Rumor My Genie Conclusions - The Future of WDW’s Ticketing

T

TrojanUSC

Well-Known Member
flutas said:
If it's a pitch meeting, that's one heck of a pitch meeting to make it through a Product Manager, an Engineer, Code Review, and be published to the app store.

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Yup
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Something called Genie is coming. However, it was pitched and announced before they had any idea how it would function or much of the details of what it would actually do. Many of the features that it was pitched on have been scaled back.
 
The Visionary Soul

The Visionary Soul

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
flutas said:
If it's a pitch meeting, that's one heck of a pitch meeting to make it through a Product Manager, an Engineer, Code Review, and be published to the app store.

View attachment 577876



Yup
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That’s confirmation of the Genie+ name if I’ve ever seen it. It’s real. What features Genie+ entails however, I’m sure some of them didn’t make it out of that pitch meeting.
 
G

Gussie Granger

New Member
The Visionary Soul said:
Well, it’s been a while since I’ve written anything here, but it’s time I let the Genie out of the bag. Genie was announced at the D23 Expo quite a while ago now. We never knew what exactly Genie meant other than it would really change the way you plan your vacation. Until now. Some of this is based on whispers from my peeps, some of this is based on my best logical guesses, and some of this just is so obvious I’m surprised no one has picked up on it yet. Let’s dive in.

First, the good news, annual passes won’t be going away, and neither will the monthly payment plans. The bad news is that WDW’s ticketing practices will get much more obscure overall. Genie will let you choose options that are important to you and spit out a price depending on what you select and when you want to do it. The price is determined by a variety of factors that probably won’t be explained to you directly, especially if you’re including the package deals. For example, you’ll be able to buy an AP, but it may not be good every day of the year, and Waterparks access or Premier Access could end up being an add-on. Oh, that reminds me. It’s clear to me that the company likes Disney+ and it’s naming conventions, so it’s likely that the Premier Access name from Disneyland Paris will carry over, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they actually launch Disney Genie as Genie+ or if Genie+ is some kind of upcharge version of regular Genie. I can’t confirm these names because these are just based on my gut, but the products seem real enough, so if I get some of this nomenclature wrong, don’t shoot the messenger.

As I understand it, Genie the app will be a free planning product. It will help you plan and achieve an itinerary that will be right for you and your family. But to guarantee an itinerary, you’ll need to opt in for Genie+ or Premier Access or whatever they end up calling it. I’m sure what you can guarantee will depend on the resort you’re staying at and the ticket types you include in your itinerary. The name of the game will be up-selling, and boy oh boy will you be up-sold to. Premier Access? Check. Photopass? Check. Parking? Check. VIP experiences? Check. Pre-order food and Merch? Check. It’s actually quite amazing how much will be implemented with Genie. This engine will also re-arrange your itinerary on the fly if attractions or experiences aren’t available as planned. For example, if Space Mountain ends up being unexpectedly closed for the rest of the day, it will re-arrange a later day of your vacation to hop back to Magic Kingdom to ride Space Mountain, and it will re-arrange dining reservations so you don’t miss your dinner at Ohana. It’s THAT good. But you’ll be paying for it.

You don’t want to use Genie? No worries, but no guarantees that you’ll be able to do what you want. There will be a definite bias towards pleasing the visitors that use Genie, especially the premium version of Genie. And that Premier Access product Disneyland Paris is using? Yeah, that can be an option for you day guests that just want to ride something now without waiting. It could be worth $25 bucks to you to just ride Flight of Passage now instead of that 180 min wait. Or maybe not. But at least you’ll have the option.

Fastpass+ as you knew it isn’t coming back. The name might, but since the new product is a paid service for most (it could be included as part of your hotel rooms or pass types in some cases) using the same name would be unwise in my opinion. Plus, now that it’s paid, it has to be guaranteed. That wait time has to be guaranteed to be 10 minutes or less (or whatever they come up with) and the CMs at all attractions will need to be re-trained to make sure they understand that guests are now paying to ride an attraction with little to no wait, and they have never done that before. This should encourage attraction CMs to upsell the faster access to their attractions as well.

Now, in terms of tech, we know Genie is dependent on multiple hardware and software upgrades at WDW that are occurring right now. Assuming they go well, you should see Genie roll-out before Oct 1st. If you have a keen eye, walking around property you may have noticed that Disney World has moved to SnApp for ticketing and to Appetize for merchandise and Food & Beverage point of sales systems. I suspect these upgrades must be complete before Genie can be rolled out. That’s just a hunch.

