Will these prices ever cap out?

[bryanfze55]

The massive inflation in Disney prices has a lot to do with the fact that there aren’t many substitutes when it comes to themed entertainment. Disregarding prices, there really isn’t anyone that does it remotely as well as Disney.

With that being said, I do think the prices are nearing the point where finding substitutes will be necessary for A LOT of people. The pricing isn’t even the primary issue. The primary issue is that Disney is creating a class system in which some people pay a fortune to receive a basic experience and others pay a fortune and a half to receive a premium experience. Eventually families will get fed up with paying $5,000+ and still being treated like second class citizens if they can’t pony up for After Hours, holiday parties, dessert parties, concierge level, etc.

Disneyland is not completely innocent of this, but you can still feel like a valued guest by just paying for a park ticket. WDW is really the only theme park in the country that has taken stratification this far.

 

[NickMaio]

Admission price in 1971 was 3.50. Allowing for inflation it would be 20.00 today. Your either rich or you saved for years to go.

Not at all..... $22 is the equivalent of a premium movie theater ticket in today's money.
Walt's idea was that WDW and DL would not be just for the rich.
That was gone a long time ago.

 

[FutureCEO]

Bottle water at Disney = $3.50 or $4

Bottle water at civic centers, other entertainment venues = $5 or higher

 

[RustySpork]

Not at all..... $22 is the equivalent of a premium movie theater ticket in today's money.
Walt's idea was that WDW and DL would not be just for the rich.
That was gone a long time ago.

Well, that's not entirely right.

AMC Disney Springs Matinee reserved seating, dine-in $7.00. Afternoon/Evening $14.20.
AMC Disney Springs Matinee Dolby, $11.00. Afternoon/Evening $17.69.
Cinemark Universal Orlando, reserved seating, Xd Matinee $10.50. Afternoon/Evening $14.50.
Regal Pointe Orlando, IMAX matinee, $19.00. Afternoon/Evening $19.00.

Lots of premium options in there, but only the IMAX is close to the $22 mark.

 

[RustySpork]

Bottle water at Disney = $3.50 or $4

Bottle water at civic centers, other entertainment venues = $5 or higher

You would think that supply and demand would dictate that they would sell more bottles of water at a lower price and thus earn a higher profit. As a benefit, customers would also be happier. They would no longer be able to justify selling people a bottle of water for a snack credit though.

 

[John park hopper]

Bottle water at Disney = $3.50 or $4

Bottle water at civic centers, other entertainment venues = $5 or higher

I can see venues that are open for a couple of hours have to make their money in a short amount of time but Disney is open 7 days a week 12 hours a day do they really need to charge 4 bucks for a buck 50 bottle of water. Lower prices one would think sell more higher profits = happier guests

 

[bryanfze55]

I rarely ever buy bottled water in the parks. Most quick service locations will give you ice water for free. I'm more upset about soda prices.

 

[John park hopper]

I rarely ever buy bottled water in the parks. Most quick service locations will give you ice water for free. I'm more upset about soda prices.

Agree soda prices are worse than what they charge for water, don't get me started on Mickey bars-- major rip off Yes I know you don't have to buy it --I don't

 

[Disstevefan1]

now the average shareholder only holds stock for 8 months.

Yes, their first responsibility is to their shareholders, but that doesn't automatically mean they have to increase revenue every single quarter. I mentioned it in another post, but that's a relatively recent phenomenon based on shareholders wanting quick profits over long-term growth. I read recently that a few decades ago the average shareholder held stock for something like 8 years; now the average shareholder only holds stock for 8 months. Those people don't care if the company crashes and burns 5 years from now as long as they made a profit today.

It's actually a pretty bad situation for long-term stability, especially with a company like Disney. Even Bob Iger doesn't really need to worry or care about how the company will look 10 years from now (mainly because he's retiring soon) as long as he turns a profit the this quarter. The C-suite is incentivized to prioritize anything that will increase revenue in the short term regardless of what kind of effect it will have down the road. A company's fiduciary duty to the shareholders has nothing to do with increasing quarterly revenue; you could actually make an argument that such prioritization is actually a violation of their fiduciary duty depending on long-term effects.

All excellent points, but to me they do indeed support the idea that prices will never cap out! Is ever increasing prices a good idea in the long run, no, but as you say we agree Iger does not need to care, and from your post, now the average shareholder only holds stock for 8 months, so the stockholder just wants to get in, make some money and get out.

It looks like for the foreseeable future, Disney will continue to play the short sighted money grab game.

And for now, since ( generally speaking) the parks are mobbed year round, this short sighted money grab is not turning off Disney’s customers.

It kind of makes sense. Disney will continue to make as much money as they can now because you don’t know what is around the corner, like the coronavirus today or God Forbid another 9/11 I hate to say!

Disney is indeed making money like there is no tomorrow!

 

[NickMaio]

Well, that's not entirely right.

AMC Disney Springs Matinee reserved seating, dine-in $7.00. Afternoon/Evening $14.20.
AMC Disney Springs Matinee Dolby, $11.00. Afternoon/Evening $17.69.
Cinemark Universal Orlando, reserved seating, Xd Matinee $10.50. Afternoon/Evening $14.50.
Regal Pointe Orlando, IMAX matinee, $19.00. Afternoon/Evening $19.00.

Lots of premium options in there, but only the IMAX is close to the $22 mark.

