rodserling27
Well-Known Member
Thanks! Nice find.
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The Spirited Sixth Sense ...
- Thread starter WDW1974
- Start date
PeterAlt
Well-Known Member
A note that I got from a regular reader that I thought you may find interesting:
Spirit,
Something of interest ... My mother has apparently gone to the dark side. My parents were in O-Town visiting me this weekend. A few weeks ago, my father said, "Book us a room at Boardwalk or DAK Lodge, we'll be stopping through on the 16th." I replied, "Just book yourself a AAA room at the Ritz-Carlton, you know how far gone this place is, you'll be happier with the hotel and it'll be cheaper to boot." My dad took the advice and thanked me when they checked in.
Anyway, later that evening, we were having dinner, off property mind you. (They'd originally suggested Jiko, which for years was my favorite Disney restaurant and one that seemed to keep its head above water amongst widespread signature restaurant decline, but even it has succumbed to the bean counters.) The topic of the decline of Disney World came up and I recounted something I'd heard at work. A nickelodeon from the train station had broken. An engineering services manager had a conversation with XXX (sorry, needed to edit that one!) about sending it to a shop in the mid-west that specialized in restoring old arcade pieces. Apparently they'd used this shop in the past but such a restoration cost several thousand dollars. XXX said, "Oh well, that's too bad, cut the power cord off and send it to shops to have it painted. It'll be something pretty to look at now." I, of course, believe that part of your hundred dollar admission is to pay for keeping the little touches like hundred year old arcade pieces that still only require a penny to operate functioning. I know my belief is wrong, and that's not really what that premium price of admission is for. Anyway, after recounting this tale, my mother starts defending it, "Well the people there today, they don't know what they're missing, so why not? Sometimes you have to cut corners to keep the business afloat." Needless to say, it annoyed me a bit. She doesn't work for the company, but I might as well get a gold football for her car. Just thought you'd appreciate that. Be well.
***Spirited commentary: I'd guess that many folks would agree with this individual's mother. Of course, one day when all the details are cut, what exactly will you have?
Spirit,
Something of interest ... My mother has apparently gone to the dark side. My parents were in O-Town visiting me this weekend. A few weeks ago, my father said, "Book us a room at Boardwalk or DAK Lodge, we'll be stopping through on the 16th." I replied, "Just book yourself a AAA room at the Ritz-Carlton, you know how far gone this place is, you'll be happier with the hotel and it'll be cheaper to boot." My dad took the advice and thanked me when they checked in.
Anyway, later that evening, we were having dinner, off property mind you. (They'd originally suggested Jiko, which for years was my favorite Disney restaurant and one that seemed to keep its head above water amongst widespread signature restaurant decline, but even it has succumbed to the bean counters.) The topic of the decline of Disney World came up and I recounted something I'd heard at work. A nickelodeon from the train station had broken. An engineering services manager had a conversation with XXX (sorry, needed to edit that one!) about sending it to a shop in the mid-west that specialized in restoring old arcade pieces. Apparently they'd used this shop in the past but such a restoration cost several thousand dollars. XXX said, "Oh well, that's too bad, cut the power cord off and send it to shops to have it painted. It'll be something pretty to look at now." I, of course, believe that part of your hundred dollar admission is to pay for keeping the little touches like hundred year old arcade pieces that still only require a penny to operate functioning. I know my belief is wrong, and that's not really what that premium price of admission is for. Anyway, after recounting this tale, my mother starts defending it, "Well the people there today, they don't know what they're missing, so why not? Sometimes you have to cut corners to keep the business afloat." Needless to say, it annoyed me a bit. She doesn't work for the company, but I might as well get a gold football for her car. Just thought you'd appreciate that. Be well.
***Spirited commentary: I'd guess that many folks would agree with this individual's mother. Of course, one day when all the details are cut, what exactly will you have?
I would ... right now, anyway.
They have their hands full with their latest acquisition ...
which is?
Disneyhead'71
Well-Known Member
Their latest acquisition will give the some leverage on their next. Being the dominant internet provider to 24 of the top 25 U.S. media markets will get Netflicks attention. Particularly with out net neutrality.
Disneyhead'71
Well-Known Member
Buying Time Warner Cable for $45 Bn.
