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Case Study Disney in France for Cross Culture Management
Until 1992, the Walt Disney Company had experienced nothing but success in the theme park business. Its first park, Disneyland, opened in Anaheim, California, in 1955. Its theme song, It’s a Small World After All, promoted an idealized vision of America spiced with reassuring glimpses of exotic cultures all calculated to promote heartwarming feelings about living together as one happy family. There were dark tunnels and bumpy rides to scare the children a little but none of the terrors of the real world. The Disney characters that everyone knew from the cartoons and comic books were on hand to shepherd the guests and to direct them to the Mickey Mouse watches and Little Mermaid records. The Anaheim park was an instant success.
In the 1970s, the triumph was repeated in Florida, and in 1983, Disney proved the Japanese also have an affinity for Mickey Mouse with the successful opening of Tokyo Disneyland. Having wooed the Japanese, Disney executives in 1986 turned their attention to France and, more specifically, to Paris, the self-proclaimed capital of European high culture and style. “Why did they pick France?” many asked. When word first got out that Disney wanted to build another international theme park, officials from more than 200 locations all over the world descended on Disney with pleas and cash inducements to work the Disney magic in their hometowns. But Paris was chosen because of demographics and subsidies. About 17 million Europeans live less than a two-hour drive from Paris. Another 310 million can fly there in the same time or less. Also, the French government was so eager to attract Disney that it offered the company more than $1 billion in various incentives, all in the expectation that the project would create 30,000 French jobs.
From the beginning, cultural gaffes by Disney set the tone for the project. By late 1986, Disney was deep in negotiations with the French government. To the exasperation of the Disney team, headed by Joe Shapiro, the talks were taking far longer than expected. Jean-Rene Bernard, the chief French negotiator, said he was astonished when Mr. Shapiro, his patience depleted, ran to the door of the room and, in a very un-Gallic gesture, began kicking it repeatedly, shouting, “Get me something to break!”
There was also snipping from Parisian intellectuals who attacked the transplantation of Disney’s dream world as an assault on French culture; “a cultural Chernobyl,” one prominent intellectual called it. The minister of culture announced he would boycott the opening, proclaiming it to be an unwelcome symbol of American clichés and a consumer society. Unperturbed, Disney pushed ahead with the planned summer 1992 opening of the $5 billion park. Shortly after Euro-Disneyland opened, French farmers drove their tractors to the entrance and blocked it. This globally televised act of protest was aimed not at Disney but at the US government, which had been demanding that French agricultural subsidies be cut. Still, it focused world attention upon the loveless marriage of Disney and Paris.
Then there were the operational errors. Disney’s policy of serving no alcohol in the park, since reversed caused astonishment in a country where a glass of wine for lunch is a given. Disney thought that Monday would be a light day for visitors and Friday a heavy one and allocated staff accordingly, but the reality was the reverse. Another unpleasant surprise was the hotel breakfast debacle. “We were told that Europeans ‘don’t take breakfast,’ so we downsized the restaurants,” recalled one Disney executive. “And guess what? Everybody showed up for breakfast. We were trying to serve 2,500 breakfasts in a 350-seat restaurant at some of the hotels. The lines were horrendous. Moreover, they didn’t want the typical French breakfast of croissants and coffee, which was our assumption. They wanted bacon and eggs.” Lunch turned out to be another problem. “Everybody wanted lunch at 12:30. The crowds were huge. Our smiling cast members had to calm down surly patrons and engage in some ‘behavior modification’ to teach them that they could eat lunch at 11:00 AM or 2:00 PM.”
There were major staffing problems too. Disney tried to use the same teamwork model with its staff that had worked so well in America and Japan, but it ran into trouble in France. In the first nine weeks of Euro-Disneyland’s operation, roughly 1,000 employees, 10 percent of the total, left. One former employee was a 22-year-old medical student from a nearby town who signed up for a weekend job. After two days of “brainwashing,” as he called Disney’s training, he left following a dispute with his supervisor over the timing of his lunch hour. Another former employee noted, “I don’t think that they realize what Europeans are like… that we ask questions and don’t think all the same way.”
One of the biggest problems, however, was that Europeans didn’t stay at the park as long as Disney expected. While Disney succeeded in getting close to 9 million visitors a year through the park gates, in line with its plans, most stayed only a day or two. Few stayed the four to five days that Disney had hoped for. It seems that most Europeans regard theme parks as places for day excursions. A theme park is just not seen as a destination for an extended vacation. This was a big shock for Disney. The company had invested billions in building luxury hotels next to the park-hotels that the day-trippers didn’t need and that stood half empty most of the time. To make matters worse, the French didn’t show up in the expected numbers. In 1994, only 40 percent of the park’s visitors were French. One puzzled executive noted that many visitors were Americans living in Europe or, stranger still, Japanese on a European vacation! As a result, by the end of 1994 Euro-Disneyland had cumulative losses of $2 billion.
At this point, Euro-Disney changed its strategy. First, the company changed the name to Disneyland Paris in an attempt to strengthen the park’s identity. Second, food and fashion offerings changed. To quote one manager, “We opened with restaurants providing Frenchstyle food service, but we found that customers wanted self-service like in the US parks. Similarly, products in the boutiques were initially toned down for the French market, but since then the range has changed to give it a more definite Disney image.” Third, the prices for day tickets and hotel rooms were cut by one-third. The result was an attendance of 11.7 million in 1996, up from a low of 8.8 million in 1994.
Many mistakes have been made in the realization of the Euro Disney entertainment park in France. They literally transplanted US culture in France without taking into consideration the cultural clash that this might have caused. US imposed their culture over the French one, and this was seen as an attack to French traditions and customs, resulting in protests from local residence and farmers.
First of all, there was a general misunderstanding of the French culture both under the lifestyle and legal aspects. The top management made wrong assumptions, which led them to take wrong management decisions. In fact, French habits and traditions were not taken in to account. For example, breakfast at the park was not served; instead in the French culture breakfast is one of the most important “moments” of the day. Moreover, alcoholic drinks were not allowed in the park: contrary French always have a glass of wine during their main meals. In addition, also the dress code requirements did not meet the French standards in work environments. And the fact that they were supposed to be always smiling and kind did not reflect the French attitude and the staff was not comfortable with these policies. Furthermore, the top management positions were al given to American, which made the situation even worse because they were incapable to fix the mistakes made from the very start. Instead, if they had hired French people to manage the park, they would have been able to assess these cultural differences in a more efficient way, avoiding such a cultural clash.
Second, it was given for granted that French entertainment culture was as the US one. Thus, staff and resources were allocated in the wrong way, because the peek days were not the same as the US Disney Land. This led to a lack of staff in crowded days and a surplus of staff in empty days affecting efficiency and profitability of the park negatively. Moreover, they assumes French would have gone to the park with their private transportation, thus they built many car parks which were most of the time empty, instead the parking were not big enough for buses, which was the more used transport used to get to the park.
Third, recession signs were not taken into consideration and too high expectations were placed in the profitability of this new Euro Disney. Thus, too high revenue expectations were set and the park did not even manage to sell the tickets available also due to the quite high price imposed. Moreover, the wrong allocation of staff and resources made the situation even worse and the park’s expenses almost were more than its revenues.
From this case study, many lessons can be learned. First of all, never give for granted that if one project is successful according to the parameters of one society and culture, this does not mean that if we export it else where this success will remain unchanged. Cultural factors are crucial for the success of any business and to disregard and to “attack” others traditions and customs can be destructive. Before opening a business already well established in another country, the company has to do a very deep and targeted market research in order to better understand both the culture and how that same business can adapt to the different kind of need clients in the country might have. Moreover, the success of an organization depends on how united the organization is especially the executive, and it is essential to resolve workplace issues, make employees happy with policies and have excellent communication tools. In conclusion, a company should make use of cultural differences to have a competitive advantage over other entertainment parks and make it unique, not only a copy of the already existing ones.
References:
http://www.depa.univ-paris8.fr/IMG/pdf/Disney_Case_Study.pdf
https://geert-hofstede.com/national-culture.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hofstede%27s_cultural_dimensions_theory
https://www2.gwu.edu/~umpleby/recent_papers/2003_cross_cultural_differences_managin_international_projects_anbari_khilkhanova_romanova_umpleby.htm
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Ease your MBA workload and get more time for yourself
Failed Americanism? A Case Study for Eurodisney Failure
- by Nageshwar Das
- January 17, 2019
- No comments
- 9 minute read
The article uses some aspects of the Hofstede’s cultural dimensions and Trompenaars’ research on organizational culture to compare the cultural difference between America and France , then find out three mistakes that the company made in managing its Euro Disney operation through the case study. Many of Businesses in America make detailed assumptions about the potential to expand their business to other countries and structural models of organizing which can be easily failed to consider the cultural differences. So, what are you going to discuss? – Failed Americanism? A Case Study for Eurodisney Failure.
