Crockett
Banned
Wait, what?
So they expect Disney to just lay idle, watching the competition grow over the years to come?
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Uni's New Plan For Potter Could Make Significant Dent To WDW
- Thread starter Ignohippo
- Start date
So they expect Disney to just lay idle, watching the competition grow over the years to come?
Mouse Wizard
Member
that sounds like Animal Kingdom as it is now...
menamechris
Well-Known Member
Doesn't fast-tracking a project typically relate to construction? The plan should be pretty solid before they start pouring cement. In fact, I would actually venture to say "fast-tracking" a project could even be a better scenario with a company like Disney. It seems the longer something is looked at and analyzed, the more the suits cut back and whittle down to save money..
Pioneer Hall
Well-Known Member
This is unfortunately how the investment mind set seems to be nowadays. The focus tends to be on short term earnings per share than it does on growing value. So even though you might be better off in 10 years by investing wisely, people don't want to listen to it if means that current earnings are at risk. We have allowed companies to live quarter by quarter as opposed to thinking long term and strength of their business.
thehowiet
Wilson King of Prussia
I totally agree here. Also, Disney has built entire parks in the amount of time it will take them to have the Fantasyland expansion complete.
dclfan
Well-Known Member
When it comes to Harry Potter I was huge fan of the books. I was the right age at the right time and read them as they hit bookstores. The movies however fell short in my opinion. What i imagined in my head could never match what they put on film, and I feel like a lot of people feel this way about the movies and likewise about the land in Universal. I visit Disney World every year and yes I saw potter land when it opened simply because me neighbor is a travel agent and gave me free passes, I will most likely never return and was out of Universal by lunch out of boredom. It's the feeling of Disney that brings me back again and again and Universal will never have that same feeling of being in the "world". I tend not to look at Avatar as being an advertisement for the movie but instead as this incredibly immersive world. If people stop looking at avatar land in terms of fan loyalty and instead think about how this might be one of the most cutting edge, and immersive lands Disney has built in a long time it would make everyone happier imo.
Pioneer Hall
Well-Known Member
I think the problem is that you can look at things in two different ways. The things you state are that you feel good when you are in Disney, which is that nostalgic loving feeling that most of us get when we are in Disney. It is the reason that we spend part of our days here discussing every detail. There is nothing wrong with how you or anyone else feels in terms of that nostalgia, and if you don't return to Universal because of that feeling then it is understandable. It even seems that Disney might have taken that approach and said that they can continue to be #1 based on a lot of those good feelings.
The key problem though is that the majority of Disney visitors are not people who are doing so based on nostalgia and happiness like we do. In the grand scheme of things, we are a small market that really won't be the focus of their plans. When people look at the parks and see something like Harry with huge appeal, they want to see it. Avatar could be incredible, but it probably won't receive the reaction that Harry Potter or another immensely popular franchise will. Disney will still always win out in terms of name recognition and unless something insane happened they will continue to be #1. However, if Universal can continue to outpace Disney in projects and innovations then people are going to start spending less time at the house of mouse. Vacationers that used to not visit universal or only spend one day there might start thinking about spending 2 or 3 days. Now if you are spending 4 days at Disney and 3 at Universal you might be less inclined to sleep in their hotels, eat at their restaurants (and buy their meal plan), or partake in their extra profitable activities. Park admissions are only a small part of the puzzle, the money is really in all the extras which Harry Potter offers a ton of.
SyracuseOrange
Well-Known Member
I don't know, I was just referencing what other people had said a few pages back.
WDW Vacationer
Active Member
I say bring it on.
eventually Disney will have to wake up and see their image is being trampled in the theme park market they created. Universal is bringing in popular franchises and innovative new attractions. Disney has Fantasyland opening right now. Even the franchises in Fantasyland aren't as powerful as Potter. And the attractions-nice as they may be-can't compete with what Universal is putting out. Another omnimover and a coaster aren't going to do it.
And I'm not putting all my chips down on Avatar. Nobody knows if that franchises can sustain itself or if it was just a flash in the pan or what kind of attractions we should expect with that deal.
Disney CAN do something here. But it needs to be huge. Their best shot is somnething with George Lucas at DHS and something for Epcot. Those both would need to open around the time of Potter phase 2 at Universal.
But, I doubt they will do anything like that now that the board has promised reduced capital spending.
eventually Disney will have to wake up and see their image is being trampled in the theme park market they created. Universal is bringing in popular franchises and innovative new attractions. Disney has Fantasyland opening right now. Even the franchises in Fantasyland aren't as powerful as Potter. And the attractions-nice as they may be-can't compete with what Universal is putting out. Another omnimover and a coaster aren't going to do it.
And I'm not putting all my chips down on Avatar. Nobody knows if that franchises can sustain itself or if it was just a flash in the pan or what kind of attractions we should expect with that deal.
Disney CAN do something here. But it needs to be huge. Their best shot is somnething with George Lucas at DHS and something for Epcot. Those both would need to open around the time of Potter phase 2 at Universal.
But, I doubt they will do anything like that now that the board has promised reduced capital spending.
