I don't often defend Disney, but this time I will.
People have been moaning and complaining about Fastpass going away and Lightning Lane replacing it. I look at that move and applaud Disney for finally doing it. It is the right thing to do.
How can I say that?
The answer is simple. People will pay it and people will keep going to the parks. This move will only increase their bottom line. No amount of complaining is going to change that. Disney does not care if you complain. You can complain all you want and Disney will ignore it. Why wouldn't they?
I guarantee you that Disney has dumped a hefty amount of money and research into analytics. Over the last ten years they have progressively increased the profit margin on everything at the parks and analyzed the impact. During that time, profits increased. They did not find a price cliff. They did not see any meaningful repercussions.
If people are still going to pour into the parks, why not charge for Lightning Lane? There is no reason not to. They owe it to their share holders to deliver the most profit possible, over the longest term possible.
What if people stop going because of this?
Well first, that's not going to happen. People have complained for years, but kept going. Second, Disney might actually be happy with less people going to the parks, so long as their bottom line is not impacted. You'd need to see a significant number of people take a stand for Disney to take any action. So, again, nothing is going to happen. People will not choose another vacation option in meaningful enough numbers to have any kind of impact.
Do not call this a cash grab. A cash grab is taking large short term profits in exchange for long term profits. Cash grabs are extremely short sighted and ignore anything in the long term. Disney has done their research. There is no doubt they have a good grasp on the amount of money they are going to make, and how many fans it will cost them. The profits are worth the collateral damage.
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