Does the content explain how Failed Americanism? and analyze the Euro Disney failure case study.
One of the examples of the outcome to intercultural business is Disney Corporation’s European venture. Due to the lack of cultural information of France as well as Europe, further, on their inability to forecast problems, Disney acquired a huge debt. False assumptions led to a great loss of time, money and even reputation for the corporation itself.
Instead of analyzing and learning from its potential visitors, Disney chose to make assumptions about the preference of Europeans, which turned out that most of those assumptions were wrong. Also, study the Case Study on the Merger Between US Airways and American Airlines . Disney Company is one of the most successful operators of theme parks in the world, and their theme park in America and Japan achieved great success but the situation in Europe is not so good.
In the following sectors, the three lessons the company should have learned about how to deal with diversity based on its experience will be described. More rapid development in the trend of multinational companies, cross-cultural management has become a major part of the business. The purpose of this paper is to obtain some favorable factors for the future development of Euro Disney by the above analysis.
Three Mistakes by Euro Disney:
The following mistakes are below:
First Mistake:
In determining the target market did not take into account cultural differences Euro Disney’s choice of location focus on the aspects of financial and population, then the Eurodisney theme park located in populous central Europe. Disney executives did not see that Mickey Mouse and intellectuals in the region of the left bank of the Seine in Paris cannot live in harmony and France is serious about their intelligence.
In retrospect, Paris is not the best place to establish such a theme park, so the establishment of the Disney parks is a declaration of war to intellectuals of French. Disney’s manager stated publicly some of the criticism is “the nonsense of small number of Business” would not help them a favor. This may be well operated according to American culture, while the French pay more attention to their own cultural elite and regard this refute as an attack of national quality.
Second Mistake:
Having not adequately taken into account the habits of the French when arranging the service kinds Disney does not provide breakfast because they think that the Europeans do not eat breakfast. In addition, the Disney company does not provide alcoholic beverages within the park, but the French habits are different, they are used to drinking a cup while taking lunch, which aroused the anger of the French.
Disney executives did not estimate that the European are not interested in vacation in theme park so much, in the attitude of Disney Company the European will be happy about spending a few days in a theme park like the American and Japanese, but middle-class in Europe just want to “get away from everything around” and go to the coast or the mountains, and Euro Disney is the lack of such appeal.
Last Mistake:
No combination of French culture to the local staff management Disney has taken the global standard model as same as the Japanese business, they transplanted the American culture to France directly than doing this result with a serious clash of cultures.
The Disney Company use many measures that departed with the local culture, for example, in the Euro Disney, the France worker is requested to comply with the strict appearance code as the other theme parks in the United States and Japan do, the workers are asked to break their ancient cultural aversions to smiling and being consistently polite to the park guest even must mirror the multi-country makeup of its guest.
In addition, the Disney Company brought their U.S. Pop culture to France and fought hard for a greater “local cultural context”. The French people think that this is an attack on their native culture, so they adopted an unfriendly attitude toward to the arrival of the Disney, including the protest come from the intellectual and the local residents and farmers.
Three Lessons by Eurodisney:
The following lessons are below:
First Lessons:
Multinational companies should target market accurately even in the same country or regional market, the traditional culture makes different control power to different people. Multinational companies should be fully based on detailed market research to find the weak links in the market and make a breakthrough, use the “point to an area” model to expand.
For example , McDonald’s opened in the Chinese market, its target is no longer work for the busy working-class, but the children. The golden arches mark, the joyful atmosphere of the shop, the furnished toys, full of playful ads, as well as various promotional activities specifically carry out for children, these have a tremendous appeal to the target customers.
McDonald thinks that adult eating habits difficult to change, only those children whose taste not yet formed are the potential customers of Western fast-food culture, the McDonald received Broad market recognition and have huge market potential.
Second Lessons:
Multinational enterprises should pay full attention to the importance of the influence of cultural differences on marketing face to the new multiple culture environment, the multinational enterprise should take an objective to acknowledge about the cultural differences of the consumer demand and behavior and respect it, abandoning the prejudice and discrimination of culture completely.
Moreover, multinational enterprises should be good at finding out and using the base point of communication and collaboration of different cultures and regard this base point as the important consideration factor when the plan to enter the target country market.
After all, the fundamental criterion for a successful business enterprise is whether it can integrate into the local social and cultural environment. The multinational enterprises should improve the sensitivity and adaptability to the different cultural environment.
Last Lessons:
Multinational enterprises should make full use of the competitive advantages of cultural differences and promote international marketing. The objective of international cultural differences can also be the basic demand points of different competitive strategy.
In the international market, launching culture marketing activities and highlighting the exotic culture and cultural differences in the target market can open the market quickly. Companies should strive to build cross-cultural “two-way” communication channels, it is necessary to adapt to the host’s cultural environment and values and carry out the business strategy of localization to make it can be widely accepted by the host country local government, local partners, consumers, and other relevant stakeholders.
Effective cross-cultural communication, on the one hand, contributes to cultural integration but also can create a harmonious internal and external human environment for corporate management.
Euro Disney Calamity:
The following Calamity is below:
Until 1992,
The Walt Disney Company had experienced nothing but success in the theme park business. Its first park, Disneyland, opened in Anaheim, California, in 1955. Its theme song, “It’s a Small World After All,” promoted an idealized vision of America spiced with reassuring glimpses of exotic cultures all calculated to promote heartwarming feelings about living together as one happy family.
There were dark tunnels and bumpy rides to scare the children a little but none of the terrors of the real world . . . The Disney characters that everyone knew from the cartoons and comic books were on hand to shepherd the guests and to direct them to the Mickey Mouse watches and Little Mermaid records. The Anaheim park was an instant success.
In the 1970s,
The triumph was repeated in Florida, and in 1983, Disney proved the Japanese also have an affinity for Mickey Mouse with the successful opening of Tokyo Disneyland. Having wooed the Japanese, Disney executives in 1986 turned their attention to France and, more specifically, to Paris, the self-proclaimed capital of European high culture and style. “Why did they pick France?” many asked.
When word first got out that Disney wanted to build another international theme park, officials from more than 200 locations all over the world descended on Disney with pleas and cash inducements to work the Disney magic in their hometowns. But Paris was chosen because of demographics and subsidies. About 17 million Europeans live less than a two-hour drive from Paris. Another 310 million can fly there at the same time or less.
Also, the French government was so eager to attract Disney that it offered the company more than $1 billion in various incentives, all in the expectation that the project would create 30,000 French jobs. From the beginning, cultural gaffes by Disney set the tone for the project. By late 1986, Disney was deep in negotiations with the French government.
Disney team:
To the exasperation of the Disney team, headed by Joe Shapiro, the talks were taking far longer than expected. Jean-Rene Bernard, the chief French negotiator, said he was astonished when Mr. Shapiro, his patience depleted, ran to the door of the room and, in a very un-Gallic gesture, began kicking it repeatedly, shouting, “Get me something to break!”
There was also snipping from Parisian intellectuals who attacked the transplantation of Disney’s dream world as an assault on French culture; “a cultural Chernobyl,” one prominent intellectual called it. The minister of culture announced he would boycott the opening, proclaiming it to be an unwelcome symbol of American clichés and a consumer society.
Unperturbed,
Disney pushed ahead with the planned summer 1992 opening of the $5 billion parks. Shortly after Euro-Disneyland opened, French farmers drove their tractors to the entrance and blocked it. This globally televised act of protest was aimed not at Disney but at the US government, which had been demanding that French agricultural subsidies be cut. Still, it focused world attention on the loveless marriage of Disney and Paris.
Then there were the operational errors. Disney’s policy of serving no alcohol in the park, since reversed caused astonishment in a country where a glass of wine for lunch is a given. Disney thought that Monday would be a light day for visitors and Friday a heavy one and allocated staff accordingly, but the reality was the reverse.
Another unpleasant surprise was the hotel breakfast debacle. “We were told that Europeans ‘don’t take breakfast,’ so we downsized the restaurants,” recalled one Disney executive. “And guess what? Everybody showed up for breakfast. We were trying to serve 2,500 breakfasts in a 350-seat restaurant at some of the hotels. The lines were horrendous.
