Originally Posted By dagobert >>>Too many times people try to turn FECs into mega-mini theme parks. Thus making them too expensive for the market<<< I don't know how much a ticket usually costs for such a FEC, but I can imagine it isn't cheap.
Originally Posted By leemac DQ runs at $47 now - but it has the luxury of hundreds of guests on multi-day tickets that include DQ. Every FEC/REC I've seen has had pricing along lines of regional theme parks - not cheap.
Originally Posted By dagobert $47 is about 30 Euros and DLP entry is about 60 Euros and I I get a real themepark. I just hope that Ferrari World stays open long enough to experience the world's fastest roller coaster.
Originally Posted By leemac Ferrari World was restructured so it isn't going anywhere - the government will continue to absorb the losses. The WB theme park will probably be built too. Worth checking out the Yas Waterworld theme park - it is probably the best in the world now (my personal favourite is AquaAdventure at Atlantis Dubai but Waterworld has some very unique experiences).
Originally Posted By gurgitoy2 "Same thing with ESPN: The Store, Mickey's Kitchen, The Walt Disney Gallery, ESPN Zone etc. All of them had potential but once they encountered hick-ups it was easier to bail than evolve the concept." This is one of my major bones of contention with TWDC...they do this ALL THE TIME, with everything. Rather than focus on what's wrong and trying to fix it to make it profitable, they just abandon it. The market is littered with the remains of what Disney has cast off. I don't know how many merchandise lines they've done this to as well. It gives you no faith that something will stick around for any length of time before it's shut down.
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>This is one of my major bones of contention with TWDC...they do this ALL THE TIME, with everything. Rather than focus on what's wrong and trying to fix it to make it profitable, they just abandon it. The market is littered with the remains of what Disney has cast off. I don't know how many merchandise lines they've done this to as well. It gives you no faith that something will stick around for any length of time before it's shut down. <<< If Disney would have abandonned the arcade and focused on the bar/restaurant concept, I'm sure it would have had potential, especially in tourist spots like Las Vegas.
Originally Posted By schnebs <<There is never any conviction when the Company decides to try new ventures that require actual assets. It is so strange to me that tens of millions of dollars (and in the case of DQ - hundreds of millions) can be dumped into developing and launching a concept and then they are effectively dropped like a hot potato when things need turnaround efforts.>> Okay, my dumb question of the day: What's Disney's record on ventures that don't require physical assets? It seems to me like they dumped The Disney Club like a hot potato after a year or two of not getting enough people to sign up, yet the company seems to be committed to D23 after four years, even though they've never met their membership targets (and don't try to convince me they've met their targets - they haven't gone a single year where they haven't offered discounts of some kind, and we all know Disney doesn't discount if they don't have to). I've always assumed that D23's still going because it has friends in high places.
Originally Posted By Manfried Most people who work on FECs don't get that they have to keep their costs down, and make it something that locals want to go to multiple times. So they make the mistake of scaling them up and up, leading to their failure.
Originally Posted By dagobert Disney & More has posted an article with many concept arts about the Marvel Indoor Park in Dubai. <a href="http://disneyandmore.blogspot.co.at/2013/03/the-marvel-indoor-theme-park-project.html" target="_blank">http://disneyandmore.blogspot....ect.html</a>
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt Well my goodness, what a hideous building. It may not BE a theme park, but the structure sure looks like something that should be IN one and not on a public thoroughfare. The citizens of Dubai are going to regret building that monstrosity in about 10 years after it has been abandoned and starts aging. This project exemplifies the challenge WDI faces with trying to make this franchise palatable for Disney theme park goers. I'm not saying it can't be done, but it certainly isn't going to be easy especially considering that the Imagineers haven't really had to be innovative or think creatively in decades.
Originally Posted By phruby I've never understood why anyone would want to build theme parks and expensive resorts in an extremely unstable and unfriendly towards the west region like the middle east. Aren't these things just huge targets for terrorists?
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>Not all countries in the Middle East are like that.<<< Especially Dubai and Abu Dhabi. In Europe the UAE became very popular to visit, especially during the cold Winter months.
Originally Posted By leemac The owner of that blog that taken 2 and 2 and got 5. That structure was for a planned and never built Marvel City indoor theme park for a venue further east than Dubai. It isn't yet clear what the external look will be - but it is still a big box adorned with MARVEL characters. The attraction selection is also markedly different to the previous failed venture.
Originally Posted By leemac <<I've always assumed that D23's still going because it has friends in high places.>> D23's budget comes out of Zenia Mucha's budget - it is a communications and marketing product rather than something run by Consumer Products (who have previously been responsible for that type of project). She has a lot of influence in the company and therefore is allowed to continue to pump cash into that failing venture. It actually has the lowest number of members in its history right now -despite the near constant discounting.
Originally Posted By leemac <<What's Disney's record on ventures that don't require physical assets?>> That is a good point - for a company obsessed with creating intellectual property once the founder of the venture leaves it seems to wither on the stem.
Originally Posted By leemac <<I've never understood why anyone would want to build theme parks and expensive resorts in an extremely unstable and unfriendly towards the west region like the middle east. Aren't these things just huge targets for terrorists?>> I don't think UAE is any more of a target than the west. I've spent a lot of time in the region over the past ten years and it has always been a safe place to visit. Tourism is very important to UAE and they will continue to protect that business.
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA It's projects like the Marvel indoor recreation center that isn't a theme park that to me, dilute the Marvel brand. If Disney has no control over it and it's just a licensing thing -- it just seems....weird. True, OLC has Tokyo Disneyland and Disney Sea, but that's has some very specific contract stuff in the deal points.
Originally Posted By leemac <<It's projects like the Marvel indoor recreation center that isn't a theme park that to me, dilute the Marvel brand.>> There isn't evidence to suggest that is the case. Merlin Entertainment have certain MARVEL rights that have been used at some of their sites (like Madame Tassauds in London). I think the perception is that it is a win/win - increases awareness of the product and generates royalties. MARVEL signed a host of deals during the bubble earlier this decade - they got fat commitment fees from developers everywhere that never materialised into physical assets and therefore royalties. The problem is that those rights are held in perpetuity if they are executed (like IoA - and rightly so considering the upfront investment in the attraction by Uni) or have long lock-in clauses to get the development underway (most I've seen have a 5-10 year window of exclusivity before the rights in the region lapse).
