Spirited News and Observations and Opinions ...

[danlb_2000]

While anything can theoretically be hacked... The risk of being hacked didn't go up since the database is the same. Plus RFID has been used by law enforcement for quite some time and I see no problems with its security there.

EDIT: I quoted you but I don't mean for it to seem like I'm directing that at you. I know where you stand, generally speaking that is.

Yes, this is not like a Wifi system where someone could hack an access point and get into Disney internal network. The communication between the reader and tag is only designed to read data from the tag, you can't hijack the signal and use it to access the underlying network.

 

[tomman710]

@WDW1974 @Lee I did not go back and read the pages I missed so I do not know if this was covered but I was thinking today ... I think MyMagic/Next Gen is mostly a bad idea or at the very least a misappropriation of funds. However ... does NextGen/MyMagic/Fastpass+ NEED to be a success for us to expect change at WDW?

Meaning ... if it fails they are quite a bit in the whole, will they be reluctant to allocate more funds towards attractions etc ... ?

 

[rioriz]

One thing I have not seen mentioned (but it may have been somewhere), are the FP+ times selectable ? When on vacation we tend to sleep in, move slow and not hit the parks until after lunch somedays. If I were to book FP+ ahead of time, would I be able to select the time or would be take what is available.

Yes you could select a later time if it is available and be able to sleep in

 

[IWant2GoNow]

Did anyone find WDW's FB post a bit contradictory yesterday? They had an overhead picture of two little girls sitting on the curb of Main Street wearing their ear hats waiting for the parade & Disney's caption was "Some things are worth waiting for."

Anyone see the irony? Maybe they should change it to "Some things are worth paying out the nose for." I mean, to get premium parade seating like that will cost quite a bit of extra $ & planning. Oh it's a "free perk"... that's right. Nevermind. Phbbbt. Silly me.

EDIT: My mistake, my memory is terrible. It's actually quite a few little girls dressed as princesses & the cation reads "The best things in life are worth waiting for, Disney Parades included!" I'm leaving my inaccuracies in place to remind myself not to try & post things from memory anymore.

 

[Kuhio]

COPPA is a HUGE issue with NEXT GEN ... it was brought up as a potential deal-breaker because of its reach.

Why do you think Disney was lobbying hard to get COPPA changed? How much do you think they spent and have set aside for legal challenges? Of course, anything can be loopholed and Disney will be doing its best.

It seems that Disney's efforts to lobby Congress in regard to COPPA compliance have started to pay off. There's apparently movement underway to amend COPPA specifically to provide allowances for certain discrete and enumerated kinds of theme park entertainment.

It's going to be called the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act -- Florida Entertainment Exemption Legislation... or COPPA-FEEL for short.

 

[George]

It seems that Disney's efforts to lobby Congress in regard to COPPA compliance have started to pay off. There's apparently movement underway to amend COPPA specifically to provide allowances for certain discrete and enumerated kinds of theme park entertainment.

It's going to be called the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act -- Florida Entertainment Exemption Legislation... or COPPA-FEEL for short.

*golf claps*

 

[Lee]

@WDW1974 @Lee I did not go back and read the pages I missed so I do not know if this was covered but I was thinking today ... I think MyMagic/Next Gen is mostly a bad idea or at the very least a misappropriation of funds. However ... does NextGen/MyMagic/Fastpass+ NEED to be a success for us to expect change at WDW?

Meaning ... if it fails they are quite a bit in the whole, will they be reluctant to allocate more funds towards attractions etc ... ?

Good question.
We're in some uncharted waters with NextGen. That kind if expenditure really HAS to recoup its cost. Otherwise I imagine the powers that be will be very reluctant to open up the wallet.

Granted, the two are not technically connected (NG and attraction budgets), but when you start spending billions....people can get a bit skittish.

On the other hand...NG "failing" to make the kind of money they're looking for, could force them to reevaluate their strategy. Make them see that guests come for the meat (attractions) not the potatoes (FP, ADR, etc).

But...it could be the best case if NG succeeds like crazy, and helps loosen the purse strings for new attractions. But I wouldn't count on it...

 

[Lee]

It seems that Disney's efforts to lobby Congress in regard to COPPA compliance have started to pay off. There's apparently movement underway to amend COPPA specifically to provide allowances for certain discrete and enumerated kinds of theme park entertainment.

It's going to be called the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act -- Florida Entertainment Exemption Legislation... or COPPA-FEEL for short.

Winner: Post of the Day.


The act's coming right along...

 

[George]

Good question.
We're in some uncharted waters with NextGen. That kind if expenditure really HAS to recoup its cost. Otherwise I imagine the powers that be will be very reluctant to open up the wallet.

Granted, the two are not technically connected (NG and attraction budgets), but when you start spending billions....people can get a bit skittish.

On the other hand...NG "failing" to make the kind of money they're looking for, could force them to reevaluate their strategy. Make them see that guests come for the meat (attractions) not the potatoes (FP, ADR, etc).

But...it could be the best case if NG succeeds like crazy, and helps loosen the purse strings for new attractions. But I wouldn't count on it...