So, my advice: If you have the option to buy or renew an AP right now, I would recommend you do so before the new products replace the current AP offerings. It is likely there will be some grandfathering for the remainder of an active pass (not beyond a year though), and if you really prefer the new offerings over the old, I’m sure they’ll allow you to convert or upgrade. Obviously we just saw DL’s new Magic Key product, so we sort of have an idea on how things could work. Either way, it is a completely different team that is working on WDW’s ticket options, so we don’t know for sure, but one would think it can’t be TOO different.

If you have more information on Genie or want to chime in, of course I’m sure all of us here would love to hear your thoughts and ideas. For me, I think this is a good step for the parks overall: it monetizes what we knew as FastPass, it keeps reservations, it normalizes the operations a bit, and it allows Disney to sell a product that guarantees you’ll be able to ride Space Mountain almost a year out ahead of time. But what do you think?
Click to expand...
The Visionary Soul said:
Well, it’s been a while since I’ve written anything here, but it’s time I let the Genie out of the bag. Genie was announced at the D23 Expo quite a while ago now. We never knew what exactly Genie meant other than it would really change the way you plan your vacation. Until now. Some of this is based on whispers from my peeps, some of this is based on my best logical guesses, and some of this just is so obvious I’m surprised no one has picked up on it yet. Let’s dive in.

First, the good news, annual passes won’t be going away, and neither will the monthly payment plans. The bad news is that WDW’s ticketing practices will get much more obscure overall. Genie will let you choose options that are important to you and spit out a price depending on what you select and when you want to do it. The price is determined by a variety of factors that probably won’t be explained to you directly, especially if you’re including the package deals. For example, you’ll be able to buy an AP, but it may not be good every day of the year, and Waterparks access or Premier Access could end up being an add-on. Oh, that reminds me. It’s clear to me that the company likes Disney+ and it’s naming conventions, so it’s likely that the Premier Access name from Disneyland Paris will carry over, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they actually launch Disney Genie as Genie+ or if Genie+ is some kind of upcharge version of regular Genie. I can’t confirm these names because these are just based on my gut, but the products seem real enough, so if I get some of this nomenclature wrong, don’t shoot the messenger.

As I understand it, Genie the app will be a free planning product. It will help you plan and achieve an itinerary that will be right for you and your family. But to guarantee an itinerary, you’ll need to opt in for Genie+ or Premier Access or whatever they end up calling it. I’m sure what you can guarantee will depend on the resort you’re staying at and the ticket types you include in your itinerary. The name of the game will be up-selling, and boy oh boy will you be up-sold to. Premier Access? Check. Photopass? Check. Parking? Check. VIP experiences? Check. Pre-order food and Merch? Check. It’s actually quite amazing how much will be implemented with Genie. This engine will also re-arrange your itinerary on the fly if attractions or experiences aren’t available as planned. For example, if Space Mountain ends up being unexpectedly closed for the rest of the day, it will re-arrange a later day of your vacation to hop back to Magic Kingdom to ride Space Mountain, and it will re-arrange dining reservations so you don’t miss your dinner at Ohana. It’s THAT good. But you’ll be paying for it.

You don’t want to use Genie? No worries, but no guarantees that you’ll be able to do what you want. There will be a definite bias towards pleasing the visitors that use Genie, especially the premium version of Genie. And that Premier Access product Disneyland Paris is using? Yeah, that can be an option for you day guests that just want to ride something now without waiting. It could be worth $25 bucks to you to just ride Flight of Passage now instead of that 180 min wait. Or maybe not. But at least you’ll have the option.

Fastpass+ as you knew it isn’t coming back. The name might, but since the new product is a paid service for most (it could be included as part of your hotel rooms or pass types in some cases) using the same name would be unwise in my opinion. Plus, now that it’s paid, it has to be guaranteed. That wait time has to be guaranteed to be 10 minutes or less (or whatever they come up with) and the CMs at all attractions will need to be re-trained to make sure they understand that guests are now paying to ride an attraction with little to no wait, and they have never done that before. This should encourage attraction CMs to upsell the faster access to their attractions as well.

Now, in terms of tech, we know Genie is dependent on multiple hardware and software upgrades at WDW that are occurring right now. Assuming they go well, you should see Genie roll-out before Oct 1st. If you have a keen eye, walking around property you may have noticed that Disney World has moved to SnApp for ticketing and to Appetize for merchandise and Food & Beverage point of sales systems. I suspect these upgrades must be complete before Genie can be rolled out. That’s just a hunch.