They didn’t want the typical French breakfast of croissants and coffee, which was our assumption. They wanted bacon and eggs.” Lunch turned out to be another problem. “Everybody wanted lunch at 12:30. The crowds were huge. Our smiling cast members had to calm down surly patrons and engage in some ‘behavior modification’ to teach them that they could eat lunch at 11:00 AM or 2:00 PM.”
There were major staffing problems too. Disney tried to use the same teamwork model with its staff that had worked so well in America and Japan, but it ran into trouble in France. In the first nine weeks of Euro-Disneyland’s operation, roughly 1,000 employees, 10 percent of the total, left.
One former employee was a 22-year old medical student from a nearby town who signed up for a weekend job. After two days of “brainwashing,” as he called Disney’s training, he left following a dispute with his supervisor over the timing of his lunch hour. Another former employee noted, “I don’t think that they realize what Europeans are like . . . that we ask questions and don’t think all the same way.”
One of the biggest problems,
However, was that Europeans didn’t stay at the park as long as Disney expected. While Disney succeeded in getting close to 9 million visitors a year through the park gates, in line with its plans, most stayed only a day or two. Few stayed the four to five days that Disney had hoped for. It seems that most Europeans regard theme parks as places for day excursions.
A theme park is just not seen as a destination for an extended vacation. This was a big shock for Disney. Also, study the Case Study of the Starbucks Mobile Payment Application . The company had invested billions in building luxury hotels next to the park-hotels that the day-trippers didn’t need and that stood half empty most of the time.
To make matters worse, the French didn’t show up in the expected numbers. In 1994, only 40 percent of the park’s visitors were French. One puzzled executive noted that many visitors were Americans living in Europe or, stranger still, Japanese on a European vacation! As a result, by the end of 1994 Euro-Disneyland had cumulative losses of $2 billion.
At this Point,
Euro-Disney changed its strategy. First , the company changed the name to Disneyland Paris in an attempt to strengthen the park’s identity. Second , food and fashion offerings changed. To quote one manager, “We opened with restaurants providing French-style food service, but we found that customers wanted self-service like in the US parks. Similarly, products in the boutiques were initially toned down for the French market, but since then the range has changed to give it a more definite Disney image.” Third , the prices for day tickets and hotel rooms were cut by one-third. The result was an attendance of 11.7 million in 1996, up from a low of 8.8 million in 1994.
Related Article;
Nageshwar Das
Nageshwar Das, BBA graduation with Finance and Marketing specialization, and CEO, Web Developer, & Admin in www.ilearnlot.com.
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- 1. THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY Organizational Case Study Callie Unruh MGT6145 December 14, 2012
- 2. WALT DISNEY COMPANY It’s not just Disneyland!
- 3. OUTLINE Introduction and Overview Internal Assessment External Assessment Strategy Implementation and Financing Conclusion
- 4. MISSION AND VISION "The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to be one of the world's leading producers and providers of entertainment and information. Using our portfolio of brands to differentiate our content, services and consumer products, we seek to develop the most creative, innovative and profitable entertainment experiences and related products in the world."
- 5. INTERNAL ASSESSMENT
- 6. FINANCES Ratio 2008 2007 Current Ratio 1.0 0.99 Gross Profit Margin 0.20 0.19 Return on Stockholder Equity 1.36 1.52 Sales 7% 5%
- 7. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Walt Disney Company Disney Consumer Studio Entertainment Parks and Resorts Media Networks Products • Walt Disney Pictures Broadcasting • Miramax Films • Walt Disney World • Buena Vista Home • • • Disney Hard Lines Disneyland Disney-ABC Entertainment • Disney Soft Lines • Tokyo Disney Television • Buena Vista • Disney Toys Theatrical • Disneyland Paris • ESPN Inc. • Disney Publishing Productions • Hong Kong • Walt Disney • Disney Press • Walt Disney Disneyland Internet Group • Disney Editions Records • Disney Cruise Line • ABC-Owned • Buena Vista • Disney Vacation Television Stations Records Club • ABC Radio • Hollywood Records • Lyric Street Studios • Pixar Studios Source: David, F (2011). Strategic Management.
- 8. Chair/Pres: ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Theme Parks and Resorts LEADERSHIP Co- President: Chairman: Disney Interactive and this isn’t all of them! Walt Disney Int’l Co-Chair and Pres. ABC Chair: Walt Television Disney Group Studios CEO Co-President: Disney Interactive EVP and and Playdom Chief Human Resources Officer EVP Motion Picture Distribution EVP Communicati ons EVP Strategy and Business Development President: Consumer Products President: ESPN and President ABC Sports Source: www.theofficialboard.com ESPN and Co-Chair Media Networks
- 9. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE LEADERSHIP Recommendation… Chief Executive President and Board of Directors SBU 1 SBU 2 SBU 3 SBU 4 SBU n Geographical Functional
- 10. MARKET POSITION: THE COMPETITORS
- 11. Disney MARKET POSITION Time Warner CBS Corp. High Market Capitalization Media Networks/Broadcasting and Studio Entertainment Low Revenues High Revenues Low Market Capitalization
- 12. Disney MARKET POSITION Six Flags Ocean Park Locations (high) Parks and Resorts Visitors Visitors (low) (high) Locations (low)
- 13. Disney MARKET POSITION Warner Bros. Quantity Fox (high) Consumer Products Sales Sales (low) (high) Quantity (low)
- 14. SWOT: STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES Strengths Strong diversification Responsiveness to markets Brand recognition Creative process Weaknesses Large R&D costs High Risk factor Constant up gradation High sunk costs
- 15. INTERNAL FACTORS MATRIX Key Internal Factors Strengths Weight Rating Weighted Score 1. Strong diversification 0.15 4 0.60 2. Responsiveness to markets 0.12 4 0.48 3. Brand name 0.12 3 0.36 4. Creative process 0.12 3 0.36 Weaknesses Weight Rating Weighted Score 1. Large R&D costs 0.15 1 0.15 2. High risk factor 0.12 2 0.24 3. Constant up gradation 0.12 1 0.12 4. High sunk costs 0.10 2 0.20 TOTAL 1.00 2.51
- 16. MARKETING STRATEGIES Top Strategies Create a customized/targeted media advertising plan for all segments Expand Hong Kong Disney and research one new market R&D into storytelling to kids through technology Target 3 new markets and develop expansion plan around consumer products Consumer research around the use of technology and need Digitize content to utilize technology and lower costs Create and bank marketing strategies and promotions to use during adverse conditions or slow periods
- 17. EXTERNAL ASSESSMENT
- 18. COMPETITORS Disney CBS Time Warner Industry Market Cap 39.00B 4.31B 26.28B 499.59M # of employees 150,000 25,920 87,000 7.51K Qtrly Rev Growth -8.2% -6.20% -2.70% 5.10% Revenue $36.99B 13.95B 46.98B 930.87M Gross Margin 17.81% 37.99% 41.92% 41.92% EBITDA $8.18B 2.69B 13.34B 166.44M Oper Margins 17.81% 15.48% 18.62% 10.39% Net Income $4.02B -11.67B -13.40B NA EPS $2.100 -17.428 -11.224 NA
- 19. COMPETITIVE PROFILE MATRIX Disney CBS Time Warner Critical Success Factors Weight Rating Score Rating Score Rating Score Advertising 0.20 3 0.6 2 0.40 3 0.6 Product Quality 0.15 4 0.6 2 0.30 2 0.3 Price Competiveness 0.12 2 0.24 1 0.12 2 0.24 Management 0.10 2 0.2 3 0.30 3 0.3 Financial Position 0.10 2 0.2 3 0.30 4 0.4 Customer Loyalty 0.10 3 0.3 2 0.20 2 0.2 Global Expansion 0.11 4 0.44 1 0.11 1 0.11 Market Share 0.12 3 0.36 1 0.12 3 0.36 TOTAL 1.00 2.94 1.85 2.51
- 20. INDUSTRY TRENDS Social Technology Economic Cultural Political Media HD, Mobile, Broadcasting Multi-platform content, Video on demand Studio 3-D Rise in ticket prices; Home video spending Parks Traveling with kids; Group Combining Older adults business work and family time Products Consumer-centricity Retail Growth of Product safety, collaboration private label tighter regulations
- 21. SWOT: OPPORTUNITIES AND THREATS Opportunities Growth through further diversification Increase Media Networks/Broadcasting market share International growth/New markets Changes in technology and consumer consumption Threats Economic recession Changes in technology and consumer consumption Intellectual property (protection of) Uncontrollable changes in travel and tourism
