My Reflection on the Disney Magic Bands

Created in 2013, Disney Magic Bands are just another way to enhance your Disney experience.  Magic Bands are wristbands that work as a park ticket, room key, Fastpass, reservation, credit card, access to attractions, and many more amenities.  This seemingly innovative, fun, interactive, and very efficient product can’t possibly be bad – right?

Well, as Bob Croslin describes the result and use of the band in his article, “Disney’s $1 Billion Bet on a Magical Wristband” (https://www.wired.com/2015/03/disney-magicband/), “The hostess, on her modified iPhone, received a signal when the family was just a few paces away. Tanner family inbound! The kitchen also queued up: Two French onion soups, two roast beef sandwiches!”  Now, the merely exciting wristband seems a lot scarier than first imagined.  The technology within the band, needed to grant you access to attractions, make reservations, etc., is also technology that is tracking you.  Now, Disney has access to your location and has the capabilities to send characters, such as the classic Mickey Mouse or princess Sleeping Beauty.  This device sounds even creepier…

When used for the wrong reasons, the Disney Magic Band could take advantage of the consumers.  Since the device allows the company to know information like location and preferences for certain attractions, food, and purchases based on previous actions, consumers naturally become vulnerable to Disney’s power.  In a less threatening way, Disney could use this device as a means of making more money.  Analysts could compile data on individual Magic Band wearer and use it to their advantage.  If they see that an individual tends to purchase popcorn a lot, they could have an individual walk by the person frequently, in hopes that the person will again, make the popcorn purchase.

Wide selection of Magic Bands

More recently, according to http://www.disneylists.com/2016/08/news-disney-world-makes-move-replace-magic-bands/, Disney is making a move to replace the wristbands that many people love.  However, if you are concerned about Disney taking away your band or no longer being able to purchase one, there is nothing to fear.  Disney isn’t completely throwing away the idea, but is looking to change the design and revise it to make it more efficient.  Instead of selling individual bands, the push is to manufactures individual puck-shaped devices that would save the company the troubles and costs of including technology components for each individual band.  This new design would allow users to switch the pucks onto each band and pass device from person to person, which would save the company a lot of time and money.

A company.  The thing we always forget is that Disney is inherently a company.  Their main goal, among entertaining millions of people, is to make money, to expand their business, and to give people what they want so that they will become loyal Disney consumers or continue being loyal consumers.  Can we really fault Disney then, for creating products that they know consumers will love and purchase?  The magic band is a great idea that is contingent on the current societal trend.  As Croslin describes it, “No matter how often we say we’re creeped out by technology, we tend to acclimate quickly if it delivers what we want before we want it.”  Society is becoming less and less impatient, yearning to become immediately satisfied instead of having to wait, and is largely influenced by technology.  In fact, I would consider it a surprise that it took Disney until 2013 to come up with this idea.

Access to Multiple Disney Attractions

Honestly, if I was an avid Disney World visitor or had young children, I would probably invest in this magical wristband.  The band would save so much time and energy spent on the little things, and allow you to enjoy your full “Disney Experience” better.  Imagine not having to carry around money with you, not having to wait to get seated in a restaurant, or even risk losing your room key. There are so many benefits to this device that it is actually hard not to purchase, if you plan to visit the park often.  I’ve been on vacations with small children, and I could definitely tell you that these wristbands would’ve be so useful.  Therefore, I’d be cautious of these bands and be aware of what personal information Disney could attain from it, but most likely make the purchase.

Many perks of the magical bands are shown here: https://www.travelingmom.com/2016/01/14/12-questions-answered-disneys-magicbands/

Struggling to decide your viewpoint on these Magic Band, or determining whether or not to make the purchase, view this sit to obtain more information: http://www.themeparkinsider.com/flume/201311/3756/