My bad.....where I live in Canada a 3d movie is almost 20......
Still damn close..
WDW is WAYYYYYYYY off inflation increases.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

I can see venues that are open for a couple of hours have to make their money in a short amount of time but Disney is open 7 days a week 12 hours a day do they really need to charge 4 bucks for a buck 50 bottle of water. Lower prices one would think sell more higher profits = happier guests

Also other entertainment venues tend to be indoor, temperature controlled environments.

Charging a premium for bottled water in the Flordia heat where guests are much more likely to get dehydrated is a special kind of evil.

 

[bryanfze55]

Also other entertainment venues tend to be indoor, temperature controlled environments.

Charging a premium for bottled water in the Flordia heat where guests are much more likely to get dehydrated is a special kind of evil.

You can carry bottled water into the parks in a backpack. You can get free ice water. Literally, the price of bottled water at Disney is the least of my complaints. It's on par with other outdoor theme parks in the country. I WISH it were $1 a pop, but that's just not how capitalism works.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

I WISH it were $1 a pop, but that's just not how capitalism works.

I don't think you understand how capitalism works.

This is the same company that for decades ran some shops at a loss because it was considered part of the show, and the park as a whole was still profitable.

 

[bryanfze55]

I don't think you understand how capitalism works.

This is the same company that for decades ran some shops at a loss because it was considered part of the show, and the park as a whole was still profitable.

Prices will reflect what the market will bear. That is capitalism. If Disney wants to price their water below market level, that's their prerogative. But it's not an expectation.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

Prices will reflect what the market will bear. That is capitalism. If Disney wants to price their water below market level, that's their prerogative. But it's not an expectation.

Disney could sell bottled water at a lower price and have a higher number of total sales.

Even if the profit was exactly the same, they'd have happier customers.

Gouging customers is not the only way to run a business.

 

[bryanfze55]

Disney could sell bottled water at a lower price and have a higher number of total sales.

Even if the profit was exactly the same, they'd have happier customers.

Gouging customers is not the only way to run a business.

It’s not the only way to run a business, but it is one way when you’re the most popular theme park in the world with no substantial competition. They have no reason to drop their bottled water price other than sheer benevolence.

It’s just not the hill I’m willing to die on. Disney lets you bring in bottled water for free. I always come to the park with a pack of at least six bottles. The day that Disney says you can’t bring in bottled water is the day I stop going. I do have my limits, and when those limits are reached, I will find alternatives. My visits have already been slashed significantly. But I won’t single out Disney. Greed is not exclusive to them. Comcast (Universal) right down the street isn’t exactly angelic, and their water is the same price.

 

[RustySpork]

You can carry bottled water into the parks in a backpack. You can get free ice water. Literally, the price of bottled water at Disney is the least of my complaints. It's on par with other outdoor theme parks in the country. I WISH it were $1 a pop, but that's just not how capitalism works.

Capitalism and greed are not the same things though. You're right that it's on par with other theme parks, it's interesting to me that none of them recognize that they would give away fewer free water cups if bottled water was priced more reasonably.

 

[bryanfze55]

Capitalism and greed are not the same things though. You're right that it's on par with other theme parks, it's interesting to me that none of them recognize that they would give away fewer free water cups if bottled water was priced more reasonably.

No, they aren’t the same thing. But capitalism allows companies to pursue greed if they so choose. And the best check on one company’s greed is having substantial competition. And although Universal is improving, Disney just doesn’t have much real competition. No one has mastered themed entertainment the way Disney has. But when a company gets in over its head, greed can happen. It’s up to the consumer to choose not to patronize that company. And then the company will be forced to lower prices. Funnily enough, plenty of people complain about Disney’s greed, but it seems like there aren’t many people volunteering to stop going. The parks are always packed. It’s insane. It’s our responsibility to not patronize Disney if we really believe they are greedy to an unethical degree.

I just don’t think you can reasonably expect a company to lower prices when they have more demand than they know what to do with. That would take a proactive rather than reactive vision. And Disney does not have that under Iger. They are the ultimate reactive, play-it-safe company right now, both in the theme parks and the studio. Disney is mostly still riding the coattails of the once in a generation visionary known as Walter Elias Disney.

 

[RustySpork]

No, they aren’t the same thing. But capitalism allows companies to pursue greed if they so choose. And the best check on one company’s greed is having substantial competition. And although Universal is improving, Disney just doesn’t have much real competition. No one has mastered themed entertainment the way Disney has. But when a company gets in over its head, greed can happen. It’s up to the consumer to choose not to patronize that company. And then the company will be forced to lower prices. Funnily enough, plenty of people complain about Disney’s greed, but it seems like there aren’t many people volunteering to stop going. The parks are always packed. It’s insane. It’s our responsibility to not patronize Disney if we really believe they are greedy to an unethical degree.

I just don’t think you can reasonably expect a company to lower prices when they have more demand than they know what to do with. That would take a proactive rather than reactive vision. And Disney does not have that under Iger. They are the ultimate reactive, play-it-safe company right now, both in the theme parks and the studio. Disney is mostly still riding the coattails of the once in a generation visionary known as Walter Elias Disney.

You don't really know that there's a high demand for $4 water bottles.

 

[John park hopper]

You don't really know that there's a high demand for $4 water bottles.

Exactly --it's 95 degrees in sunny Florida you have a captive a group of guests what choice do you have so you buy the $4 bottle of water