- 22. EXTERNAL FACTOR EVALUATION Weighted Key External Factors Weight Rating Score Opportunities 1. Growth through further diversification 0.12 4 0.48 2. Increase Media Networks/Broadcasting market share 0.15 3 0.45 3. International growth/New Markets 0.12 4 0.48 4. Changes in technology and consumer consumption 0.15 3 0.45 Threats 1. Economic recession 0.12 4 0.48 2. Changes in technology and consumer consumption 0.15 3 0.45 3. Intelectual property (protection of) 0.1 2 0.2 4. Uncontrolable changes in travel and tourism 0.09 2 0.18 TOTAL 1.00 3.17
- 23. STRATEGY
- 24. SWOT ANALYSIS Walt Disney SWOT Strengths Weaknesses 1. Strong diversification 1. Large R&D costs 2. Responsiveness to markets 2. High risk factor 3. Brand recognition 3. Constant up gradation 4. Creative process 4. High sunk costs Opportunities SO Strategies WO Strategies 1. Develop and research plan around emerging markets 1. Growth through further diversification with low R&D costs (W1) 2. Increase Media Networks/Broadcasting market 2. Create a customize/targeted media advertising share plan for all segments (S2) 3. Expand Hong Kong Disney and research one new 3.Target 3 new markets and develop expansion plan 3. International growth/New Markets market (S3) around consumer products (W4) 4. R&D into storytelling to kids through technology 4. Consumer research around the use of technology and 4. Changes in technology and consumer consumption (S4) need (W2) Threats ST Strategies WT Strategies 1. Digitize content to utalize technology and lower 1. Digitize content to utalize technology and lower costs 1. Economic recession costs (S2,4) (W4) 2. Focus on one high tech segment and focus content and 2. Changes in technology and consumer consumption R&D there (W1, 3) 3. Document and Create TM and IP Protection Plan 3. Intelectual property (protection of) (S2) 4. Create and bank marketing strategies and promotions to use during adverse conditions or slow 4. Uncontrolable changes in travel and tourism periods for parks and resorts (S2)
- 25. SPACE MATRIX
- 26. INTERNAL-EXTERNAL MATRIX IFE Total Weighted Scores 4.0 3.0 2.0 1.0 EFE Total Weighted Scores I II III 3.0 IV V VI 2.0 VII VIII IX 1.0 EFM 3.17 IFM 2.51
- 27. GRAND STRATEGY MATRIX Rapid Growth Market Quad II Quad 1 Weak Strong Competitive Competitive Position Position Quad III Quad IV Slow Growth Market
- 28. QUANTITATIVE STRATEGIC PLANNING MATRIX Strategy 2: Target 3 new Strategy 3: Digitize Strategy 1: R&D into Walt markets and develop content to utilize storytelling to kids Disney expansion plan around technology and lower through technology (S4) consumer products (W4) costs (W4) Key Factors Weight AS TAS AS TAS AS TAS Opportunities 1. Growth through further diversification 0.11 4 0.44 1 0.11 4 0.44 2. Increase Media Networks/Broadcasting market share 0.09 1 0.09 4 0.36 1 0.09 3. International growth/New Markets 0.15 3 0.45 4 0.60 1 0.15 4. Changes in technology and consumer consumption 0.15 4 0.60 1 0.15 4 0.60 Threats 0.00 1. Economic recession 0.15 2 0.30 2 0.30 4 0.60 2. Changes in technology and consumer consumption 0.12 4 0.48 1 0.12 4 0.48 3. Intelectual property (protection of) 0.08 3 0.24 1 0.08 2 0.16 4. Uncontrolable changes in travel and tourism 0.15 1 0.15 1 0.15 1 0.15 Total 1.00 Strengths 1. Strong diversification 0.15 4 0.60 1 0.15 3 0.45 2. Responsiveness to markets 0.15 4 0.60 4 0.60 2 0.30 3. Brand recognition 0.10 3 0.30 3 0.30 1 0.10 4. Creative process 0.10 4 0.40 1 0.10 2 0.20 Weaknesses 0.00 1. Large R&D costs 0.15 2 0.30 4 0.60 4 0.60 2. High risk factor 0.10 2 0.20 2 0.20 2 0.20 3. Constant up gradation 0.10 1 0.10 4 0.40 2 0.20 4. High sunk costs 0.15 2 0.30 4 0.60 4 0.60 Total 1.00 5.55 4.82 5.32
- 29. RECOMMENDATIONS Strategy 3: Digitize Strategy 1: R&D into content to utilize storytelling to kids through technology and lower technology (S4) costs (W4)
- 30. IMPLEMENTATION AND FINANCING
- 31. EPS/EBIT ANALYSIS Common Stock Debt Financing 50-50 Financing Recession Normal Boom Recession Normal Boom Recession Normal Boom EBIT $30.000 $35.00 $40.00 $30.000 $35.00 $40.00 $30.000 $35.00 $40.00 Interest $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $1.50 $1.75 $2.00 $0.75 $0.88 $1.00 EBT $30.00 $35.00 $40.00 $28.50 $33.25 $38.00 $29.25 $34.13 $39.00 Taxes $11.40 $13.30 $15.20 $10.83 $12.64 $14.44 $11.12 $12.97 $14.82 EAT $11.40 $13.30 $15.20 $10.83 $12.64 $14.44 $11.12 $12.97 $14.82 #Shares 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 EPS $11.40 $13.30 $15.20 $10.83 $12.64 $14.44 $11.12 $12.97 $14.82 Amount Needed $5 million EBIT Range $30-40 billion Interest Rate 7.00% Tax Rate 38.00% Stock Price $65.00 Stock Outstanding 1 billion Annual Divident per share $0.65
- 32. EPS/EBIT ANALYSIS 12 10 8 50/50 6 DF CSF 4 2 0 30 35 40
- 33. CONCLUSION Strategic Planning Needed Implement strategies that help lower costs, and maintain competitive advantage Balanced approach to innovation and cost-savings
Editor's Notes
- Mr. Walt Disney and his brother arrived in California in 1923 to sell the cartoon Alice in Wonderland. Its first film was created in 1954—Treasure Island and in 1955 Disneyland Park opened. Now, more than 50 years later, the Walt Disney Company has grown and expanded into one of the world’s largest media and entertainment corporations in the world. They are structured as strategic business units consisting of Disney consumer products, studio entertainment, parks and resorts, and media network broadcasting. This slide show some of the major units of Disney today. The Walt Disney Company headquarters are located in Burbank, CA.
- As we look at the WDC we will begin with an over view of the organization and then dive deeper into finances and internal strengths and weaknesses before moving onto their competitive position in the marketplace. Then we will discuss strategy, implementation and conclude with an overall evaluation. Lets get started by looking at WDC’s mission and vision.
- Creativity and innovation are synonymous with the Walt Disney brand, largely because of the company's strong mission. One of the reasons why Disney has a reputation of delivering a seamless "magical" experience to its guests in all of its operations - theme parks, hotels, restaurants, retail stores, etc. - is because it has one overriding vision and mission for all of its business operations.
- Next we will look deeper into the organization through an internal assessment to see better how they operate. The internal assessment will include financial ratios, the organizational chart as well as recommended changes, market position, marketing strategy, strengths and weaknesses and an internal factor evaluation.
- WDC’s finances have held steady over the last couple of years while their current ratio is not so great it did improve ever so slightly in 2008. Sales have increased each year by a small margin. But even small increases in revenues are better than stagnation or losses. Overall, the ratios shown here should be seen as cautiously optimistic with the area that needs to be improved being their current ratio.Walt Disney’s net income fell 26 percent for the third quarter of 2009 with no division or segment of the company reporting an increase. The worst preforming division of the quarter was the Movie studio. The change from 2007/2008 to 2009 is mostly a result of the global recession. As the recession lingers, consumers are spending more of their money on the things they need versus things they want or luxuries like Parks and Resorts and movies.
- WDC operates under a strategic business unit model. Their four SBUs consist of Disney Consumer Products, Studio Entertainment, Parks and Resorts, and Media Networks and Broadcasting.
- The leadership structure of the organization follows its SBU structure. I think this is the best organization for them and the most clear. The only proposed changes I would make would be to look at consolidating the Chairman/President/EVP levels. Currently they are all at the same level and there are many people directly under the President/CEO. Under the President are a slew of Chairmans, EVPs, Presidents and such, and then under them are Presidents of other various things.
- I feel that there could be some consolidation in WDC’s executive strucutre and that they should take advantage of the SBU structure of the organization in their organizational chart. While it might mean duplication of some functions it ultimately will help the SBU’s function better since they are very distinct and need to operate and understand their own markets.
