Sentinel reports that MyMagic+ executive vice president Nick Franklin will be leaving in July

[flynnibus]

And where did you get that figure from? A reliable news source, or *gasp* an insider?!

Number was covered by the Orlando Sent. citing Disney sources all the way back to 2010

The Walt Disney Co.’s theme-park division is quietly working on a major technology initiative that boosters hope could radically transform the theme-park experience.

Details of the project, which has been dubbed within Walt Disney Parks and Resorts as “next generation experience” or “NextGen,” are being closely guarded. But there is widespread speculation among former Disney executives and bloggers who follow the company that at least part of the project involves wireless-communication technology that could be used in concepts ranging from keyless hotel-room doors to rides and shows in which the experience varies based on an individual guest’s preferences.

The budget for the program totals between $1 billion and $1.5 billion, according to former Disney parks executives who spoke only on the condition that they not be identified. The amount is roughly comparable to what Disney is spending to build a pair of 4,000-passenger cruise ships.

Just before Christmas, Disney assigned oversight of the project to Nick Franklin, the head of global business and real-estate development for the company’s theme-park unit. Franklin’s newest title is “executive vice president of next generation experience.” At Walt Disney World, the project is being led by Jim MacPhee, a vice president who once ran the Epcot theme park. MacPhee’s title was changed last month to vice president of park operations and next generation experience.

(article link is now dead)

I also recall the execs talking about the long term technology initiative to push tech into the theme parks.. where it was described as a billion dollar initiative (but over a decade).

But yes, Lutz was the primary guy leaking it ahead of others

 

[GeneralZod]

I love my magic band. I only think those that loved the old fast pass hate it. Magic Bands and my fast pass plus make it a level playing field and all customers are treated fairly. Everyone gets 3 fast passes to start. For those of us that enjoy a nice warm breakfast and not rushing to the park we are now allowed to get a fast pass for TSM which was impossible in the past.

I used the system in April and loved if. I know many customers who are extremely happy with it. The most vocal complainers are those who loved the old system because it gave them an advantage. Well WDW is for everyone not just those who go all the time and or know how to use the old system. The new technology will allow for greater attendance and eventually more attractions. I think in the long run the vast majority of people will love the new system and so will the stockholders. I am just tired of reading the same posters complaining about the new technology for the same reasons. THE NEW TECHNOLOGY DOES WORK AND IS WONDERFUL. MOST OF US LOVE IT NO MATTER WHAT A FEW OF YOU SAY. AND IT IS HERE TO STAY AND EVENTUALLY WILL BE USED AT ALL DISNEY PARKS.

Nick, is that you?

 

[wannab@dis]

And think of the added gate receipts and hotel capacity that $2+ billion could have led to...

$1 Billion

 

[asianway]

Nick, is that you?

Anyone who says this was anything other than a firing structured to save face for all involved should have their motives questioned.

 

[wannab@dis]

Brooks Barnes should be on the Disney payroll. His reporting of the 'facts' is nothing but PR spin.

And didn't the origianl budget start somewhere in the 600K range?

Right... a Times journalist is on the hook to them... Got anything a little more original than that?

As far as I have ever seen or read from the investor world, it was always about $1B budget.

 

[PhotoDave219]

I love my magic band. I only think those that loved the old fast pass hate it. Magic Bands and my fast pass plus make it a level playing field and all customers are treated fairly. Everyone gets 3 fast passes to start. For those of us that enjoy a nice warm breakfast and not rushing to the park we are now allowed to get a fast pass for TSM which was impossible in the past.

I used the system in April and loved if. I know many customers who are extremely happy with it. The most vocal complainers are those who loved the old system because it gave them an advantage. Well WDW is for everyone not just those who go all the time and or know how to use the old system. The new technology will allow for greater attendance and eventually more attractions. I think in the long run the vast majority of people will love the new system and so will the stockholders. I am just tired of reading the same posters complaining about the new technology for the same reasons. THE NEW TECHNOLOGY DOES WORK AND IS WONDERFUL. MOST OF US LOVE IT NO MATTER WHAT A FEW OF YOU SAY. AND IT IS HERE TO STAY AND EVENTUALLY WILL BE USED AT ALL DISNEY PARKS.

Stop yelling.

 

[BaconPancakes]

Well I see from this thread that the pixie dusters are in panic mode.

 

[MKCP 1985]

I don't know what the whole truth is and am certainly not a reliable news source, but I know that NextGen has taken longer to implement than was originally reported and it has under-delivered on its promises. It is not a stretch to believe it is over budget, regardless of whether it has been reported in that fashion by anyone's definition of a reliable news source.

 

[Hakunamatata]

My point was more that, had the face of NGE been fired, now would have been a pretty good time to say it's due to his "poor stewardship of the program, which has gone overbudget with him at the helm."

At some point, they have to concede that it has cost more than anticipated. It seems like the announcement of Franklin's exit would have been the ideal time for that...