So, my advice: If you have the option to buy or renew an AP right now, I would recommend you do so before the new products replace the current AP offerings. It is likely there will be some grandfathering for the remainder of an active pass (not beyond a year though), and if you really prefer the new offerings over the old, I’m sure they’ll allow you to convert or upgrade. Obviously we just saw DL’s new Magic Key product, so we sort of have an idea on how things could work. Either way, it is a completely different team that is working on WDW’s ticket options, so we don’t know for sure, but one would think it can’t be TOO different.

If you have more information on Genie or want to chime in, of course I’m sure all of us here would love to hear your thoughts and ideas. For me, I think this is a good step for the parks overall: it monetizes what we knew as FastPass, it keeps reservations, it normalizes the operations a bit, and it allows Disney to sell a product that guarantees you’ll be able to ride
Click to expand...
The Visionary Soul said:
Well, it’s been a while since I’ve written anything here, but it’s time I let the Genie out of the bag. Genie was announced at the D23 Expo quite a while ago now. We never knew what exactly Genie meant other than it would really change the way you plan your vacation. Until now. Some of this is based on whispers from my peeps, some of this is based on my best logical guesses, and some of this just is so obvious I’m surprised no one has picked up on it yet. Let’s dive in.

First, the good news, annual passes won’t be going away, and neither will the monthly payment plans. The bad news is that WDW’s ticketing practices will get much more obscure overall. Genie will let you choose options that are important to you and spit out a price depending on what you select and when you want to do it. The price is determined by a variety of factors that probably won’t be explained to you directly, especially if you’re including the package deals. For example, you’ll be able to buy an AP, but it may not be good every day of the year, and Waterparks access or Premier Access could end up being an add-on. Oh, that reminds me. It’s clear to me that the company likes Disney+ and it’s naming conventions, so it’s likely that the Premier Access name from Disneyland Paris will carry over, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they actually launch Disney Genie as Genie+ or if Genie+ is some kind of upcharge version of regular Genie. I can’t confirm these names because these are just based on my gut, but the products seem real enough, so if I get some of this nomenclature wrong, don’t shoot the messenger.

As I understand it, Genie the app will be a free planning product. It will help you plan and achieve an itinerary that will be right for you and your family. But to guarantee an itinerary, you’ll need to opt in for Genie+ or Premier Access or whatever they end up calling it. I’m sure what you can guarantee will depend on the resort you’re staying at and the ticket types you include in your itinerary. The name of the game will be up-selling, and boy oh boy will you be up-sold to. Premier Access? Check. Photopass? Check. Parking? Check. VIP experiences? Check. Pre-order food and Merch? Check. It’s actually quite amazing how much will be implemented with Genie. This engine will also re-arrange your itinerary on the fly if attractions or experiences aren’t available as planned. For example, if Space Mountain ends up being unexpectedly closed for the rest of the day, it will re-arrange a later day of your vacation to hop back to Magic Kingdom to ride Space Mountain, and it will re-arrange dining reservations so you don’t miss your dinner at Ohana. It’s THAT good. But you’ll be paying for it.

You don’t want to use Genie? No worries, but no guarantees that you’ll be able to do what you want. There will be a definite bias towards pleasing the visitors that use Genie, especially the premium version of Genie. And that Premier Access product Disneyland Paris is using? Yeah, that can be an option for you day guests that just want to ride something now without waiting. It could be worth $25 bucks to you to just ride Flight of Passage now instead of that 180 min wait. Or maybe not. But at least you’ll have the option.

Fastpass+ as you knew it isn’t coming back. The name might, but since the new product is a paid service for most (it could be included as part of your hotel rooms or pass types in some cases) using the same name would be unwise in my opinion. Plus, now that it’s paid, it has to be guaranteed. That wait time has to be guaranteed to be 10 minutes or less (or whatever they come up with) and the CMs at all attractions will need to be re-trained to make sure they understand that guests are now paying to ride an attraction with little to no wait, and they have never done that before. This should encourage attraction CMs to upsell the faster access to their attractions as well.

Now, in terms of tech, we know Genie is dependent on multiple hardware and software upgrades at WDW that are occurring right now. Assuming they go well, you should see Genie roll-out before Oct 1st. If you have a keen eye, walking around property you may have noticed that Disney World has moved to SnApp for ticketing and to Appetize for merchandise and Food & Beverage point of sales systems. I suspect these upgrades must be complete before Genie can be rolled out. That’s just a hunch.