- Because Disney, and the industry in general is broken out into segments, a market positioning map must take the different segments into account. Overall Disney’s primary competitors are Time Warner and CBS Corporation. While these competitors directly compete with WDC in Media Network segments, they are not rivals in Consumer Products and Parks and Resorts and Consumer Products so we will look at those segments separately.
- Disney and Time Warner are most closely related. Disney’s market captialization is at 39B, followed by TW at 26.28B and CBS a distant third at 4.31B. The rest of the industry totals 499.59M In terms of revenues Disney and TW are close, but Time Warner sneaks ahead—49.98B to WDC 36.99B.
- There are more than 400 amusement parks in the United States. The magic kingdom at Walt Disney World in Florida is the most visited amusement park in the world. Disney doesn’t have much strong competition in this area. The second largest company after Disney is Six Flags with 20 parks around the world. Ocean Park is the other competitor and is located in Hong Kong. The park receives more than 5 million tourists each year and are planning new parks. It also seems that Hong Kong residents are that impressed with the small version of Disney built there and in 2009 Disney reached an agreement to enlarge Hong Kong Disney.
- Disney’s primary competitors in the consumer products segment are Warner Brothers and Fox followed by Sony, Marvel and Nickelodeon. Disney is likely the largest world wide licensure of character-based merchandise and producer/distributor of children’s film-related products based on retail sales.
- Based on their market position in their different units we have identified four strengths and weaknesses of the organization as a whole. We will use these strengths and weaknesses throughout this analysis, and ultimately combine them with the opportunities and threats to begin to develop strategies.
- In the internal factors matrix the strengths and weaknesses are weighted and rated. The total score of 2.51 makes them average on a scale of 1-4. Basically the weaknesses even out the strengths. As I noted earlier under finances, in 2009 WDC saw a sharp decline in net revenues for the third quarter of 2009. An example is that the Movie Studio did the worst. One example is that as a weakness sunk costs are large for movies. We will see later on that one threat is economic recession for this very reason.
- After creating the SWOT analysis and reviewing the internal factors a number of strategies emerged. The top strategies are listed here. The ones in bold were the strategies selected for the QSPM analysis which we will discuss later.R&D into storytelling to kids through technology highlights WDC strength of the creative process. Additionally, WDC was based in storytelling and has expanded. WDC’s competitors have less of a history in the area of children’s stories which gives WDC the edge.One of WDC’s weaknesses is high sunk costs, but an opportunity is to expand more internationally. The strategy of targeting three new markets and developing expansion plans touches the “high sunk costs” as they could expand a segment that doesn’t have the as high sunk costs which gives it the potential to more quickly be a revenue producer.Lastly, digitizing content. This strategy touches the high sunk cost weakness, high risk factor, as well as the opportunities and threats that technology brings. By digitizing content including advertising, media etc WDC can save money on print, get things out quicker and utalize other segments to do it. This again is an advantage WDC has over its competitors because its primary competitors the vast diversification that WDC has.
- Now that we have looked at an overview of the WDC, looked into their finances and strengths and weaknesses we are ready to do an external assessment before brining it all together. We will look more closely at competitors and industry trends as well as opportunities and threats facing the organization. We will conclude this section with an external factors evaluation. Now lets take a closer look at WDC’s competitors.
- As we mentioned earlier, the WDC has a variety of competitors because of their many segments. The primary competitors that most closely match WDC are Time Warner and CBS. The chart here shows the comparative data for the industry. Disney is most closely matched by Time Warner and as you can see in the Industry column, there are many other players in the industry that make up the rest of the market share. Also one should note that Disney if more diversified in its segments than Time Warner.
- The competitive profile matrix also shows that Time Warner and Disney are closely related on various issues with Disney showing the slight edge. Again, because Disney is much more diversified than most organizations within the various industries we must look at larger factors that would cover all segments. Disney edge comes from product quality and global expansion. In the other areas Disney is quite similar/close to Time Warner.
- As the first competitors slide on market share shows there is a lot of money to be had in these industries. Over the last few years new trends are emerging that affect WDC and its competitors. These trends—including HD, 3-D, mobile content and consumer-centricity—affect many aspects of the organizations from R&D to customer service. And they all affect the bottom line and competitive advantage.
- Based on the competitors, state of the industry and industry trends we have developed four opportunities and threats for the WDC. Because WDC is so diversified we tried to look at opportunities and threats (as well as strengths and weaknesses) that apply to as many segments as possible.
- The opportunities and threats were then placed into an external factor evaluation, weighted, rated and scored. With a total score of more than 3 we see that overall WDC is above average at capitalizing on their opportunities and mitigating their threats. Noting that a score of 2.5 is average WDC could do better and we attribute their slightly above average rating to economic conditions that have caused lowered revenues which has forced adjustments to be made and growth to slow.
- Now that we have looked internally and externally we will take all this information and formulate strategies for the WDC to use. To do this we will create a full SWOT analysis that takes our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats and will use them to develop strategies. Additionally we will look at a space matrix and internal-external matrix to analyze where they are in the industry/market.
- In the SWOT analysis we now put together the various parts we have discussed previously in this presentation. The SWOT analysis helps us to see everything together in context so that we can develop the best strategies to best capitalize on strengths, strengthen/mitigate weaknesses, utilize opportunities and mitigate threats. The SWOT analysis brought out a number of potential strategies. The letter and number in parentheses reference the strength or weakness the strategy addresses while its line item addresses the opportunity or threat. Any number of additional strategies could be added, but we want to look at the strongest and most attractive strategies for implementation. Any strategies either not listed here, or not selected for further evaluation in the QSPM matrix should be noted and banked for the future when they might be more attractive given the right circumstances.
- The space matrix looks at financial position, competitive position, stability position and industry position to give the organization an understanding of where they are in the market as a competitor. The matrix here shows that WDC has a competitive and aggressive profile. This combination profile shows us that WDC has a major competitive advantage and is competing fairly well in a currently unstable industry. The reason for this unstable industry is primarily because of the current economic recession. Their financial strength has given them major competitive advantages.
- The IE matrix shows that WDC is in an average position, but leaning to the strong side. I believe this is because of the economic recession and slowing market. Because the WDC is so diversified it has helped them remain in a more neutral position during the recession even though they are seeing declining revenues. As long as the WDC continues to be strategic and plan for the future and how they can adjust in recession periods they will remain viable and weather the storm. BUT if they choose to not do any strategic planning they will be at risk for further revenue loss as well as a decline in competitive advantage.
- In 2007 and 2008 we might have classified the industry as fast growth but with the economic recession lingering the market as slowed as well. Disney is currently in Quadrant 4 on the Grand strategy matrix which deals with related diversification, unrelated diversification and joint ventures. This quadrant speaks well to the strategies chosen for the QSPM matrix.
- Based on the Grand strategy matrix, IE Matrix, trends, finances and economy we selected three strategies that we would be most interested in pursuing. Strategy one received the best score, followed closely by strategy 3. Because of the recession and decrease in revenues the most attractive strategies are ones with lower R&D costs and sunk costs, but that make sure the WDC stays viable in the industry.
- Because Disney has a strong competitive position, in a currently slow growth market I believe they can look at implementing two strategies. Strategy 1: R&D into storytelling to kids through technology will utilize their strong competitive advantage. Additionally it will help keep them on the forefront of technology. Strategy 3: Digitize content to utilize technology and lower costs will help on a number of fronts, and can complement the first strategy. By digitizing content they can lower costs during a lingering recession, keep up with technology, and streamline costs. I would suggest banking strategy 2: exploration into new markets with consumer products. If revenues increase and there are signs that the recession is easing this strategy would be more effective.
- After developing strategies and recommendations for the best strategies it is now time to see how they can be implemented and financed. If a strategy can’t be financed or implemented successfully it could ultimately cost the organization more money and during a recession that is not something anyone wants to happen.
- To look at financing the two strategies we used a EPS/EBIT analysis to contrast the various options. You will see the amount needed was $5 million. Because we know we are currently in a recession the recession column is going to be of greatest interest to us.
- The numbers inputed result in the following chart. While any of the options would work to finance the new strategies, knowing that we are in a recession and revenues are decreasing the common stock financing is the most attractive option.
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Case Study Disney Paris
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Why Disney Would Like You To Forget Disneyland Paris’ Opening Day
Disneyland Paris. Today, it stands as the most popular theme park in Europe, with millions of visitors per year. However, things weren’t always so amusant in France.
From its opening day in 1992, the park once known as Euro Disneyland was plagued by cultural clashes, financial woes, marketing snafus, and even a terrorist attack — a (horrible) perfect storm that almost led to this park’s demise and ultimately changed the course of Disney history forever.
