DisneySea pays off for the OLC

[wdwguide]

http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/011113/t114495_2.html

 

[YoHo]

SO, do you think Mike Read that?

Imagine that Spend an obscene amount of money AND turn a profit.

Hmmmm.

 

[*Robin*]

I don't know how it couldn't, they love Disney over there, and the place looks amazing...I'd spend money there if I could get there!

Good for them!

 

[JimB.]

Not too mention the fact that there are an EXTREMELY large amoount of people within a relatively short distance of the complex, and there is a lot of rail infrastructure to get them there.

 

[Another Voice]

There are rumors floating around that the Oriental Land Company has told Disney the entire Tokyo expansion (DisneySea, hotels and entertainment complex) will be completely paid off within five years. It’s funny because this summer Eisner and others were telling everyone in within earshot that the Japanese were “idiots” to spend $3 billion.

Sure looks like a much better investment than the $0.8 billion Eisner spent in Anaheim that’s lost money every single day since the park opened.

 

[larry_poppins]

If Universal builds a Harry Potter dark ride. I will be the first in line. I love Harry Potter and I love innovative dark rides. I will use my DVC purchase as a dormitory for days spent at Universal.

Larry

 

[hopemax]

Forget rumors,

Toshio Kagami, president of Oriental Land, told reporters at the Sept. 4 opening, "In two years, we should be in the black on a yearly basis, and in five or six years, we should be able to recoup our investment."

That's a quote from an article that someone posted about two weeks ago.

http://www.unitedstates.com/news/farticle/623670?20011030154018TOKYO

 

[Peter Pirate]

I think JimB's comments are very relevent. Also, how "smart" would it have been for Disney to be in the midst of a 3 billion dollar investment here in the US right now? Perhaps it would have worked out, but regardless, the last couple of months would have been devestating.

Further, despite AV's understandable contempt for Eisner, the fact is Disney will make a nice profit from TDS success - "free" money in perpituity.

Larry, your contempt is less clear to me. US got "Potter" because they were there first - it wasn't "shopped" as I understand it & Eisner was quite upset over not getting it. But, in Larworth's post he underscored Marty Sklaar's optimism, ne glee, with regard to future WDW attractions...Will these not appease you?

Lastly, with the Taliban falling the market jumped, if we can "get" bin ladin, another big step will be made. The AA crash appears to have been malfunction not terrorism. If the ducks keep lining up, things will be leveling out - although we still have a lot of people out of work. My point is Disney will HAVE TO look past Monsters, Inc. to up the ante a bit. I think Space, Phiarmagic & the new JIYI will be a big step & at AK, any nod toward BK would be huge...

 

[Another Voice]

I think one can make a very rational case that dropping $3 billon to expand the Disneyland Resort makes much more sense than dropping $5 billion to purchase a failing cable channel without any tangible assets. And even if a park on the scale of DisneySea may have been too large given the present circumstances, a park scaled down to the size of California Adventure has turned out to be nothing but disastrous for The Company. Worse, in the long run the cost of California Adventure with required rushed constructions, band-aide fixes, operating losses and capital improvements will mean that DCA will actually be a more expensive park than DisneySea. Short-term thinking has a price.

Disney does get a nice 5%-7% royalty from the Oriental Land Company – and Eisner hates every letter in that contract. So much so that he tried to hold DisneySea hostage for an equity stake (another failed gambit). The Company’s “free money” now comes in Yen and that’s not a really good currency right now, and much worse than it was twenty years ago when the deal really did produce “free money”. These days the Company losses a couple of percentage points just to get the money out of Japan. Disney did get the prestige of designing an amazing theme park, and then promptly fired those people who built it. With all those experienced designers looking for work, the future of Landmark and Universal has never looked so bright.

For the theme parks, the Company does not “HAVE TO” do anything. There are a lot of things it “should do”, “ought to do”, “would be nice to do”, and “would be smart to do” – “have to” simply escapes the current management. The theme for the last five years has been short-term thinking. There’s been no plan, no thought, and no concern for consequences. Just whatever makes the most money in the next quarter. History will show that last spring was the breaking point for the parks, the point when all the problems that had been pushed aside finally began to impact the parks. The problems will not be solved by a roller coaster in Animal Kingdom, yet another 3-D movie and sticking plush Figments alongside a track. The Company needs to understand how and why the parks work (and that they’re not shopping malls with an entrance fee), and they must make a conscious effort to improve them rather than simply maintain them.

There's hope the company will come around, but one would have hoped these leasons didn't have to be learned every couple of years.


P.S. As for the “boys will be home by Christmas and everything will be back to normal”, I suggest reading ‘The Guns of August’ or another good history of either World War I or the Vietnam War. The only thing that scares me more than a long war is a short one. The problem is either dealt with now or we face two decades of terror.

 

[larry_poppins]

Hi Peter,

I, personally, take Sklar's comments with a grain of salt. I am glad he is excited, but he was also excited about DCA. Part of his job is to be excited about Disney product. I have no contempt for Sklar; I just think he is biased.

Am I excited about Mission Space, Philarmagic, Figments Journey into Imagination? Yes and no. Mission Space and Philarmagic are both film based attractions. Mission SPace maybe an elaborate film based simulator attraction and may have a lot of novelty. I hope so. I hope it knocks my socks off. The long wait for Test Track, and the lackluster experience it provided, when opened, (my opinion) leaves me to doubt that Mission Space will be a favorite of mine.
I was also underwhelmed from experiencing Disneyland's New Tomorrowland '98, DCA, JIYI. I completely do not understand why Disney spent money on the Wide WOrld of SPorts and the Disney Institute (why are they in the junior college business?). I don't have contempt for Eisner I just don't trust current management to understand their consumer base and why they fly thousands of miles and spend thousands of dollars to vacation with the mouse.

As a DVC member I am sure to eventually see all of the above mentioned attractions. My anticipation for my future Orlando vacations lies with Central Florida as a whole and not Disney as a resort destination. This is a big change from my blind allegiance to WDW in the past. I enjoy film attractions. I enjoy parades. But I get excited about innovative themed rides. I want fantastic themed experiences to emerse in. That is why I am a fan of Universal's SPiderman, Seuss
Landing ( or whatever it is called!) and Islands of Adventure in general. Is Islands a perfect theme park? No. But they sure tried hard to be! (My opinion) Universal Studios also tries hard. I still have not ridden Men in Black but I am looking forward to it. Harry Potter would continue in Universal's tradition of exceptional themed attractions (my opinion)

I also want to visit Busch Gardens again now that they have opened Rhino Rally.

Am I still a Disney fan? Yes. Will I still visit WDW? Yes. Even without DVC I would still come back. But I am finding a lot of entertainment magic in venues I used to skip because of loyalty to the mouse. And my vacation dollars are being spent there as well.

Also hoping to get to Tokyo Disney Sea in 2004 or 2005.
God willing.

Larry Poppins