How will Disney Respond to Universal's Harry Potter Addition? [Merged Threads]

[MickeyandTink]

1) I am a HUGE Potter fan. I love it as much as I love WDW, but to be honest the new Potter Land will take me away from Disney for one day just so I can see the new Land. A day and a half at the most. I will still devote most of my time to the world.

I'm already looking forward to my next trip to Orlando to check out the US Harry Potter land. However, I expect it will be a one or two day sidelight to a weeklong Disney trip. It really just gives our family another reason to go to Orlando and Disney sooner than we otherwise might.

[JRock0114]

For those of you who think that Disney is untouchable.......you are wrong. The only reason great attractions like Rock n' Rollercoaster, TOT, and Mission Space exist right now is because of Universal.

When Universal came to town they knew that Disney had the young children and little girls locked up. So they went after teens, young adults, and males. This was very smart because they did punch Disney right in the mouth and pull dollars out of their pockets. Islands of Adventure just has an edge to it by design......and that is a good thing. Not everyone goes on vacation to become a princess or ride a slow attraction about a fairy tale that is 40 years old. Spider-Man, Jurassic Park, Men in Black, the Hulk, Shrek, and Dragons just has a different side to it and in most cases brings a different crowd. The big thing that people are leaving out is that not only are you selling gate but you are selling product. Most 12 year boys want nothing to do with a Mickey Mouse t-shirt......but a Spider-man shirt is a different story.

Harry Potter falls right in line with this.

I am a huge fan of both WDW and US/IOA. For the past few years I have been all over IOA for not adding a new attraction....now I can see what they were waiting on. This is huge. I'm not a big Harry Potter fan or anything but it does get me excited and I will for sure be there to see it.

Universal will never take over the #1 spot from Disney.......they know that. But for you folks who think that Disney is not worried about this, you are mistaken. About 10 years ago they were not worried about not having any Thrill rides until it was too late. They then had to go and add rides to bring that crowd back. So I don't see them making that mistake again.

I say......Everyone needs to keep building and adding on........Disney, Universal, Sea World .......everyone. It only pushes everyone else when the game is stepped up.

[WDWFreek]

I say......Everyone needs to keep building and adding on........Disney, Universal, Sea World .......everyone. It only pushes everyone else when the game is stepped up.

Here here! couldn't agre more!

[Tekneek]

I'm not really keen on turning Adventureland into an all-POTC area. The restaurant and "Raging Spirits" redo sound fine, but that's really overdoing too much of a good thing.

Disney seems to be all about riding a good thing right into the ground these days. Either management is hesitant to approve anything that doesn't appear to be riding a trend, or WDI is too busy chasing its own tail. I like some of the new concepts they've come up with, but does every new attraction have to include the new technology and be a Pixar tie-in? I can't shake the "feeling" that everything new in the parks is either about Pirates or Pixar. With the history Disney has in its vaults, and the technological innovations they can develop, it is disturbing to have the impression that they are making use of so little of it.

[Spaceship Tigger]

But for you folks who think that Disney is not worried about this, you are mistaken.

Disney has said they are not worried and in this case I believe them. The Harry Potter land will bring more people to Orlando to see it at IOA - for a day or two. Disney knows that the majority of people that come to Orlando on vacation visit WDW at least part of their trip. So bringing more people to Universal will also bring more people to WDW.

[big blue and hairy]

Well, first off, Disney would never publicly admit to being worried about anything Universal is doing. Secondly when they say they are not worried, it could be true, not because they don't think "Harry Potter Land" will be good, but because they already have plans in place to counter it, which they have not yet shared with us.

[Ms.Disney]

Sure IOA is getting Potter land but I am pretty sure that MGM will end up Disney Studios and Mickey Ave will end up Pixar Blvd. Nothing US will ever do to update there parks will compete with Disney. While there are a few rides I enjoy at US and IOA I will NEVER pay to get in to there parks, they are dirty, the bathrooms stink, the food is nasty and the staff is clueless and rude. Now with that said I am sure people will make the trip to check out Potter land but I really dont think it will keep them coming back for more. US has a rep. for not keeping up there rides.