Today, we look back at the Disney Parks history Disney would rather you forget.
Crossing the pond.
Walt Disney World was, and remains, one of Disney’s biggest successes; a self-contained vacation destination that dominates the local landscape and economy, filled with room for expansion. From a corporate perspective, Disney World is the platonic ideal of a theme park. There was just one problem: while Disney World was huge, the real world was a lot bigger. There was an enormous market waiting overseas. Disney is big overseas. Big in ways that American audiences might not realize.
Topolino (Mickey Mouse) is one of the most popular comic magazines in Italy, with similar digests ( Kalle Anka in Sweden, and Aku Ankka in Finland, both named for Donald Duck) achieving similar popularity around Europe. The so-called Sensational Six (Mickey and friends) are arguably more popular in Europe than they are in the United States, with Donald being the most popular in most places! There’s a reason why one of the most famous advertisements for Disneyland Paris focuses on Donald Duck comics.
In the years following the park’s opening, it would become apparent that this may not have been the wisest choice.
The Infamous Opening Day
On April 12th, 1992, Euro Disneyland opened to… mediocre fanfare. Yes, there was the customary fireworks show and ribbon cutting ceremony. Parades, shows, all the typical spectacle. However, for a park built to accommodate 60,000 guests, only about 25,000 showed up .
It’s not that Euro Disneyland was a bad park. On the contrary, it was Disney’s most elaborately designed, well-thought-out theme park yet! Only Shanghai Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea can hold a candle to the raw level of detail and design that went into this park; there’s no other park like it. Yet, within a few years of opening, it was already facing bankruptcy. Why?
Cultural Chernobyl
Disney knew that building a fairy tale theme park in Europe would be a tall order, as many elements Americans find exotic (like Castles) are common tourist attractions in France. To their credit, they did an excellent job on the design angle. However, they failed to account for one big thing.
You see, Disney went out of its way to try to accommodate European culture. It’s even in the name Euro Disneyland. The issue? There’s no such thing as European culture. There’s Italian culture, Spanish culture, British culture, Irish culture… hundreds of different cultures that aren’t even consistent within the same country sometimes! Disney was a predominantly American company trying to tailor a theme park for a collection of cultures they didn’t fully understand… and that’s before we even get into French culture. Because the clash between Disney and their host country is infamous.
You see, while Disney is popular in France, it lacks the same cultural resonance that it does in many other places. That’s because France is fiercely protective of their own cultural product and skeptical of cultural imports from other nations. In fact, Euro Disneyland opened during the height of the cultural exception debate. Let’s break for a quick Social Studies lesson so you’ll see what I mean.
Back in 1947, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) was passed in Geneva, Switzerland. The goal was to reduce barriers to international trade, like taxes on imported goods or quotas that limited the number of goods that could be imported. This agreement originally applied to everything, but in the early 90s France began to question its applicability to cultural exports. France was concerned about cultural imperialism: the promotion and imposition of a more powerful culture over a less powerful one. Basically, France was worried that American cultural exports would slowly choke out their local culture. So, in a revision to the GATT, they proposed a measure that would exempt cultural exports like movies, television, and music from the agreement, allowing countries to give preference to locally produced artwork. Needless to say, this was hotly debated, with France as the largest proponent of the measure. Foreign interests… particularly American interests, like Disney… were viewed as existential threats to French culture. So, when Disney began building a theme park in France, critics weren’t happy.
French journalist Jean Cau famously described the park as “a cultural Chernobyl”, referencing the infamous nuclear disaster, “one that will contaminate millions of children (and their parents), castrate their imaginations, paw their dreams with greenish hands. Green, like the color of the dollar.”
Think pieces like this raged around the park during its construction and earlier years. Shortly before the park opened, a failed terror attack nearly cut power to the entire park. Protestors assaulted then-CEO Michael Eisner with ketchup upon his arrival in the country. Locals to Marne-la-Vallee, already upset by Disney’s purchase of huge tracts of land near their homes, viewed the park with cold skepticism at best and outright hostility at worst.
Of course, Disney wasn’t concerned. Relying on the winning strategy that had brought millions of guests to their domestic theme parks, they produced nostalgic advertisements aimed at drawing children (and children at heart) to the new park. This was another miscalculation. While the ads succeeded in getting children around Europe excited for the new park, they ultimately are not the ones responsible for booking vacations. Moreover, the targeting of children in advertisements only added fuel to the fire of debate, making already skeptical parents even more reluctant to visit the new attraction. Not that Disney was aware of this, of course. Until opening day, the park was projected to be overflowing with guests; so much so that local news outlets issued warnings for people to avoid the sure-to-be clogged roads. Locals, already skeptical of the park to begin with, complied… which meant much smaller crowds than Disney could have anticipated, as guests avoided the supposedly overcrowded park en-masse.
The cultural clash also carried over to the park’s interior, as Disney was operating on flawed information. For instance, they downsized breakfast service under the assumption that Europeans “didn’t take breakfast”, leading to massive rushes as guests skipped croissants and coffee for bacon and eggs. Limited access to food during the traditional lunch hour was also a shock, as Disney was accustomed to the flexible dining schedules of American patrons. The traditional refusal to serve alcohol at the park was also a huge shock, as many guests were accustomed to having ready access to wine or beer with their meals.
Guests also didn’t necessarily adhere to the tourism model Disney had found such success with at Walt Disney World. Huge, multi-day attractions were a rarity in France, with many locals viewing theme parks as a day trip. While Disney surrounded the park with beautiful hotels, few guests were willing to take the week-long vacations Disney expected them to. Moreover, the park’s proximity to Paris meant many guests chose to stay in the capital, with the park serving as a mere diversion, rather than a main attraction.
Even the park’s cast wasn’t immune to these cultural snafus. While Disney tried to appeal to French labor unions by hiring full-time staff (as opposed to the part-time, seasonal staff used in domestic parks), traditional corporate measures like the “Disney Look” were viewed as an attack on employee freedom, leading to mass resignations.
The final nail in the coffin? An economic recession hit shortly after the park’s opening, leading many European tourists to skip out on the expensive Disney vacation instead.
The Aftermath
By 1994, Euro Disneyland had over three billion dollars of debt and was on the verge of closure. In a last ditch effort to save the park, Disney changed its name to Disneyland Paris, made deals with investors and banks to defer payment, and opened their own version of Space Mountain to attract guests back to the park. This radical rebranding, combined with the passing of the recession and the collective realization that comparing the park to a nuclear disaster was kind of an exaggeration, allowed the park to flourish. Today, the park enjoys resounding success as the most visited park in Europe, and one of the most beautiful iterations of Disneyland in the world… but not without cost.
You see, for Disneyland Paris to live, other dreams would have to die. One of the biggest was WestCOT, a proposed expansion of Disneyland Resort in California that would have been the most ambitious park Disney ever built. Alas, the massive losses in France meant that Disney would have to scale back their plans for Anaheim into something smaller. And that’s how the world got:
Read the next installment of this Disney Parks saga here !
Have you been to Disneyland Paris? Let us know what you think of the park in the comments below!
Want more extinct Disney? Check out the links below!
- Seven Times We Have No Idea What Disney Was Thinking
- A Tribute to the Worst Disney Ride Ever
- Did You Know Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas Made a Disney Attraction Together?
- Seven Characters You Won’t Meet in the Disney Parks Anymore
- Ranking the Most Short-Lived Disney Parks Attractions We Want to Experience Again
Join the AllEars.net Newsletter to stay on top of ALL the breaking Disney News! You'll also get access to AllEars tips, reviews, trivia, and MORE! Click here to Subscribe!
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Austin Lang
Austin Lang is an Orlando local with a love of Disney, puns, and Disney puns. He's been a contributing writer for AllEars since 2019, and has been sharing his quirky view of Disney life ever since.
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4 Replies to “Why Disney Would Like You To Forget Disneyland Paris’ Opening Day”
I was part of the opening Crew back in 1992 and I loved the whole idea of a Disneyland in France. It is a wonderful park and children in particular find it magical. Having visited many times with my family I do feel it does have its charm. However I do prefer the American parks where in general the Cast Members create a greater “Disney” experience
Writting while in the queue for Princess Pavilion. Fantastic place. Should consider changing name to DisneyQueues Park
95% of time in queues, 5% in attractions. $$$ over customer experience all day long
Being a European Disney-freak I have some comments: Disney wanted Euro-Disney to fail. The French governement didn’t allow Disney to open the park. It should be a French company (taxmoney etc) from the get go. Disney never liked that construction but went ahead with it and started sucking every last penny out of the EuroDisney branch with licence-fees. Untill there was nothing left but debt (debt Disney created by sucking the money out) and Disney ‘generously’ offered to buy all stock for a few billion dollars… The kind of billion dollars they prevously took out of the balances with all the licensing-fees. And so Disney got it’s way and now is 100% owner of the park. Since they own it they started investing big time and finally is making it a true Disney-park.
