While I brought up the idea of a la carte pricing for attractions in my previous post, I only mentioned it to make a point because it was something Tony Baxter had brought up years ago, not because I think it is very likely to happen anytime soon, if ever.
Like you, I have no idea if TDO eventually plans to bring a la carte pricing to WDW. However, they'd not be doing their jobs if they didn't at least discuss and even research the possibility.
Think about what they did with theme park tickets 8 years ago. They eliminated the "premium service" Park Hopper tickets, which automatically included hopper, water parks, and "no expiration" options and went to the a la carte Magic Your Way (MYW) tickets, where you pay only for the options you want (or can afford
).
Imagine a park ticket including admission and a limited number of attractions, perhaps all attractions once or unlimited access to less popular attractions. With MagicBands touch-to-pay feature, you could, for example, decide to purchase a spur-of-the-moment FP+ for Dumbo. You're there with your children who you adore. They ask "Mommy and Daddy, can we PLEASE ride Dumbo again!" How many won't at least consider purchasing an upsale for just a few dollars more?
MagicBand's touch-to-pay system presents TDO with many opportunities to monetize WDW in new ways. Furthermore, just because they don't monetize something in 2013 doesn't mean they won't in 2014 or beyond. I have no idea what they actually intend to do or when they intend to do it but you can use your own imagination. From Disney's
perspective, the beauty of MM+ is that it presents TDO with options, options they didn't have before.
And before you dismiss the idea with "they won't do that" or "I don't like it", remember that, ultimately, TDO doesn't care what you like. They care about what will be the most profitable.