WDW Cuts and Upcharges

[Mad Dog]

Nobody should want this to fail if we ever want to see Disney put away the axe.

And everyone thought they cancelled the Canadian lumberjack show at Epcot...Not...They just gave them Executive positions in charge of budgetary cuts.

 

[Macfr3ak]

Looks like Disneys financial issues are now bleeding over to other areas


Disney announces plans to officially discontinue Disney Infinity series | 9to5Mac

 

[Nick]

Looks like Disneys financial issues are now bleeding over to other areas


Disney announces plans to officially discontinue Disney Infinity series | 9to5Mac

Eh, Disney and video games have always had a tumultuous relationship. They said they are still going to put out games (Kingdom Hearts, SW Battlefront), but license the content instead of publish it themselves.

Most of the stuff that has come out of Disney Interactive has been crap. The only game I liked was Epic Mickey (the first one), but even that game was so buggy that it was tough to enjoy.

 

[Macfr3ak]

Eh, Disney and video games have always had a tumultuous relationship. They said they are still going to put out games (Kingdom Hearts, SW Battlefront), but license the content instead of publish it themselves.

Most of the stuff that has come out of Disney Interactive has been crap. The only game I liked was Epic Mickey (the first one), but even that game was so buggy that it was tough to enjoy.

I agree and I'm well aware of that history Disney has the same that universal had when it dabbed into the market (before Comcast) but I think this is a pretty big deal as it has a huge following and is quite popular with kids. The article even inserts quotes implying this is solely a cost cutting move (perhaps to attempt to soften a financial blow that some have said is coming)

 

[Nick]

I agree and I'm well aware of that history Disney has the same that universal had when it dabbed into the market (before Comcast) but I think this is a pretty big deal as it has a huge following and is quite popular with kids. The article even inserts quotes implying this is solely a cost cutting move (perhaps to attempt to soften a financial blow that some have said is coming)

Yes, but I truly don't think this is related to Shanghai. Infinity got cut because Disney is stepping out of the publishing business completely - it has long been a losing proposition for them.

If they are cutting something bc of Shanghai, it will be within Parks & Resorts as that is the division taking the hit bc of SHDL. If they need to prop up P&R numbers, cutting something from another division doesn't solve that.

 

[UNIrd]

Yes, but I truly don't think this is related to Shanghai. Infinity got cut because Disney is stepping out of the publishing business completely - it has long been a losing proposition for them.

If they are cutting something bc of Shanghai, it will be within Parks & Resorts as that is the division taking the hit bc of SHDL. If they need to prop up P&R numbers, cutting something from another division doesn't solve that.

Eh.. but if the cuts are basically to look good to shareholders.. you're not a Disney Theme Park shareholder, you're just a Disney shareholder. So it's possible stuff like ABC, ESPN, etc. got hit and we don't even know. The timing of it is very suspect.

 

[Nick]

Eh.. but if the cuts are basically to look good to shareholders.. you're not a Disney Theme Park shareholder, you're just a Disney shareholder. So it's possible stuff like ABC, ESPN, etc. got hit and we don't even know. The timing of it is very suspect.

When reporting the numbers, they report pretty specific division reports and Wall Street keeps a sharp eye on it to judge the stock price.

And they are cutting an entire division. What does that tell you? To me, it means the division wasn't profitiable enough to warrant continued investment. If the division was profitable, there's no way this would happen. Disney Interactive is only related to P&R when everything cam together to report the quarterly earnings for the entire company. I just don't see how this could possibly have anything to do with Shanghai based on what i'm seeing.

 

[UNIrd]

Shanghai is the ONLY aspect of The Walt Disney Company they've been pumping billions into lately. If they're tightening the purse strings around the company, it's likely more than just cutting an hour from the park schedule and charging 50 cents more for Cokes.

 

[Nick]

Shanghai is the ONLY aspect of The Walt Disney Company they've been pumping billions into lately. If they're tightening the purse strings around the company, it's likely more than just cutting an hour from the park schedule and charging 50 cents more for Cokes.

I understand, but the point is, Disney Interactive was an entire division. You don't cut a division unless it isn't worth your time.

Personally, it should've been cut years ago imo. Disney and video games simply don't mix.

 

[UNIrd]

I understand, but the point is, Disney Interactive was an entire division. You don't cut a division unless it isn't worth your time.

Agreed. This may have been on the chopping block before but I'm just saying that due to the timing of it, Shanghai COULD have had a bigger role than we know. Plus, I thought Disney Infinity and the Star Wars games were doing alright so I can't imagine their results were that terrible.

