[telecom] At Disney Parks, a Bracelet Meant to Build Loyalty (and Sales)

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At Disney Parks, a Bracelet Meant to Build Loyalty (and Sales)

By BROOKS BARNES January 7, 2013

ORLANDO, Fla. - Imagine Walt Disney World with no entry turnstiles. Cash? Passé: Visitors would wear rubber bracelets encoded with credit card information, snapping up corn dogs and Mickey Mouse ears with a tap of the wrist. Smartphone alerts would signal when it is time to ride Space Mountain without standing in line.

Fantasyland? Hardly. It happens starting this spring.

Disney in the coming months plans to begin introducing a vacation management system called MyMagic+ that will drastically change the way Disney World visitors - some 30 million people a year - do just about everything.

The initiative is part of a broader effort, estimated by analysts to cost between $800 million and $1 billion to make visiting Disney parks less daunting and more amenable to modern consumer behavior. Disney is betting that happier guests will spend more money.

"If we can enhance the experience, more people will spend more of their leisure time with us," said Thomas O. Staggs, chairman of Disney Parks and Resorts.

The ambitious plan moves Disney deeper into the hotly debated terrain of personal data collection. Like most major companies, Disney wants to have as much information about its customers' preferences as it can get, so it can appeal to them more efficiently. The company already collects data to use in future sales campaigns, but parts of MyMagic+ will allow Disney for the first time to track guest behavior in minute detail.

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It has started: the "plus" sign at the end of a commercial name is going to take the place of the "i" in front of ievery iApple iProduct iName. I wonder if Google+ gets a GoogleCut+.

As we surrender our lives to corporate control+, I'm glad that everything has been planned by professionals in advance. I have a better idea: just leave your wallet in your "MyMagic+" room and let the maid handle all your money for you. It won't hurt a bit+.

Bill Horne Moderator