ABQ
Well-Known Member
Blasphemy!
rodserling27
Well-Known Member
Dang, you are knocking it out of the PARK today, Spirit! (Pun intended!)(
Quick tattoo story: I saw this a dude one time at DHS who had his entire head covered in Disney and Pixar characters. Literally, every single character and icon you can think of. From The Three Caballeros to Brer Rabbit to Mike Wazowski and beyond. From obscure characters like the Brave Little Toaster to a logo of WED himself! He had his head shaved completely bald and had tattoos ALLLL over not just his head and neck, but it appeared they went all down the front and back of his body too! I wondered if maybe his head was mostly for cartoons and if his back and front were maybe for something else? Very strange looking, one of the most bizarre tattoo jobs I've ever seen. Wonder what he will look like in 25 years.
2. They aren't even sure what a character meal is.
3. If he didn't say it, he definitely thought it!
Keep it up, first time I've been able to keep up with a '74 thread in ages!!! This is the driving force of the forum these days (sorry @Jimmy Thick.)
I was at WDW last weekend and was thinking about this problem. All I had was my expired old AP card and my MagicBand. I tried to buy something with the AP discount but they guy told me without a current pass, I cannot. Why can't they incorporate it into the MagicBand the way they check that you're on property for EMH? Arrggghh seems like yet another simple solution that THEY MISSED.
Agreed, the time to hate Eisner has come and gone. never cared for him personally, but it's useless to hate on him now.
Oswald is a neat little part of Disney history, and it's good that they own him again. THAT'S IT. Nothing more, nothing less at the moment.
Not wanting to get too political here, but I'm a pretty conservative person in most aspects and I want those things too! Honest living wages, honest politicians (something we'll never have), a fair tax plan. Any American who says different is a moron. I think a lot of people, both liberals and conservatives, at the core, want the SAME basic things. But IDIOTIC politicians and people with "POWER" and MONEY get in the way...They polarize EVERY issue and get the people to hyper-focus on ONE or TWO issues that "define" a party. I'm getting side tracked. Whew!
Quick tattoo story: I saw this a dude one time at DHS who had his entire head covered in Disney and Pixar characters. Literally, every single character and icon you can think of. From The Three Caballeros to Brer Rabbit to Mike Wazowski and beyond. From obscure characters like the Brave Little Toaster to a logo of WED himself! He had his head shaved completely bald and had tattoos ALLLL over not just his head and neck, but it appeared they went all down the front and back of his body too! I wondered if maybe his head was mostly for cartoons and if his back and front were maybe for something else? Very strange looking, one of the most bizarre tattoo jobs I've ever seen. Wonder what he will look like in 25 years.
1. Nope.
2. They aren't even sure what a character meal is.
3. If he didn't say it, he definitely thought it!
Keep it up, first time I've been able to keep up with a '74 thread in ages!!! This is the driving force of the forum these days (sorry @Jimmy Thick.)
Last edited:
Disneyhead'71
Well-Known Member
Really? I thought my pithy, inane, bitter, and amusing only to myself comments were this sites main driving force.
*sigh* Something pretty to look at?? Therein lies one of the many problems with TDO management "thinking" - The guest experience at MK is greater than the sum of its parts. I think a lot of people around here would agree, although to differing degrees. This "great guest park experience" has continued despite what the TDO suits have been doing over the past 10-15 years. But that experience has declined, and continues to decline. When you take away more and more of those little details that helped made the experience great, you lose a larger piece of the overall park experience than just a nickelodeon being painted and not repaired, for example. Sadly, those kind of details are utterly lost on TDO *and* TWDC management. They seem more than content to actively allow the parks to slide back to the competition in that regard.
Soarin' Over Pgh
Well-Known Member
Next Big Thing
Well-Known Member
That's the beauty of this for them. Disney doesn't have to do anything. The content creators are the ones that are doing all of the work here.
Next Big Thing
Well-Known Member
Trying to do things like this online is VERY HARD these days. The install base is so huge with Maker that of would take forever to even come close to reaching that and with Disney, I highly doubt they'd be successful on their attempt.
Again, the install base of subscribers is the big thing here. LOTS of eyeballs.
Nemo14
Well-Known Member
My husband and I have said this countless times, I just don't get it. But then I also don't understand grown men with Jimmy Neutronesque haircuts and any female over the age of 5 in skin tight leggings.
rodserling27
Well-Known Member
Ok, ok, yours are too.
flynnibus
Premium Member
Hard? Yes... else no one would be on top. But impossible to replicate or create a competitor? No way... this is still a very IMMATURE market and the 'kings' are just babies themselves. This stuff grows at alarming rates (as well as can die the same..). What you see here is Disney paying for convenience... instead of spending $50 million seeding something and creating it on their own... they just say "we'll pay a premium for a finished product".
This is Disney saying "we have no interest in the race... we'll just buy the winner..". Except they pay so much and forget the next race is starting every day..