 

[Nick]

Agreed. This may have been on the chopping block before but I'm just saying that due to the timing of it, Shanghai COULD have had a bigger role than we know. Plus, I thought Disney Infinity and the Star Wars games were doing alright so I can't imagine their results were that terrible.

Just to clear it up: Disney is getting out of the PUBLISHING business for video games. They said they will license out the rights for future games (Star Wars is under contract for EA and Kingdom Hearts is with Square Enix). EA just announced a SW Battlefront sequel the other day, actually.

 

[Disneyhead]

Spirit was saying that the biggest culprit in the cuts is that MM+ is now between $3-4B. So about $3B over budget with no prospects of recouping the investment.

While Shanghai has been a money pit. They should at least start making some of that money back soon. Not so much with MM+.

 

[Nick]

Spirit was saying that the biggest culprit in the cuts is that MM+ is now between $3-4B. So about $3B over budget with no prospects of recouping the investment.

While Shanghai has been a money pit. They should at least start making some of that money back soon. Not so much with MM+.

I'm very skeptical of that sudden assertion for multiple reasons.

- Spirit had been pouring it on that the one and only problem was Shanghai, continuously stating how poor of shape it was in (for close to a year). Then the park trial ran this week and we found out it's actually a perfectly fine park.

- The bulk of MM+ spending was done 2-3 years ago now. Sure, they're spending unnecessary money on StoryMaker, but I digress.

I just think he's trying to throw another thing out there for everyone to hate on and use as the reason for the cuts as it has been proven that they pulled off SDL. Tbh, I don't care what the reason for the cuts is. It just needs to stop.

 

[IzzyB]

I'm very skeptical of that sudden assertion for multiple reasons.

- Spirit had been pouring it on that the one and only problem was Shanghai, continuously stating how poor of shape it was in (for close to a year). Then the park trial ran this week and we found out it's actually a perfectly fine park.

- The bulk of MM+ spending was done 2-3 years ago now. Sure, they're spending unnecessary money on StoryMaker, but I digress.

I just think he's trying to throw another thing out there for everyone to hate on and use as the reason for the cuts as it has been proven that they pulled off SDL. Tbh, I don't care what the reason for the cuts is. It just needs to stop.

I agree, how does a billion or more get added to a project several years after it is pretty much done. Storymaker would be a different line item and the minor changes they are doing even in Disney terms don't cost billions of dollars. I don't buy it either.

I also don't think a video game division that was DECLINING and probably not profitable closing would have anything to do with anything else. They saw that it was not coming back and the trend is that it is declining because it can't compete with the other people do the same stuff. They should have gotten out of video games a long time ago. This model works much better and while it was popular, it popularity was declining pretty quickly due to competition. They probably saw the writing on the wall and got out now.

 

[Jon84]

I agree, how does a billion or more get added to a project several years after it is pretty much done. Storymaker would be a different line item and the minor changes they are doing even in Disney terms don't cost billions of dollars. I don't buy it either.

I also don't think a video game division that was DECLINING and probably not profitable closing would have anything to do with anything else. They saw that it was not coming back and the trend is that it is declining because it can't compete with the other people do the same stuff. They should have gotten out of video games a long time ago. This model works much better and while it was popular, it popularity was declining pretty quickly due to competition. They probably saw the writing on the wall and got out now.

Agreed! We have over running and over spending projects, but the decline in the fuel prices are the reason for closing some of the business, not the over spending projects in other business streams!

 

[GadgetGuru]

I don't think there's anything too suspicious with the Disney Infinity write-off. If you look on the DCP side, Disney tries to license out as much of its merch as possible. Disney Infinity turned Disney Interactive into a toy manufacturer. They didn't sell as many over Christmas as they wanted and now they have too much inventory. That's money they were relying on that is now actually costing them.

A licensing model means that they don't have to handle inventory any more. Plus, they get access to talent they wouldn't typically get access to.

 

[deathcab4cutie]

you know i keep seeing pov videos and i cant figure out how Disney spent so much on shdl.They actually have attractions that are walk-through gardens.Also the crystal fountain ride is all still figures.But somehow they spent more money on this then anything else in recent history.Pirates is amazing though.

 

[deathcab4cutie]

welcome to china disney

 

[Parkscope Joe]

Hearing a huge new round of layoffs are coming soon to the parks and resorts...

 

[Nick]

Hearing a huge new round of layoffs are coming soon to the parks and resorts...

Goodness, what else is new with this company. Hopefully it's at least high up management making some of these terrible decisions of late.