Exactly. When the captain goes down with the ship, all the bad info gets lumped on that ship before it finally sinks.

 

[asianway]

Well I see from this thread that the pixie dusters are in panic mode.

They should be. They're the most likely to be priced out by the squeeze, and I say good riddance.

 

[CDavid]

I didn't say they had lied. In fact, I said there would be an issue if they were attempting to spread misinformation about massive budget overruns. The budget has been noted in public as $1B and the executives has said the project has remained in budget.

Buried deep within a thread over at the DIS boards are posts which place the original NGE budget at $500 million.



No, I don't know how reliable that information is. But we do have reliable posters with inside information here on WDWMagic which have placed the total numbers above the $2 billion mark. You just aren't going to find mainstream media citations for this (unless they are referencing online sources, perhaps) and Disney isn't going to issue a press release to admit a failed program which went wildly over budget.

We could argue specific numbers all day, but its a red herring to the larger discussion of an exec's 'polite' termination from The Walt Disney Company and what it suggests about the failures of the MM+ initiative.

We can say that NGE appears to be well over budget, with reliable reports over $2 billion, but we're just not going to have concrete sources for something like this.

 

[seascape]

$1 Billion

1 billion or more who really cares. It will get more people to stay on property and go to Disney parks than they would have in the past. I and everyone else can fly in on a Saturday at noon and have fast passes waiting for me the first day. I can then fly out a week later in the afternoon and still be able to use the parks in the morning. I actually stay 8 nights and will be in the parks 9 days and all will have fast passes schedule. That is part of the plan. When I finally do want to go to other parts in Orlando I will stay on another timeshare and not waste my DVC time.

 

[Mike S]

I love my magic band. I only think those that loved the old fast pass hate it. Magic Bands and my fast pass plus make it a level playing field and all customers are treated fairly. Everyone gets 3 fast passes to start. For those of us that enjoy a nice warm breakfast and not rushing to the park we are now allowed to get a fast pass for TSM which was impossible in the past.

I used the system in April and loved if. I know many customers who are extremely happy with it. The most vocal complainers are those who loved the old system because it gave them an advantage. Well WDW is for everyone not just those who go all the time and or know how to use the old system. The new technology will allow for greater attendance and eventually more attractions. I think in the long run the vast majority of people will love the new system and so will the stockholders. I am just tired of reading the same posters complaining about the new technology for the same reasons. THE NEW TECHNOLOGY DOES WORK AND IS WONDERFUL. MOST OF US LOVE IT NO MATTER WHAT A FEW OF YOU SAY. AND IT IS HERE TO STAY AND EVENTUALLY WILL BE USED AT ALL DISNEY PARKS.

I'm not gonna lie, I do enjoy the some of the conveniences of the new system. Having my annual pass and hotel key on my wrist is pretty neat. But that doesn't mean I wouldn't have preferred the money used for Magic Bands being used to build new attractions. You know, the things that ATTRACT people to the parks.

 

[wannab@dis]

Buried deep within a thread over at the DIS boards are posts which place the original NGE budget at $500 million.


No, I don't know how reliable that information is. But we do have reliable posters with inside information here on WDWMagic which have placed the total numbers above the $2 billion mark. You just aren't going to find mainstream media citations for this (unless they are referencing online sources, perhaps) and Disney isn't going to issue a press release to admit a failed program which went wildly over budget.

We could argue specific numbers all day, but its a red herring to the larger discussion of an exec's 'polite' termination from The Walt Disney Company and what it suggests about the failures of the MM+ initiative.

We can say that NGE appears to be well over budget, with reliable reports over $2 billion, but we're just not going to have concrete sources for something like this.

No, there are no RELIABLE sources that post on this forum. Sorry to break that to you, but it's the plain truth. The $2B number should be taken out of the mix. Period.

There's absolutely no proof that the project is a "failed program that went wildly over budget" either. The facts from executives and real media sources are as follows...
1) $1B budget
2) Implementation is taking longer than expected
3) Unable to fully realize the potential ROI of the project at this time
4) The project is within budget
5) The executive in charge has offered a 2 month notice that he's leaving

Those are facts that can be sourced with actual sources, not some anonymous forum poster.

 

[dstrawn9889]

I'm not gonna lie, I do enjoy the some of the conveniences of the new system. Having my annual pass and hotel key on my wrist is pretty neat. But that doesn't mean I wouldn't have preferred the money used for Magic Bands being used to build new attractions. You know, the things that ATTRACT people to the parks.

you are assuming that the money would have been earmarked for attractions, but it could have been earmarked for computer upgrdes throughout the park, (server blades, terminals, thin clients... where a single fully decked rackmount r720 by dell are upwards of 30k/piece, and lord knows how many desktops are on property... 1b can go pretty quickly)

 

[PhotoDave219]

No, there are no RELIABLE sources that post on this forum. Sorry to break that to you, but it's the plain truth. The $2B number should be taken out of the mix. Period.