I love DL Paris and the fact you can walk to both parks from the Disney hotels. It’s great for a couple of days but it’s no where near as good as DW. The cast members in DW seem a lot more enthusiastic about Disney too 😊
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Disney, Built on Fairy Tales and Fantasy, Confronts the Real World
The entertainment behemoth spent decades avoiding even the whiff of controversy. But it has increasingly been drawn into the partisan political fray.
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Since its founding in 1923, Disney has stood alone in Hollywood in one fundamental way: Its family-friendly movies, television shows and theme park rides, at least in theory, have always been aimed at everybody , with potential political and cultural pitfalls zealously avoided.
The Disney brand is about wishing on stars and finding true love and living happily ever after. In case the fairy tale castles are too subtle, Disney theme parks outright promise an escape from reality with welcome signs that read, “Here you leave today and enter the world of yesterday, tomorrow and fantasy.”
Lately, however, real world ugliness has been creeping into the Magic Kingdom. In this hyperpartisan moment, both sides of the political divide have been pounding on Disney, endangering one of the world’s best-known brands — one that, for many, symbolizes America itself — as it tries to navigate a rapidly changing entertainment industry.
In some cases, Disney has willingly waded into cultural issues. Last summer, to applause from progressives and snarls from the far right, Disney decided to make loudspeaker announcements at its theme parks gender neutral, removing “ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls” in favor of “dreamers of all ages.” But the entertainment giant has also found itself dragged into the fray, as with the recent imbroglio over a new Florida law that among many things restricts classroom instruction through third grade on sexual orientation and gender identity and has been labeled by opponents as “Don’t Say Gay.”
At first, Disney tried not to take a side on the legislation, at least publicly, which prompted an employee revolt. Disney then aggressively denounced the bill — only to find itself in the cross hairs of Fox News hosts and Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, who sent a fund-raising email to supporters saying that “Woke Disney” had “lost any moral authority to tell you what to do.” Florida lawmakers began threatening to revoke a 55-year-old law that enables Walt Disney World to essentially function as its own municipal government. (Disney had already been at odds with the governor on pandemic issues like a vaccine mandate for employees .)
In trying to offend no one, Disney had seemingly lost everyone.
“The mission for the Disney brand has always been really clear: Do nothing that might upset or confuse the family audience,” said Martin Kaplan, the Norman Lear professor of entertainment, media and society at the University of Southern California and a former Walt Disney Studios executive. “Fun for all. Nothing objectionable. Let’s all be transformed by the magic wand. But we are so divided today, so revved up, that even Disney is having a hard time bringing us together.”
Avoiding socially divisive topics, of course, in itself reflects a certain worldview. The Walt Disney Company’s namesake founder, after all, was an anti-union conservative. Main Street U.S.A. patriotism is on prominent display at Disney’s theme parks. The traditional Christmas story is told each December at Disney World in Florida and Disneyland in California with Candlelight Processional events, Bible verses and all .
It took the company until 2009 to introduce a Black princess .
But in recent years, there has been a noticeable change. Robert A. Iger, who served as chief executive from 2005 to 2020, pushed the world’s largest entertainment company to emphasize diverse casting and storytelling. As he said at Disney’s 2017 shareholder meeting , referring to inclusion and equality: “We can take those values, which we deem important societally, and actually change people’s behavior — get people to be more accepting of the multiple differences and cultures and races and all other facets of our lives and our people.”
More on the Walt Disney Company
- A Century in Business: As part of its 100th anniversary marketing campaign, the Walt Disney Company is opening two exhibitions that will tour the globe until at least 2028 . It comes at a moment when its formidable stature has shown a few cracks.
- DeSantis-Disney Rift: In the latest development in a battle between the Florida governor and Disney , Ron DeSantis has gained control of the board that oversees development at Walt Disney World, a move that restricts the autonomy of Disney over its theme-park complex.
- Quarterly Earnings Report: In Disney’s first earnings report since Bob Iger returned as chief executive, the company exceeded Wall Street’s expectations . But thousands of employees are expected to be laid off.
- Splash Mountain’s Closure: As Disney takes steps to erase the racist back story of the Walt Disney World ride, some are claiming to be selling water from the attraction online .
In essence, entertainment as advocacy.
Mr. Iger was the one who pushed forward the global blockbuster “Black Panther,” which had an almost entirely Black cast and a powerful Afrocentric story line . Under his tenure, Disney refocused the “Star Wars” franchise around female characters. A parade of animated movies (“Moana,” “Coco,” “Raya and the Last Dragon,” “Soul,” “Encanto”) showcased a wide variety of races, cultures and ethnicities.
The result, for the most part, has been one hit after another. But a swath of Disney’s audience has pushed back.
“Eternals,” a $200 million Disney-Marvel movie, was “ review bombed ” in the fall because it depicted a gay superhero kissing his husband, with online trolls flooding the Internet Movie Database with hundreds of homophobic one-star reviews. In January, Disney was accused by the actor Peter Dinklage and others of trafficking in stereotypes by moving forward with a live-action “Snow White” movie — until it was revealed that the company planned to replace the seven dwarfs with digitally created “magical creatures,” which, in turn, prompted complaints by others about the “erasure” of people with dwarfism.
Disney executives tend to dismiss such incidents as tempests in teapots: trending today, replaced by a new complaint tomorrow. But even moderate online storms can be a distraction inside the company. Meetings are held about how and whether to respond; fretful talent partners must be reassured.
What we consider before using anonymous sources. Do the sources know the information? What’s their motivation for telling us? Have they proved reliable in the past? Can we corroborate the information? Even with these questions satisfied, The Times uses anonymous sources as a last resort. The reporter and at least one editor know the identity of the source.
As Disney prepared to introduce its streaming service in 2019, it began an extensive review of its film library. As part of the initiative, called Stories Matter , Disney added disclaimers to content that the company determined included “negative depictions or mistreatment of people or cultures.” Examples included episodes of “The Muppet Show” from the 1970s and the 1941 version of “Dumbo.”
“These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now,” the disclaimers read.
The Stories Matter team privately flagged other characters as potentially problematic, with the findings distributed to senior Disney leaders, according to two current Disney executives, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss confidential information. Ursula, the villainous sea witch from “The Little Mermaid” (1989), was one. Her dark color palette (lavender skin, black legs) could be viewed through a racial lens, the Stories Matter team cautioned; she is also a “queer coded” character , with mannerisms inspired in part by those of a real-life drag queen .
Tinker Bell was marked for caution because she is “body conscious” and jealous of Peter Pan’s attention, according to the executives, while Captain Hook could expose Disney to accusations of discrimination or prejudice against individuals with disabilities because he is a villain.
At least some people inside Disney are concerned that such sensitivities go too far. One of the executives worried that looking at artistic creations through a “politically correct filter” could chill creativity.
Disney declined to comment for this article.
All of this comes at a perilous time for Disney, which is racing to remake itself as a streaming titan as technology giants like Amazon and Apple move deeper into the entertainment business and traditional cable networks like Disney-owned ESPN slowly wither. Disney is also coping with a disruptive changing of the guard , with Mr. Iger stepping down as executive chairman in December.
Mr. Iger occasionally spoke out on hot-button political issues during his time as chief executive. His successor, Bob Chapek, decided (with backing from the Disney board) to avoid weighing in on state political battles. Disney lobbyists would continue to work behind the scenes, however, as they did with the Florida legislation.
“Our diverse stories are our corporate statements — and they are more powerful than any tweet or lobbying effort,” Mr. Chapek wrote in an email to Disney employees on March 7. “I firmly believe that our ability to tell such stories — and have them received with open eyes, ears and hearts — would be diminished if our company were to become a political football in any debate.”
In the case of Florida, the approach backfired, first with employee protests and a walkout and then with a right-wing backlash. The Fox News host Tucker Carlson said Disney had “a sexual agenda for 6-year-olds” and was “creepy as hell.” Tweets with the #boycottDisney hashtag accumulated millions of impressions between March 28 and April 3, according to ListenFirst, an analytics firm.
