...

Editors note on micechat about layoffs at TDA ordered by Colglazier to offset MM+ losses in FL. Among other things, buried by a poster on the message board thread, the local social media team responsible for @dcatoday & @disneylandtoday will be laid off as of Jan 4. Possibly to be rolled into the social media cabal of Celebration Place.

Guess this little plussing will never make it to FL

It's a shame because those two twitter accounts actually contain useful information for Disneyland visitors.

If they are folded into the Celebration place crew, then...umm...well, we can expect lots of pablum and other vacuous content (if they keep those accounts).

Also, in offsetting cost overruns for MM+, I would not be surprised at all about more layoffs and major cutbacks to come. I have no inside information, but I think it could almost be expected at this point.

 

[ford91exploder]

For all those who thought the 2 Billion NGE boondoggle at WDW would not affect DL, Well here is your answer.

 

[doctornick]

Surprised no one noted this here...

Editors note on micechat about layoffs at TDA ordered by Colglazier to offset MM+ losses in FL. Among other things, buried by a poster on the message board thread, the local social media team responsible for @dcatoday & @disneylandtoday will be laid off as of Jan 4. Possibly to be rolled into the social media cabal of Celebration Place.

Guess this little plussing will never make it to FL

MM+ is a Burbank initiate, though. I know it is popular to slam on TDO as the "problem" with Disney's parks, but it is not like MM+/FP+ was conceived/developed/approved in Florida -- it came from the P&R guys in Burbank with the intention of rolling it out in all the parks worldwide; Orlando was the the testing ground.

I guess my point is, it is understandable that other parks are facing cutbacks from the money sunk into MM+ because it is an overall P&R issue, not a TDO specific one.

 

[Voxel]

This really wouldn't have been a loss like it has been if they had approached this correctly, They should have tested and tried this on one of the cruise ships and then slowly expanded from there. Many of the bug would have worked themselves out at the low lever work and less issues would have occurred with a large roll out at the world.

 

[hpyhnt 1000]

This really wouldn't have been a loss like it has been if they had approached this correctly, They should have tested and tried this on one of the cruise ships and then slowly expanded from there. Many of the bug would have worked themselves out at the low lever work and less issues would have occurred with a large roll out at the world.

Agreed. I think a better job could have been done with staggered roll outs of various features as well. I get that, for revenue reasons, they wanted to get everything working right away. But there is just so much "stuff" associated with MM+ (ticketing, FP+, ADRs, PhotoPass, credit charging, resort access, etc.) that its almost impossible to get it all right from the very beginning. Much easier to fix problems with one component than to have to do it for seven or eight.

 

[Voxel]

Agreed. I think a better job could have been done with staggered roll outs of various features as well. I get that, for revenue reasons, they wanted to get everything working right away. But there is just so much "stuff" associated with MM+ (ticketing, FP+, ADRs, PhotoPass, credit charging, resort access, etc.) that its almost impossible to get it all right from the very beginning. Much easier to fix problems with one component than to have to do it for seven or eight.

Exactly. Disney World is to massive of a complex to run something like that as a first time run through.

 

[Smiddimizer]

And the best is yet to come...this is just a prelude to the s***storm they're gonna face in the years ahead. It's gonna be fun, fun, fun...

 

[WDWDad13]

I just got back from a 2 week trip to WDW. I kept an open mind about the magic bands and used them every day....honestly....I think they worked great and I saw some benefits of them I hadn't thought of before.

The only problem I had was with me not being able to see my wife's photopass plus pictures when they scanned her band because by default each mydisneyexperience account doesn't allow anyone else to see your photos scanned to your band until you check the box to allow others (family linked to your account)....makes sense.

I used fastpass+ every day. A few I forgot to or just didn't do because I wasn't in that area at the time.

Many people have questioned fastpasses for the non-major attractions and I did too...but after this trip I can see how they come into play and would especially for more crowded times as well

Ex. On our 3rd and 4th day in the magic kingdom there were a few of those non-major attractions we hadn't done yet and I didn't have a need to keep fastpassing splash or space mountain so we picked the smaller things (meet and greets, etc) and walked right on in. Sure I didn't really "need" to...but midday this saved us about an hour or so waiting in those particular lines at that time and that gave us more time to do other things (ride more rides, be more spontaneous,and even go into more gift shops which we did)

Say what you want about them...but we experienced no problems and enjoyed using them....I noticed many others that did as well.

I am an annual passholder and I was able to schedule fastpasses for my entire 2 week trip (and I was staying off property for the majority of it) so I have to wonder if AP holders will have this luxury of being able to get them for any day

 

[The Empress Lilly]

MM+ losses cause layoffs in higher positions in TWDC's finance and marketing departments? And some pork of bloated pr departments too?

Good. Perfect.

 

[marni1971]

It wasn't broke in the first place...

 

[SirLink]

It wasn't broke in the first place...

The only thing that was broken was the attitudes of Americans to queuing...

 

[WDWDad13]

MM+ isn't causing any layoffs....poor financial planning did (regardless of MM+).

Do I think MM+ and/magicbands will cause more people to spend money like they claimed it would to shareholders etc. No, not really...maybe a little but not much

Do I think MM+ and magicbands are good for WDW and for the future of theme park experience....yes I do (after experiencing them)

You may now bash me on that opinion

 

[CDavid]

MM+ isn't causing any layoffs....poor financial planning did (regardless of MM+).