There's absolutely no proof that the project is a "failed program that went wildly over budget" either. The facts from executives and real media sources are as follows...
1) $1B budget
2) Implementation is taking longer than expected
3) Unable to fully realize the potential ROI of the project at this time
4) The project is within budget
5) The executive in charge has offered a 2 month notice that he's leaving

Those are facts that can be sourced with actual sources, not some anonymous forum poster.

You're screaming about sources and whether something is over/under budget.

I think you're losing focus of the big picture here and that's the head executive of this project out.

Had the rollout been a success and remained within the original scope, he'd have been rewarded. That's what executives do. However, this isn't the case.

For whatever reason he's gone, you cannot view this as good news. I'm curious how Wall Street will react.... Because I'd sense blood in the Water if I am them.

 

[flynnibus]

Right... a Times journalist is on the hook to them... Got anything a little more original than that?

As far as I have ever seen or read from the investor world, it was always about $1B budget.

My recollection from when it initially broke was an initial $800million to $1 billion technology initiative which was dubbed 'NextGen' which funded several product initiatives.. including the talking characters, the interactive games, interactive attractions, RFID widgets, and more. Disney later acknowledged the WDI initiative saying it was about driving new concepts of how technology could change the theme park experience. Later as XPass became more in focus, it became synonymous with NextGen.. then MM+ and the later MDE concepts.

That was a ton under one 'umbrella' - and the company has never (to my knowledge and following of the news) acknowledged any sort of breakdown of the spend, lifespan of that spend, or differentiated between the R&D phases and productization/rollout. The $1 billion dollar number has just been a catch-all.

I also think it's obtuse to think ANY technology program that starts as pure R&D with a budget set over 5+ years ago would make it all the way through to implementation at the spend number eyeballed at the start.

The billion dollars has never been an set aside appropriation - it would have showed up in the financial reports if it were. It can not have been anything beyond a strategic action with a COMMITMENT to continue investing at the specified pace for the life of the program.

So I look at it as a company's 5-10 year plan and their commitment to invest in that plan. What their 'budget' would be would be handled on a much more specific objective level.

 

[Victor Kelly]

You do realize that retail businesses have been doing this for years. Do you have a Kroger card? Best Buy rewards card? Both are "data mining" the information and using that information to drive increased sales.

Yes, but Disney touted it as a way to enjoy everything they have to offer. We have heard numerous rebuttals on this board and on many others saying Disney was not data mining. No no no they are not holding information, and many of us called BS.

And no, I have no credit cards.

 

[Sassagoula-Rvr]

From the article:

"The company says that guests who plan more of their trip schedules in advance ultimately spend more time and money at Disney World, rather than visiting rival attractions. The project, which includes enhanced data collection, is also designed to make purchases easier and to give Disney more personal information about its guests, ultimately leading to more spending on food, souvenirs and other items."

This is basically the data mining many have been warning about. This whole upgrade was a huge waste of money. It is geared to not make things easier but to grab more cash from visitors. At least they finally admitted it.

Well...companies don't green-light projects that don't end up "ultimately leading to more spending on food, souvenirs and other items." It's the nature of the beast...they're out there to make a dime...and if having a band on their customers hands can help them get a few more dimes...they are going to do it.

There's another company looking to bring Experience as a Service to the main stream. They've recently set up shop in Orlando if I'm remembering correctly. I wouldn't be surprised if he moved there or was head hunted.

Despite what you feel about MyMagic+ I have a very strong feeling everything is moving in that direction. Disney's just the first to jump in the deep end.

Exactly, I have felt this way for a long while...Disney is the first one to take the plunge but systems like MM+ are going to become the standard.

you are assuming that the money would have been earmarked for attractions, but it could have been earmarked for computer upgrdes throughout the park, (server blades, terminals, thin clients... where a single fully decked rackmount r720 by dell are upwards of 30k/piece, and lord knows how many desktops are on property... 1b can go pretty quickly)

Another great point...I'm guessing a lions share of the budget for NGE was spend on infrastructure upgrades...upgrading every POS to accept RF, and every hotel room is not something that was cheap...BUT to keep the resort up to date...these are things that would have had to have been done...even much less respected hotels have RF readers on doors now.



And selfishly...when we were there...I actually liked it pretty well...because I didn't have to go running to TSMM or wherever to get a fastpass as soon as the park opened...it put some leisure time back in. They just needed to add park hopping to FP+ and some other tweaks...which they seem to be doing.

 

[flynnibus]

We have heard numerous rebuttals on this board and on many others saying Disney was not data mining. No no no they are not holding information, and many of us called BS.

Disney never said they weren't collecting data - they full on acknowledged it. What Disney has denied (counter to some baiters here..) is any plans to sell the data.