I agree. In general, making money like crazy hasn't really lead to loose purse strings. Without any knowledge of what the workday is like for Disney bigwigs, my gut says that mild failure combined with things at UNI being incredibly successful being the most hopeful scenario for several new top-shelf attractions. If NG is a dismal failure there would be company wide repercussions (assuming all the 1-2 billion dollar numbers are correct) and it is very hard for me to imagine that Lucas Land, a re-vamped monorail fleet, and a Pixar Place with 4 new attractions would be the response to financial catastrophe.

 

[RSoxNo1]

Sure. People are slobs more now than ever before. Wearing PJ bottoms or sweats onto flights. Lawyers appearing in court with jackets they got at second-hand stores. No one enforcing dress codes at Disney's 'fine dining' locales.

That's still no excuse to give into it.

And when Nick has BB's record, I'll excuse his appearance.

Belichick has earned the right to pretty much do whatever he pleases. If that includes dressing like a homeless person, so be it.

 

[RSoxNo1]

Really? Find me one post by anyone that says Disney sucks. ... Then find me a week of posts (just one a day) with said poster saying Disney sucks.

This is really infantile and imbecilic. I have yet to find a poster on here who believes 'Disney sucks'

Disney sucks at fixing Yeti animatronics.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

Disney sucks at paying to fix Yeti animatronics.

Fixed.

 

[baymenxpac]

Good question.
We're in some uncharted waters with NextGen. That kind if expenditure really HAS to recoup its cost. Otherwise I imagine the powers that be will be very reluctant to open up the wallet.

Granted, the two are not technically connected (NG and attraction budgets), but when you start spending billions....people can get a bit skittish.

On the other hand...NG "failing" to make the kind of money they're looking for, could force them to reevaluate their strategy. Make them see that guests come for the meat (attractions) not the potatoes (FP, ADR, etc).

But...it could be the best case if NG succeeds like crazy, and helps loosen the purse strings for new attractions. But I wouldn't count on it...

really good thoughts, lee. i'm always mindful of what economist ronald coase says: "torture the data and it will confess anything."

that's to say, even if nextgen fails on initially, they can explain their numbers however they want (guests didn't understand it, cast members weren't trained well enough, etc.) to warrant keeping it going for as long as they can justify.

in short, until upper management the likes of which you, spirit, and others have been championing comes aboard, the current crop of execs could lean on selective data sets to make nextgen seem like a success, even if it proves not to be.

 

[njDizFan]

It would take a very brave WDC exec to actually come out and admit if/when Nextgen fails. They are going to hold onto this 2 billion dollar experiment to the last tooth.

 

[Lee]

It would take a very brave WDC exec to actually come out and admit if/when Nextgen fails. They are going to hold onto this 2 billion dollar experiment to the last tooth.

Yep. At most they would sort of just push it out of the spotlight. It's here to stay, in one form or another.

 

[spaceghost]

Yep. At most they would sort of just push it out of the spotlight. It's here to stay, in one form or another.

In my mind, even if the FP+/MyMagic+ component stinks and totally fails, the fact that an infrastructure of RFID, WiFi, etc. is built out isn't a bad thing. There's a network in place now, with hardware and software components - if the powers that be are smart, they will let the Imagineers, Ops, etc. find ways to build "apps" that take advantage of what is in place now. Maybe someone can come up with a way to plus an attraction, or rework dining, etc. using the new tools. But, then again, I am a technological optimist...

 

[Mouse Detective]

Sure, there have always been ways of tracking. But there have also been easy ways to avoid it too. Now, Disney is making it damn near impossible to avoid the Big Brother state.

Even if the information is never hacked, the information can still be discovered 1) via subpoena by either party in a lawsuit or 2) by a court order in a criminal investigation.

It would take a very brave WDC exec to actually come out and admit if/when Nextgen fails.

Disney doesn't make mistakes. I believe they're still calling Pleasure Island a success.

 

[GoofGoof]

Even if the information is never hacked, the information can still be discovered 1) via subpoena by either party in a lawsuit or 2) by a court order in a criminal investigation.

9 out of 10 pick pockets surveyed say they hate next gen. The 10th guy just really wants a reserved time to meet his favorite princess without waiting in line

 

[Darth Sidious]

In my mind, even if the FP+/MyMagic+ component stinks and totally fails, the fact that an infrastructure of RFID, WiFi, etc. is built out isn't a bad thing. There's a network in place now, with hardware and software components - if the powers that be are smart, they will let the Imagineers, Ops, etc. find ways to build "apps" that take advantage of what is in place now. Maybe someone can come up with a way to plus an attraction, or rework dining, etc. using the new tools. But, then again, I am a technological optimist...

Eddie Sotto had said they would definitely find ways to incorporate the tech into rides and such. Although I believe they already have.

 

[JT3000]

I feel like other than going to get drunk, there isn't much "to do" at CityWalk at night.

Dining
Shopping
Blue Man Group
Mini-golf (2 courses)
Movies at the Cineplex
Concerts at Hard Rock Live
Live music at Margaritaville, Bob Marley's, and Pat O'Brien's
Karaoke at Rising Star

None of these things require getting drunk. Okay, maybe the karaoke. But there's plenty to do in CityWalk.