"Rapid Fill" Mugs coming to WDW Resorts

[Cardinals314]

Disney is making money with sodas since the cost of supply is so cheap for them because of the shear amount Disney buys. The parks will stay with the current system. If they did, Disney would have to charge more for in park mugs than the resort ones.

[elissa65]

Lots of opinions here
http://www.orlandoparksnews.com/2013/07 ... y.html?m=1

[Wizzard419]

I do wonder, with all the resources required for the system, will there be an increase in revenue? The product in question is cheap, and the changes are not.

[elissa65]

wow, there is a market for these on eBay. I have a kitchen cabinet full of these mugs. never thought about going home and re-selling them.

[Cardinals314]

I do wonder, with all the resources required for the system, will there be an increase in revenue? The product in question is cheap, and the changes are not.

You can look at the Magic Bands for that idea. Disney Parks and Resorts Chairman Tom Staggs has said in an interview that MyMagic+ has boosted sales during recent test periods. I can see the revenue increasing over time with the drinks.

[Wizzard419]

I call bulls*it on his claim without something to back it up. Even with the ease to make the money flow out of guests like Midwestern piñatas, I doubt they actively increased the average spend per guest but rather impacted the avenue through which they pay (card, cash, or charge to the room).

The magicbands do have more potential though, since they are supposedly going to be used for various interactive elements as opposed to just being room keys, tickets, and charge cards.

[Cardinals314]

I call bulls*it on his claim without something to back it up. Even with the ease to make the money flow out of guests like Midwestern piñatas, I doubt they actively increased the average spend per guest but rather impacted the avenue through which they pay (card, cash, or charge to the room).

The magicbands do have more potential though, since they are supposedly going to be used for various interactive elements as opposed to just being room keys, tickets, and charge cards.

Here is the article about the sales. There is no description of how much the sales increased though
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-1 ... -test.html

[Len90]

I personally would like to know if the bands are increasing sales due to the fact they can help impulse buying rather than just playing with technology.

As for the mugs, if Disney can in the long run make the expenditure on the mug technology offset by the increase in the number of mugs sold each year then yes it will be profitable for Disney. You are correct that the soda costs Disney next to nothing. When you go to quick serve location the odds are that the cup and lid will have cost Disney more than the soda inside the cup. Also when you talk about the bottles, non resort guests would still be fair game for those and I think bottles cost more than fountain soda.

[Wizzard419]

Yeah, he doesn't spell out how exactly and as there is no penalty for him not being truthful about the impact of the bands, it doesn't hurt him.

If the concept of the re-fillable mug were new to where they were being used it might have an impact on sales, but as the mugs were already a fixture of the resorts it probably will not have any impact on future sales since they would be well aware of it regardless of the presence of the RF tags. Likewise, people who cheated the system in the past will probably use various bypasses (such as sharing a mug) to get past the system now. So in the end, they just end up pushing more money to prevent shrinkage of one of the cheapest (for them) food items they sell.

[cy1229]

Here's the skeptic in me coming out...

Did you all see that the refrigerators are being removed from all Disney resorts because of a possible defect? They're going to be returned slowly over an extended period of time. In the meantime, families counting on having the fridge so they can do milk, cereal, juice, or maybe a bagel and cream cheese in their hotel room, and freezing bottles of water the night before for cold water in the parks, won't have those options.

So the skeptic in me wonders if the refrigerator announcement is tied into the RFID resort mug announcement. Otherwise it's just an amazing coincidence. Since it would be really difficult, and a major pain, to get bottles of water, juice, and soda cold in your room with an ice bucket, buying cold ones in the park or other options, such as Hey! We have this great refillable mug! would become more of a necessity.

Y'all follow my thinking? Comments?

[Cardinals314]

Here's the skeptic in me coming out...

Did you all see that the refrigerators are being removed from all Disney resorts because of a possible defect? They're going to be returned slowly over an extended period of time. In the meantime, families counting on having the fridge so they can do milk, cereal, juice, or maybe a bagel and cream cheese in their hotel room, and freezing bottles of water the night before for cold water in the parks, won't have those options.