[xipetotec]

I say......Everyone needs to keep building and adding on........Disney, Universal, Sea World .......everyone. It only pushes everyone else when the game is stepped up.

I agree, competition leads to the healthy economy down there and constant improvement. *BUT* I sure hope Disney doesn't do a knee-jerk reaction and just throws in a bunch of non-thought-out enhancements and attractions that won't have any staying power or will be cheaply put together ( Like the Chester and Hester area at AK ).

*I* think they should bank on their ties with lucas and Star Wars. ith the 30 year staying power of Star wars so far, i think expanding an area of the park to be even more Star Warsy could be a great counter to IOA's Harry potter section. fight fanboys with fanboys.

[WDWFreek]

US has a rep. for not keeping up there rides.

I was thinking this when I read about the Potter Land in IOA. I couldn't help but think to myself, "Rowling really should have visited the place before agreeing to the licensing deal."

Disney seems to be all about riding a good thing right into the ground these days.

Yes they are. Everytime they have a hit (examples: Pirates and High School Musical), they shoov it down our throats until we are sick of it. Thats why I am not keen on the Piratesization of Adventureland.

[Raye3201]

When there were rumors about Disney buying the Potter rights, there was a lot of excitement in our house since we are huge Disney fans and Potter fans. Although Disney wouldn't admit to having anything to fear, I am sure they are watching and planning...they didn't become this successful by not being proactive.
That being said, although I never had a desire to visit Universal, I will definitely check out the new Potter land or whatever its new name is! I find it hard to believe that Disney let this one slip through their fingers. I think that Rowling and Disney erred on this one since Rowling should have chosen the number one company for her beloved Potter and Disney should have been a little more flexible. Think of how great it would have been to have Potter at DisneyWorld....whatever universal does, Disney could have produced it in spades.

[disney1026]

I just wanted to respond to the following posting:

"Frankly, I think that Harry will have an initial high volume but its pretty hard to see how you can re-create the books atmosphere in Florida. Its not like people can ride broomsticks and actually play Quidditch."

I am very surprised that a Disney fan would say something like this. Isn't that what the Disney parks are all about - re-creating the magic from the Disney movies.

Harry Potter is HUGE! I don't think it will keep people from Disney, but I think it will cut down on the time they spend there. For example, a family that usually spends 5-6 days at Disney may now only spend 3-4 days at Disney and 1-2 days at Universal because of the Harry Potter attractions. So I believe Disney will lose money in this manner - people will spend less time there so they can also see Universal. I hate to say it, but in 2009 that will be the case for me. I don't have unlimited vacation time and you can bet that I will be seeing the Harry Potter attractions at Universal.

[DREAMADREAM93]

One word....PIRATES!!!


Expand on the pirates line! As popular as Harry Potter is, the box office numbers do not touch POTC!

Talk about a way to respond! I mean, they already own one of the most successful film franchises of all time! They wouldn't have to spend a dime to acquire any rights

Update Adventureland! Give us an interactive Black Pearl to climb on. Install one of the better Indiana Jones attractions! Make Adventureland adventureous again without sacrifce.


Wow...who would have guessed....they don't need ideas from other outside visionaries...Walt knew all along....

I agree! With everything!
Add to the parks you already have first... THEN add another park. They REALLY need to explode with the POTC line! IT IS IN HIGH DEMAND EVERYWHERE!

Give me more Jack Sparrow and Jack the Monkey everytime i go to WDW and the world will be a better place!
Deffinatly a justifiable reason to return!

BUT, in the event they DO add a park in the future im all for a Disney Villains park.
There is a TON of stuff they could do with that. I would want it more geared towards thrill rides though.

JOrdan :]

[disney1026]

A response to:

Expand on the pirates line! As popular as Harry Potter is, the box office numbers do not touch POTC!



Actually, the numbers are a lot different than what you think. Internationally, POTC: Dead Man's Chest ranks #3 in box office totals and POTC: Curse of the Black Pearl ranks #30. POTC: At World's End remains to be seen.

However, the Harry Potter movies hold the 4th, 9th, 10th, and 19th positions.