Disneyhead'71
Well-Known Member
And to expand on Spirit's tattoo comment:
PeterAlt
Well-Known Member
More news related to Comcast trying to dominate... Imagine if this deal happens as well as the rumored NetFlix one... Not to mention the TWC one... Not good.
Bandwidth deal between Apple & Comcast would likely draw federal scrutiny
By Neil Hughes
Though the U.S. government wouldn't need to approve a deal between Apple and Comcast for faster and more reliable streaming video, such an alignment would likely draw regulatory scrutiny, in particular with respect to its effects on net neutrality.
Analysts and experts who spoke with The Wall Street Journal feel confident that any such deal between Apple and Comcast would "draw close regulatory scrutiny." While the deal wouldn't require federal approval, it would raise questions about net neutrality, which is a belief that all content should be treated equally on the Internet, rather than preferential advantages given to those who are willing to pay.
But while experts believe the terms of a potential Apple-Comcast deal would draw eyes from federal investigators, they also believe that such an arrangement would likely be accepted. Guggenheim Securities telecom policy analyst Paul Gallant said he expects the U.S. Federal Communications Commission would be OK with the rumored deal as long as it were nonexclusive and didn't degrade traditional broadband service.
The FCC has a particular interest in preserving net neutrality, and is planning to issue new rules that would prevent service providers, such as Comcast, from charging content providers, like Apple, to reach consumers at faster Internet speeds. But the rumored negotiations between Apple and Comcast are unique, in that they do not actually involve the open Internet.
Instead, it was claimed this week that Apple is in talks with Comcast about a deal that would bypass congestion on the "last mile" of connectivity, which represents the connection between Comcast and the end user's home. During peak usage hours, those pipes can become heavily trafficked, which affects Internet connections, and Apple seeks to have its own dedicated connection to ensure quality streaming video transmission.
Market watchers believe any talks that may be taking place between Apple and Comcast do not likely go far beyond the alleged topics, and it's unlikely that Comcast would completely hand over its customers' user experience to Apple. Instead, it's believed that something like a dedicated Comcast application for a device like the Apple TV could provide live and on-demand content to Comcast subscribers.
Further complicating matters is the fact that Comcast is already expected to face significant scrutiny from the government as it attempts to buy rival company Time Warner Cable. In hopes of pushing that acquisition through, Comcast has pledged to expand its support for net neutrality.
Bandwidth deal between Apple & Comcast would likely draw federal scrutiny
By Neil Hughes
Though the U.S. government wouldn't need to approve a deal between Apple and Comcast for faster and more reliable streaming video, such an alignment would likely draw regulatory scrutiny, in particular with respect to its effects on net neutrality.
Analysts and experts who spoke with The Wall Street Journal feel confident that any such deal between Apple and Comcast would "draw close regulatory scrutiny." While the deal wouldn't require federal approval, it would raise questions about net neutrality, which is a belief that all content should be treated equally on the Internet, rather than preferential advantages given to those who are willing to pay.
But while experts believe the terms of a potential Apple-Comcast deal would draw eyes from federal investigators, they also believe that such an arrangement would likely be accepted. Guggenheim Securities telecom policy analyst Paul Gallant said he expects the U.S. Federal Communications Commission would be OK with the rumored deal as long as it were nonexclusive and didn't degrade traditional broadband service.
The FCC has a particular interest in preserving net neutrality, and is planning to issue new rules that would prevent service providers, such as Comcast, from charging content providers, like Apple, to reach consumers at faster Internet speeds. But the rumored negotiations between Apple and Comcast are unique, in that they do not actually involve the open Internet.
Instead, it was claimed this week that Apple is in talks with Comcast about a deal that would bypass congestion on the "last mile" of connectivity, which represents the connection between Comcast and the end user's home. During peak usage hours, those pipes can become heavily trafficked, which affects Internet connections, and Apple seeks to have its own dedicated connection to ensure quality streaming video transmission.
Market watchers believe any talks that may be taking place between Apple and Comcast do not likely go far beyond the alleged topics, and it's unlikely that Comcast would completely hand over its customers' user experience to Apple. Instead, it's believed that something like a dedicated Comcast application for a device like the Apple TV could provide live and on-demand content to Comcast subscribers.
Further complicating matters is the fact that Comcast is already expected to face significant scrutiny from the government as it attempts to buy rival company Time Warner Cable. In hopes of pushing that acquisition through, Comcast has pledged to expand its support for net neutrality.
When the deal is approved and they have merged the company, then I will give it thought ... not saying it won't happen, just saying it won't happen tomorrow.