Mouse Detective
Well-Known Member
talonstruck
Member
I think the idea of the Hogwarts express would be a great idea connecting both parks. Look at as the monorail system at Disney. Heck they could even them the trip between parks to the forbidden forest. The potterverse is expansive and so many things can be expanded on. Bravo to Universal for stepping up to make this a reality. Universal got a good chunk of my change this summer because of what WWOHP, the forbidden Journey is a great ride and my family just adores butter beer. Once again Kudos to Universal.
zooey
Well-Known Member
I feel this way, too. Disney is like a whole other world, where Uni is a theme park through and through.
c-one
Well-Known Member
Agreed.
Plus, I wouldn't be surprised if plans for WWOHP Part 2 are all but finalized now, anyway. Fast-tracking just comes down to how quickly they want to get it built (and how much $ they want to pay contractors). The quality of the land from a guest's point of view comes down to what the creative minds have been working on, and this has probably been in the works since the very start.
disney fan 13
Well-Known Member
yup
Mem11
Active Member
There in lies the problem, Disney used to be the one everyone chased, now the tables have turned... A shame really and not something I expected in my lifetime.
As DI mention, Disney will probably always remain number one, but if they start loosing market share...
NoChesterHester
Well-Known Member
With the implementation of Next Gen the R&D phase is likely slowing down. Rasulo admitted that Next Gen is a big drain on the expenses.
With Next Gen winding down more budget could likely be allocated to attraction development while actually reducing capital expenditures as they promised the investors.
NoChesterHester
Well-Known Member
The term "fast track" means to overlap the design and construction schedules. As design completed the foundations that part of the construction would be started. The next phase of design would be completed then during the construction of the foundations and then the next phase would commence... so on...
Fast tracking can significantly speed up the delivery of the a project, but tends to lead to significantly more cost due to change orders. For example, if you need to move a column late in the design due to an unforseen condition there is a bigger cost because the column is already in place... have to rip it out and reconstruct. This sort of thing is the reality in fast track projects.
If designs are already complete, then WWOHP part Two wouldn't meet the definition of Fast Track. Compressing the construction schedule is another issue...
Fractal514
Well-Known Member
I think the concept of linking the two lands in two separate parks is intriguing. It sounds like a smart business move for UNI. As far as how Disney reacts to this... I think IF they choose to respond they must do so across all four parks.
We could consider Avatarland and FLE the answers for those parks, but they need something equally large in scale for Epcot and HWS.
Why is that necessary? If Disney leaves one of the parks out in the cold, then THAT park will become the one dropped by families lured into Universal. The only park that I think is truly immune to that phenomenon is MK, and the FLE is already happening.
We could consider Avatarland and FLE the answers for those parks, but they need something equally large in scale for Epcot and HWS.
Why is that necessary? If Disney leaves one of the parks out in the cold, then THAT park will become the one dropped by families lured into Universal. The only park that I think is truly immune to that phenomenon is MK, and the FLE is already happening.
TinkerBelle8878
Well-Known Member
I think that this second part of HPW was always in the planning. Kind of like how Beastly Kingdom was in AK. Except Uni is actually building it and not just letting it go into the 'what almost was' files.
The Avatar announcement had me puzzled and since there's only been 1 movie, no books, and 2 sequels that could tank. I agree with the previous posters who mentioned a Star Wars or Lucasland. There's already a presence, its popular, and there's merchandising potential. As far as I know there are cartoons on Cartoon Network and a whole bunch of other things that just add to that property. I'd also throw in Muppet World. People know the characters and it has a following. Even moreso with the new movie.
Besides the one Avatar movie, what is there? I doubt it will gain that much popularity by the time this gets completed. Is it a world people really care to bother getting immersed in?
Plus, even people who have never seen any of the movies know who the characters are. They're a part of pop culture. As much as the HP characters are.
I've never seen Avatar. I have no idea who the characters are. I don't think any non Avatar fan can name one.
I think WDI might be overreaching and throwing time and money into something that may not be recieved quite as well as they hope. Or as well as HP. There are far more things that need improvements and fixing before they even start building this.
The Avatar announcement had me puzzled and since there's only been 1 movie, no books, and 2 sequels that could tank. I agree with the previous posters who mentioned a Star Wars or Lucasland. There's already a presence, its popular, and there's merchandising potential. As far as I know there are cartoons on Cartoon Network and a whole bunch of other things that just add to that property. I'd also throw in Muppet World. People know the characters and it has a following. Even moreso with the new movie.
Besides the one Avatar movie, what is there? I doubt it will gain that much popularity by the time this gets completed. Is it a world people really care to bother getting immersed in?
Plus, even people who have never seen any of the movies know who the characters are. They're a part of pop culture. As much as the HP characters are.
I've never seen Avatar. I have no idea who the characters are. I don't think any non Avatar fan can name one.
I think WDI might be overreaching and throwing time and money into something that may not be recieved quite as well as they hope. Or as well as HP. There are far more things that need improvements and fixing before they even start building this.
TarzanRocked99-
Well-Known Member
As for fast tracking much of the design work is already complete and has been for awhile, the hold up was getting JK Rowling and Warner Brothers to all sign off on the plans which have been updated multiple times and that a very good thing. Construction begins next year, but I have heard a mid 2014 opening, not 2013.