So you can see, the Harry Potter movies have banked a lot of money! I myself know many people who aren't that interested in Disney (can you believe it?) but LOVE Harry Potter and say they will go to Universal when it opens.

[WDWFreek]

[QUOTE=disney1026;1320715}
I myself know many people who aren't that interested in Disney (can you believe it?) but LOVE Harry Potter and say they will go to Universal when it opens.[/QUOTE]

Same here. I LOVE Disney and Harry Potter both equally. But many of my friends see Disney as too kiddyish...witch is not true at all.

[mttafire]

AK (the Disney park with the lowest attendence) had 8.91 million visitors in 2006 while IOA had 5.30 million. Disney has absolutely nothing to worry about. If anything, the Harry Potter addition might stop the dropping attendence that IOA has had over the past couple of years. And just because the books are popular does not necessarily translate into a successful area of a theme park.

Agreed 100% Disney not only has NOTHING to worry about, Its attendence keeps going UP. IMHO, DisneyWorld is a good as ever!!

[WDWFreek]

Agreed 100% Disney not only has NOTHING to worry about, Its attendence keeps going UP. IMHO, DisneyWorld is a good as ever!!

I wouldn't say WDW has nothing to worry about, but not much...yet.

I am also a member of a Potter fan sight, and what I have read there is that many hardcore Potter fans (me being one of them.) think that making Potter a theme park attraction is cheapening the intregrity of the novels.

[xipetotec]

I wouldn't say WDW has nothing to worry about, but not much...yet.

I am also a member of a Potter fan sight, and what I have read there is that many hardcore Potter fans (me being one of them.) think that making Potter a theme park attraction is cheapening the intregrity of the novels.

Maybe, maybe not... but does that mean you won't go?

[DisneyFanaticDargon]

I'm not going to lie and say I wasn't excited when I heard the news. I'm a huge Harry Potter fan and didn't really care who got it, I just wanted to see this theme park thing become a reality. IOA is a fun park, but they really needed something new, they're almost 10 years old and haven't added a big new attraction or section since the park opened, just a few kids rides. And having worked at Disney I've really noticed that these parks don't really compete. They all build new things because MOST (not all) people come down to Florida to visit one, then end up going to the rest. So they're more or less appearing to compete with each other to bring more business down to Florida and inevitably they all get business from the same people, the ones that came down for one park, but ended up seeing it all.

[WDWFreek]

Maybe, maybe not... but does that mean you won't go?

No, I'll be there, because if it opens when it says going to I'll be there doing Disney College Program. But I'm almost possitive I'll be disapointed. The attraction is gonna be based on the films. The films are good, but don't come close to greatness of the books.

I'm not going to lie and say I wasn't excited when I heard the news. I'm a huge Harry Potter fan and didn't really care who got it, I just wanted to see this theme park thing become a reality. IOA is a fun park, but they really needed something new, they're almost 10 years old and haven't added a big new attraction or section since the park opened, just a few kids rides. And having worked at Disney I've really noticed that these parks don't really compete. They all build new things because MOST (not all) people come down to Florida to visit one, then end up going to the rest. So they're more or less appearing to compete with each other to bring more business down to Florida and inevitably they all get business from the same people, the ones that came down for one park, but ended up seeing it all.

You have a good point. Whenever I go to Orlando to go to Disney World, we almost alway go to Universal or SeaWorld for a day.

Though it seems like they are fearce compeditors, in a way they are all working together to bring people to Orlando and away from other vacation destinations like Las Vegas, NY and LA.

[r4kids]

We will being doing the same as a previous poster. Skipping 2008 at Disney in favor of a Disney/Universal vacation 2009. DS 9 is SOOOO tired of princesses. There is very little to do for boys between 8-15 to do at Disney. They have outgrown Tigger, Pooh and the gang. I think the Harry Potter in US is a fantastic idea. It will certianly draw us there in 2009 and were once a year Disney travelers. I am begging Disney to do more for older boys!!!! POTC dining on the Black Pearl with Barbosa and Sparrow, new rides tha would take you under the sea with the Black Pearl, etc.