A once-free service for all Disney Parks guests is getting another rate increase as Disney looks to find the ceiling for what guests will pay.
Last year we did a study on Genie+ and whether or not it was providing guests with a worthwhile benefit at Walt Disney World Resort. Our findings were not necessarily positive. Only in situations where a Disney theme park was extremely crowded did we find a need for Genie+ in order to experience more rides than without having the service. On days of moderate or low crowds, we found that Genie+ was essentially a waste of money. We also found that posted wait times since the introduction of Genie+ had become “wonky” — a queue that says it is even up to 45 minutes near closing time is likely a walk-on. Yet that inflated wait time on an app and at the front of the queue, whether intentionally or unintentionally, has the effect of making a Genie+ buyer feel they skipped a huge line at the end of the day. Almost always, they didn’t.
Yet Genie+ has been a hit with Disney leadership. Fifty percent of buyers pick up the Genie+ and, according to the a roundtable discussion Disney Parks President Josh D’Amaro did recently, thirty-three percent of returning guests pick up Genie+ for a second time. From the standpoint of guests being pleased with the service, it’s a loss: less than half those who bought it the first time are interested in having it again. However, from a saturation point of view, Disney sees Genie+ as a major win. If 50% of your guests are buying it on their first trip and 33% of returning guests are using it, that’s a majority. A majority of guests are spending hundreds of dollars to skip lines that largely aren’t there except at peak seasons.
Now, Disney Parks is increasing the cost of Genie+ for Disneyland, and if we know anything about how Disney Parks operates, this is a sign of what is to come for Walt Disney World.
Disneyland Resort Raises Genie+ Price By 25% – https://t.co/1Lr3MLQRjJ #Disneyland
— Disney News Network (@DisNewNet) October 11, 2022
Disney is smart when it comes to easing customers into a cost increase. The fee for Disneyland was $20. Now, they’re starting it off at $25 with the price increase. That’s only a five dollar increase for what amounts to a pseudo second-round ticket that a majority of guests have (while still keeping the gate ticket at the same price for marketing reasons). However, the trick is that Disneyland is saying the price will now vary depending on the season and that the starting point for Genie+ at Disneyland is $25. That means come Christmastime, that Genie+ price could go up to, let’s say, $40!
You can imagine that if over half your guests are using Genie+ and you increase it by such an amount, that’s millions upon millions of dollars in increased revenue. And so far, guests haven’t pushed back. So if you’re wondering why Disney keeps raising the prices on non-ticket supplements for the parks, it’s because guests keep buying them. If you’re a business looking to make more money for your shareholders, wouldn’t you do the same?
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