A side note on this, but at Wide World of Sports they allow no private cameras with Mickey when a sports team meets him. The area is even blacked out so parents can not even see their kids meeting Mickey, but are gladly told the photopass prices afterwards.
I can totally see Meet n' Greets becoming "No Personal Photographic Devices, Please" areas in a few years, if not sooner. I'd put money on Disney already thinking about this is some way.
This price increase means that even as DVC members we aren't going to WDW this year. As a family of 6, airfare is probably going to cost us $2000. Park passes would now add another $2000. Food... at least $1500. When we had AP's, we could go 2-3 times per year, but airfare and food costs have risen so much that we simply can't afford to continue that. And now that children's AP's cost the same as adults.... well, all I can say is that I have a single finger on my hand raised to Disney for that bone-headed, bean-counters-run-the-show decision. Some people were buying a child's AP to get the discounts? Require an adult with a valid ID and any/all children be present when redeeming AP vouchers and you eliminate the problem, plus you don't screw the 98% of AP's that do play by the rules.
This price increase leads me down a couple of paths. They are focusing/counting a LOT on overseas visitors. They think they are going to be pulling in a lot more people once the FLE opens. And, most importantly - TWDC thinks most US guests are just going to continue to flock to the parks, spend money, overpay for mediocre food, and buy lots of cheap, overpriced, bland merchandise. Are they expecting a few AP holders to not renew? Yes. Are they expecting a few regulars to cut back? I'm sure. But the greatest, most get-their-attention response guests can give is by voting with their wallets. Don't renew your AP, and don't buy park hoppers and go to the parks. If you do go, don't go as often as you would, and don't stay on-site if you can. Go to UNI/IOA more, Sea World more, Busch Gardens more. Spend less on food. Spend less on merchandise. Yes, Disney is a business and is looking to make money. And if enough people can actually follow thru and not take that vacation, don't renew their AP's, and generally hit them where it hurts, someone will notice. If they don't, well, then that should tell you more than enough about where their true priorities are.
And Disney doesn't give a damn about DVC owners once they buy in. Most of the perks are focused on niche's and specific, narrow demographics. No discount on non-AP park passes. No discount on the dining plan (DVC guests couldn't even get the dining plan until a few years ago). Few merchandise discounts. Few restaurant discounts. You can golf for a discounted rate (before 8am and after 6pm). Whee....
Maybe I'm just still more than a bit pi--ed off at this price increase coming on top of the Iger/Rasulo statements that domestic spending is going to be "significantly" reduced when DCA, FLE, Aulani, and the 4th cruise ship are done, so you can take my comments with a few grains of salt if you wish. So basically, FLE, the Test Track refurb, and the Star Tours refurb are it for WDW as far as attraction-based spending goes for the foreseeable future. Congratulations, powers-that-be - you actually have succeeded in making me believe that you in fact could care less about WDW than you have in the past 4-6 years.