Disney executives have long held the position that boycotts have a minimal impact on the company’s business, if any. Disney is such a behemoth (it generates roughly $70 billion in annual revenue) that avoiding its products is almost impossible.
But the same vast reach that makes Disney hard to boycott also makes it an increasingly visible part of the country’s cultural debates. Hardly a month goes by without some kind of dust-up, usually with sexual identity and gender as the prompt.
Last summer, “Muppet Babies,” a Disney Junior series for children ages 3 to 8, gently explored gender identity . Gonzo donned a gown, defying a directive from Miss Piggy “that the girls come as princesses and the boys come as knights.” Out magazine wrote that the episode “just sent a powerful message of love and acceptance to gender-variant kids everywhere!” And a far-right pundit blasted Disney for “pushing the trans agenda” on children, starting an online brush fire.
Around the same time, some L.G.B.T.Q. advocates were criticizing Disney over “Loki,” a Disney+ superhero show. In the third episode of “Loki,” the title character briefly acknowledged for the first time onscreen what comic fans had long known: He is bisexual. But the blink-and-you-missed-it handling of the information angered some prominent members of the L.G.B.T.Q. community. “It’s, like, one word,” Russell T. Davies , a British screenwriter (“Queer as Folk”), said during a panel discussion at the time. “It’s a ridiculous, craven, feeble gesture.”
The fighting will undoubtedly continue: The Disney-Pixar film “Lightyear,” set for release in June, depicts a loving lesbian couple, while “Thor: Love and Thunder,” arriving in July, will showcase a major L.G.B.T.Q. character.
Last month, when Disney held its most recent shareholder meeting, Mr. Chapek was put on the spot by shareholders from the political left and right.
One person called Disney to task for contributions to legislators who have championed bills that restrict voting and reproductive rights. Mr. Chapek said that Disney gave money to “both sides of the aisle” and that it was reassessing its donation policies. (He subsequently paused all contributions in Florida.) Another representative for a shareholder advocacy group then took the microphone and noted that “Disney from its very inception has always represented a safe haven for children,” before veering into homophobic and transphobic comments and asking Mr. Chapek to “ditch the politicization and gender ideology.”
In response, Mr. Chapek noted the contrasting shareholder concerns. “I think all the participants on today’s call can see how difficult it is to try to thread the needle between the extreme polarization of political viewpoints,” he said.
“What we want Disney to be is a place where people can come together,” he continued. “My opinion is that, when someone walks down Main Street and comes in the gates of our parks, they put their differences aside and look at what they have as a shared belief — a shared belief of Disney magic, hopes, dreams and imagination.”
Audio produced by Adrienne Hurst .
The Research Paper Factory
Disney Learns to “Act Local” on the Global Stage
In: Social Issues
MKT 201 Assessment II Case study 4-2 Semester III (Sep 2 – Dec 17) Viktoriia Lebedieva Case 4-2 Disney Learns to “Act Local” on the Global Stage 1) Why is it necessary for Disney to build brand awareness in China and other emerging markets? First of all, let’s define what is “brand awareness” means? Brand awareness means brand recognition. American children were grown up with Disney’s characters, as Mickey Mouse, and others. But Chinese kids don’t, they don’t know what it is. China is one of the great emerging market, as they always devise something new and produce or release it to the global market, where is it actually becomes adopt and popular by the other countries, nations. China market is good opportunity to build good brand and become famous/popular in the global market. China’s, India’s, and Russian’s markets are basically built-in film traditions. So, that’s obviously the right thing to start from one of them, like from China. 2) Do you agree with Disney’s decision to pursue a location approach in emerging markets? Yes, I think that localization approach could make Disnay enter easily into emerging markets. As there are same examples for localization, such as Mulan movie ; Mikey and Minnie Mouse were wore red suits, and so on. 3) Why is High School Musical so successful in global markets? This movie contains three parts. To be honest I like this movie very much. The reason is the new generation of young people love music; they are dreaming about love, and looking for a second half of their spirit(soul); they wish to be free, as their life just have been started ; they want to do those thing which they like and make them happy, not what is right (as like some crazy staff). The story of the movie is about like music completely can change your whole...
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QUESTION 1 Case Study: Disney Learns That France Isn't Florida The Walt Disney Company had a proven record of creating and operating highly successful theme parks in southern California and Orlando, Florida. So how difficult would it be to transfer that success to Paris? What worked in Florida should work in France, right?
Question: Case Study: Disney in France Until 1992, the Walt Disney Company had experienced nothing but success in the theme park business. Its first park, Disneyland, opened in Anaheim, California, in 1955. Its theme song, "It's a Small World After All,"promoted "an This problem has been solved! See the answer Case Study: Disney in France
Case Study Disney in France for Cross Culture Management 12 Jun 2017 Article Until 1992, the Walt Disney Company had experienced nothing but success in the theme park business. Its first park, Disneyland, opened in Anaheim, California, in 1955.
Case study disney in france 1. DISNEY IN FRANCE • Anitti.S • Rakesh Menon • Uma.M 2. • Company Name: Walt Disney • Business Line: Amusement/Theme Parks • Opening: In 1955, 80-acre theme park in California, US • Theme Parks: US (California & Florida), Tokyo and France.
Disney In France | Case Study Solution | Case Study Analysis Disney In France Until 1992, the Wait Disney Company had experienced nothing but success in the theme park business. Its first park, Disneyland, opened in Anaheim, California, in 1955.
Case Study: Disney in France Until 1992, the Walt Disney Company had experienced nothing but success in the theme park business. Its first park, Disneyland, opened in Anaheim, California, in 1955. Its theme song, It's a Small World After All, promoted an idealized vision of America spiced with reassuring glimpses of exotic cultures all calculated to promote heartwarming feelings about living ...
QUESTION 1 Case Study: Disney Learns That France Isn't Florida The Walt Disney Company had a proven record of creating and operating highly successful theme parks in southern California and Orlando, Florida. So how difficult would it be to transfer that success to Paris? What worked in Florida should work in France, right? Unfortunately, Disney found out that success doesn't necessarily ...
Case Study. By: Hope Miller. Hope Miller Summer II 2021. Strategic Management 4303 - D. Old Mission Statement. The Walt Disney Company aims to "entertain, inform and inspire people around the globe through the power of unparalleled storytelling, reflecting the iconic brands, creative minds and innovative technologies that make ours the world's premier entertainment company." (The Walt ...
Disney tried to use the same teamwork model with its staff that had worked so well in America and Japan, but it ran into trouble in France. In the first nine weeks of Euro-Disneyland's operation, roughly 1,000 employees, 10 percent of the total, left.
MICKEY GOES TO FRANCE: A CASE STUDY OF THE EURO DISNEYLAND NEGOTIATIONS Lauren A. Newell * In 1984, The Walt Disney Company ("Disney") was riding the wave of success from its newest...
Disney tried to use the same teamwork model with its staff that had worked so well in America and Japan, but it ran into trouble in France. In the first nine weeks of Euro-Disneyland's operation, roughly 1,000 employees, 10 percent of the total, left.
1. THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY Organizational Case Study Callie Unruh MGT6145 December 14, 2012. 2. WALT DISNEY COMPANY It's not just Disneyland! 3. OUTLINE Introduction and Overview Internal Assessment External Assessment Strategy Implementation and Financing Conclusion. 4. MISSION AND VISION "The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to be one ...
Case Study Disney Paris - Free download as Word Doc (.doc), PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or read online for free. ... Case Study: Disney in France. ... the triumph was repeated in Florida, and in 1983, Disney proved the Japanese also have an affinity for Mickey Mouse with the successful opening of Tokyo Disneyland.
So, when Disney began building a theme park in France, critics weren't happy. French journalist Jean Cau famously described the park as "a cultural Chernobyl", referencing the infamous nuclear disaster, "one that will contaminate millions of children (and their parents), castrate their imaginations, paw their dreams with greenish hands.
Disney employees and supporters, at a park in Burbank, Calif., last month, protested Disney's reaction to a new law in Florida. J. Emilio Flores for The New York Times. "The mission for the ...
What Affects Theme Park Performance: A Comparative Case Study of Disney Theme Parks in East Asia Abstract: This study aims to find out what are the critical reasons that result in the significantly different performance of Hong Kong Disneyland and Tokyo Disney Resort, and what experience and lessons that the new Shanghai Disneyland can learn from.
The ´ realities of opening and operating EDL in France were far different than Disney's expectations when it began negotiations—so much so that the Resort narrowly escaped bankruptcy.7 For an "entertainment empire"8 like Disney, this was an unprecedented * Assistant Professor of Law, Ohio Northern University, Pettit College of Law; B.A., …