If the Disney Parks are ever sold to another company, You can kiss the whole thing goodbye. The clock will begin ticking to the end with such a deal. No other company is capable of running a Disney park the right way. So, if this ever happens, book all your trips as often as you can and take as many pics as possible because everything will unravel after that.
What of Oriental Land Company, who owns and operates Tokyo Disneyland Resort, often praised as the best Disney resort in the world? Some might argue it's cultural, others argue that the quality in Tokyo is thanks to a contractual obligation to uphold a high standard of quality.
The only Disney parks that Disney owns are Disneyland and Walt Disney World. Disneyland has had its fair share of down time (Pressler era, anyone?), and WDW is currently on the decline. Disney has about 50% stakes in Paris and Hong Kong, and Tokyo is licensed out.
The thought is disgusting. Back in 1987, when Eisner and Wells took over, the Disney Company had just escaped a hostile takeover that would have, effectually, done what a new owner would do, water down the product. As frustrated as some on this board get, the sale of these parks would spell certain doom for the Disney that we all know and love.
Read above. Treat the prospective owner of the US parks as they do Oriental Land Company, and the parks could even see an
increase in quality.
I do not think that the Disney Corporation would sell of the parks in the U.S. I understand about bottom line, but they would be left with movies and television. Television is not what it once was and movies are hit or miss. The parks are a constant profit center for the company, not to mention a place to help foster loyalty to the new and old Disney characters and movies. It does not seem to make sense.
From my memory, television was actually Disney's biggest profit. ESPN and ABC are
huge cash cows.
A bunch of execs would basically lead themselves to unemployment for a one time 1 billion dollar pay day? Not happening. If it does, then Disney has the DUMBEST execs in the corporate world. Why did the Disney Family sell out most of its interest in the Disney Corporation? There is no one to protect Walt and Roy's hard work and legacy. It would be the end of a true American success story.
It's going to be more than a billion. Way more than a billion. My guess would be well over $10 billion.
A sale, treated correctly, could work wonders for us as customers. Disney executives have failed WDW. License it out the way they do to Oriental Land Company, and the parks could improve vastly. Disney would still have creative control (as they do in Tokyo) given that they hold on to Imagineering. Last I read, they're switching WDI to Universal Creative's business model, so Disney shouldn't have much of a problem keeping WDI.
As I've said repeatedly, I have no issue with Disney selling the parks if they force the buyer into keeping a high standard of quality.
Will they do it? My guess is no. I don't see anyone coming up with enough cash to buy the parks. The public image problems coming from a sale of an American icon probably wouldn't hold too well for Disney, either.