Do I think MM+ and/magicbands will cause more people to spend money like they claimed it would to shareholders etc. No, not really...maybe a little but not much

Do I think MM+ and magicbands are good for WDW and for the future of theme park experience....yes I do (after experiencing them)

You may now bash me on that opinion

Before we start the bash-fest, can I ask a serious question?

Are MyMagic+ and MagicBands worth more for the guest experience than equivalent investment in the parks' attractions and experiences would have been? The $2 billion spent on NextGen (assume that is in the ballpark of the final figure) could have done a great deal to refresh and expand three Disney parks which are growing increasingly stale and are lacking in attraction count. Granted, people may argue (not without justification) that Disney never would have approved that level of park investment otherwise, but it remains a fair question: Is there anything Disney could have spent that $2 billion on which would have made a larger difference in the guest experience than MyMagic Plus will?

I don't intend this as a loaded question, and your opinion may well differ from mine or many posters here. From the guests' perspective, most of the features of MagicBands/MM+ could have been achieved without the MM+ program investment (pre-planning, FP+, etc.). Even tap to pay/enter with RFID could have been implemented without the full investment in MM+ related infrastructure, and potentially, so could attraction AA"s saying your name

 

[WDWDad13]

Before we start the bash-fest, can I ask a serious question?

Are MyMagic+ and MagicBands worth more for the guest experience than equivalent investment in the parks' attractions and experiences would have been? The $2 billion spent on NextGen (assume that is in the ballpark of the final figure) could have done a great deal to refresh and expand three Disney parks which are growing increasingly stale and are lacking in attraction count. Granted, people may argue (not without justification) that Disney never would have approved that level of park investment otherwise, but it remains a fair question: Is there anything Disney could have spent that $2 billion on which would have made a larger difference in the guest experience than MyMagic Plus will?

I don't intend this as a loaded question, and your opinion may well differ from mine or many posters here. From the guests' perspective, most of the features of MagicBands/MM+ could have been achieved without the MM+ program investment (pre-planning, FP+, etc.). Even tap to pay/enter with RFID could have been implemented without the full investment in MM+ related infrastructure, and potentially, so could attraction AA"s saying your name

Sure it could...but no one knows if that money would have been used for attractions (doubt it would have honestly). Also I think this is a new foundation to build new Disney theme park experiences on in many ways.

Little things like no need to carry park tickets, go through an old turnstile, carry room keys, carry credit cards or cash, run to toy story or soarin at rope drop to get an old paper fastpass before they run out, stand or wait an hour or more for parades or nighttime shows to get a decent spot, etc etc are things people are going to like and do now. Sure some don't and won't...the same could be said if they build a big Star Wars land or avatar land....some like and some won't

 

[Nubs70]

MM+ isn't causing any layoffs....poor financial planning did (regardless of MM+).

Do I think MM+ and/magicbands will cause more people to spend money like they claimed it would to shareholders etc. No, not really...maybe a little but not much

Do I think MM+ and magicbands are good for WDW and for the future of theme park experience....yes I do (after experiencing them)

You may now bash me on that opinion

Point #1 and #2 are contradictory.

 

[luv]

If only someone (anyone!) had said, "Is this necessary? Do we need to spend this money?"

I'm still convinced that people got huge kickbacks and THAT is the reason we have FPP and Magic Bands.

Nothing else makes sense. Contrary to popular opinion, they cannot be that stupid.

 

[pax_65]

I recently returned from a WDW trip, and the bands were fine. No big deal, really... except for what it cost Disney to do, and how that money could have been better spent.

But to me, this represents the evolution of an attitude shift that has been years in the making:

Pre 2005 (or so): Give guests a magical experience, and you'll build loyalty and guests will return again and again - thus increasing revenue over the long-term.

Post 2005: Encourage guests to stay on property and stay in the parks, and you'll increase guest spending - thus increasing revenue short-term.

A sad state of affairs overall.

 

[ThemeParkJunkee]

It is kind of strange that I visit WDW now because Uni is building new attractions and as long as I am going to Orlando...

I have not experienced the Magic Bands although my understanding is that they are less glitchy than before. The MDX website seems to be as buggy as ever. I do believe attraction spending will be curtailed or delayed due to MM+ cost overruns. I think some rumors to this affect are already being discussed elsewhere on this forum.

I agree with the PP who suggested a smaller scale "experiment" starting with DCL or something. I remember watching a video of Tom Staggs at a Digital conference discussing MM+ and Magic Bands. In the interview, he mentioned that use of smart phones has increased in the parks to about 30% in recent years and that "our guests enjoy interacting with their technology in the parks". Well, 30% is NOT the majority of guests so if this was in any way a reason for this program, it seems a bit misguided.

My daughter (and artist and animator who just graduated from her Master's Program in San Francisco) mentioned tonight that there is some serious fallout happening in the animation community. She could offer few details but would know more after an event she was attending.

 

[marni1971]

Did they need to replace all the room key readers?

Did they need to change from a card to touch for purchasing?

Did they need to update back of house infrastructure?

Did they need to change the Fastpass system?

Maybe, maybe, yes, and no. But it's been and still is a farcical operation of embarrassing proportions. And against what's been said by others, the cost is now having a direct impact on the parks and attractions.