So, my advice: If you have the option to buy or renew an AP right now, I would recommend you do so before the new products replace the current AP offerings. It is likely there will be some grandfathering for the remainder of an active pass (not beyond a year though), and if you really prefer the new offerings over the old, I’m sure they’ll allow you to convert or upgrade. Obviously we just saw DL’s new Magic Key product, so we sort of have an idea on how things could work. Either way, it is a completely different team that is working on WDW’s ticket options, so we don’t know for sure, but one would think it can’t be TOO different.

If you have more information on Genie or want to chime in, of course I’m sure all of us here would love to hear your thoughts and ideas. For me, I think this is a good step for the parks overall: it monetizes what we knew as FastPass, it keeps reservations, it normalizes the operations a bit, and it allows Disney to sell a product that guarantees you’ll be able to ride Space Mountain almost a year out ahead of time. But what do you think?
Click to expand...
I guess we’ll have to wait and see how the platform is and the ease of use. For example, my party of 4 spend some of the day apart, will this be an option? Will we be charged for walk on rides? How will they know when a fastpass is required? I mean I know when we would use one, will they? What about DAS? Will they get rid of it? I plan our park day in one land at a time so there’s minimal walking, will they be able to do that? I have a kid on the spectrum and I have a specific way i plan my day, will they be able to accommodate that?
 
Fox&Hound

Fox&Hound

Well-Known Member
DisneyDodo said:
I think a lot of the complication is designed to make it harder for guests to compare prices and stay on a budget. If they raise the price of the hotel rooms, people may stay somewhere cheaper, but if they keep the price the same and add a parking fee, many people won't take that into account. The same applies for park tickets and fastpasses. People can compare the price of the Disney ticket to Universal's, but they can't account for dynamically generated FP prices that they don't even anticipate buying, but ultimately will when all the standby lines are too long and the Genie is pushing it down their throats.
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This is so true.Sadly, I agree with your wise points.
 
SamusAranX

SamusAranX

Well-Known Member
Disstevefan1 said:
The Disney theme parks today do not want the folks who remember those days.

They are going after the younger folks with money who don't know any better, and they are flocking in to hand their cash to the mouse.
Click to expand...

This.

Do people forget how crowded and profitable the parks were until the pandemic began?

As long as people tolerate this and continue to pay to be fed gruel, Disney will continue to do it.

The general public, many of those going now, are not "legacy fans". They don't have the experience I did growing up, and perhaps never will.

The hardcore's like those that post here, might vote with their wallet. I have. I didn't renew my AP.

But if the parks continued to remain crowded, nothing will change. The parkgoers will ask for more gruel and Disney will happily spoon it on their plates.

Where is @Sirwalterraleigh when you need him?
 
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tanc

tanc

Well-Known Member
It's sad that Disney also seems to be pushing to a fully digital format... so exciting we get to just look at our screens instead of spend time with our families 😒

Not to mention, what if you don't have access to a smart phone? Disney is no better than other places. Magic bands have always been my preferred way of doing anything since it's such a unique system and there's no need to worry about charging, being around water, pulling out a phone constantly.
 
SamusAranX

SamusAranX

Well-Known Member
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lazyboy97o

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
So what is the proper etiquette if you pre-pay for a bunch of Premier Access passes and the system isn’t recognizing your purchase the way the Dining Plan system goes down? Are you supposed to be gracious and pay a second time and then go hang around the hotel desk waiting for a refund?
 
UNCgolf

UNCgolf

Well-Known Member
lazyboy97o said:
So what is the proper etiquette if you pre-pay for a bunch of Premier Access passes and the system isn’t recognizing your purchase the way the Dining Plan system goes down? Are you supposed to be gracious and pay a second time and then go hang around the hotel desk waiting for a refund?
Click to expand...

This is one of the main reasons I don't think you'll be able to purchase them in advance. I think they'll all be day of sales to avoid this kind of headache.

It's also easier for them to jack up the price for day of sales if the standby lines are long.
 
lazyboy97o

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
UNCgolf said:
This is one of the main reasons I don't think you'll be able to purchase them in advance. I think they'll all be day of sales to avoid this kind of headache.

It's also easier for them to jack up the price for day of sales if the standby lines are long.
Click to expand...
Give Disney more credit. That hour between when you purchased your Premier Access and your return time is plenty of time for the system to go down.
 
A

aaronml

Well-Known Member
lazyboy97o said:
Give Disney more credit. That hour between when you purchased your Premier Access and your return time is plenty of time for the system to go down.
Click to expand...
I suspect that when the system goes down, it will likely turn green for everyone who scans in. That’s what the “offline mode” for FP+ was anyhow.
 

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