So the skeptic in me wonders if the refrigerator announcement is tied into the RFID resort mug announcement. Otherwise it's just an amazing coincidence. Since it would be really difficult, and a major pain, to get bottles of water, juice, and soda cold in your room with an ice bucket, buying cold ones in the park or other options, such as Hey! We have this great refillable mug! would become more of a necessity.

Y'all follow my thinking? Comments?

It is an interesting coincidence, but I don't think it's really a conspiracy of some kind. The following units are NOT affected according to Disney:

- All DVC units, including Studio, 1, 2 and 3 BR units
- Art of Animation Family Suites
- All Star Music Family Suites
- Cabins at Fort Wilderness

When I was there in March, our refrigerator wasn't plugged in when I arrived. It sounds to me like there's a safety issue, and that has to trump everything else.

[cy1229]

Here's the skeptic in me coming out...

Did you all see that the refrigerators are being removed from all Disney resorts because of a possible defect? They're going to be returned slowly over an extended period of time. In the meantime, families counting on having the fridge so they can do milk, cereal, juice, or maybe a bagel and cream cheese in their hotel room, and freezing bottles of water the night before for cold water in the parks, won't have those options.

So the skeptic in me wonders if the refrigerator announcement is tied into the RFID resort mug announcement. Otherwise it's just an amazing coincidence. Since it would be really difficult, and a major pain, to get bottles of water, juice, and soda cold in your room with an ice bucket, buying cold ones in the park or other options, such as Hey! We have this great refillable mug! would become more of a necessity.

Y'all follow my thinking? Comments?

It is an interesting coincidence, but I don't think it's really a conspiracy of some kind. The following units are NOT affected according to Disney:

- All DVC units, including Studio, 1, 2 and 3 BR units
- Art of Animation Family Suites
- All Star Music Family Suites
- Cabins at Fort Wilderness

When I was there in March, our refrigerator wasn't plugged in when I arrived. It sounds to me like there's a safety issue, and that has to trump everything else.

The fridges at DVC are a different design than the minifridges in the resorts, so that doesn't surprise me. And I would imagine that the Family Suites also have different style fridges, as do Ft. Wilderness cabins, because they're almost full-sized.

You're right, safety does trump everything else. Still... It's the skeptical scientist in me coming out.

[Amy]

Here's the skeptic in me coming out...

Did you all see that the refrigerators are being removed from all Disney resorts because of a possible defect? They're going to be returned slowly over an extended period of time. In the meantime, families counting on having the fridge so they can do milk, cereal, juice, or maybe a bagel and cream cheese in their hotel room, and freezing bottles of water the night before for cold water in the parks, won't have those options.

So the skeptic in me wonders if the refrigerator announcement is tied into the RFID resort mug announcement. Otherwise it's just an amazing coincidence. Since it would be really difficult, and a major pain, to get bottles of water, juice, and soda cold in your room with an ice bucket, buying cold ones in the park or other options, such as Hey! We have this great refillable mug! would become more of a necessity.

Y'all follow my thinking? Comments?

Interesting theory cy1229, but I'm guessing it is on the up and up.
And have you ever tried to freeze anything in those tiny fridge freezers? I don't know that that is even possible

[Wizzard419]

When I had one they were so cold that if you left anything in them in the fridge for a few days it would freeze.

They actually are really good for making crystal clear ice because they can stay at just about freezing rather than way below.

[dsnymommy]

I hope that they phase them back in soon. I still buy plenty when I'm at the resorts, but I loved getting a juice the night before and then having it cold the next morning. I wasn't brining much from home, and I would have bought it regardless when I went down for breakfast, but I personally enjoyed having it while I was getting ready. I also liked having the little fridge there so that I could take my dessert back to the room and have it later. It would actually have made me purchase less because rather than going back for it later, I would instead have just decided to not have dessert rather than spending the money on it when I wasn't hungry.