Disney (DIS) is hoping to make it big in Mainland China.
The entertainment giant is unveiling plans for its new mega resort opening in the spring in Shanghai. The Shanghai Disneyland park will have six themed areas-- including one dedicated to the Pirates of the Caribbean movie franchise and another featuring a TRON Lightcycle ride-- and of course, Disney characters such as Mickey Mouse and Elsa from Frozen. CEO Bob Iger says the 1.5 square mile Shanghai Disney Resort will celebrate and incorporate China’s heritage to create a “one-of-a-kind” destination.
But Yahoo Finance’s Aaron Task notes the company has had some difficulties previously in that part of the globe.
“Hong Kong Disney struggled the first six years or so,” he explains. “Then Disney realized it had to invest more money because it was viewed as too small, there wasn’t enough to do and they didn’t get enough people coming to the park. So this is a very big bet in Mainland China for Disney.”
Task adds that because of the iron grip the Chinese government has on what foreign media companies are allowed to show, this new park will be even more important as a revenue generator for the company.
“Here in the United States, Disney puts out a movie and people go to see it and they sell a lot of product around that movie-- think about Frozen as the most recent, primary example,” he says. “It’s all about the toys and the games and the hats and all the stuff after the movie comes out. And if you can’t release all your movies, it’s kind of tough to sell the merchandise.”
So Task sees Disney using Shanghai Disneyland in a way that’s the reverse of the usual Disney method of marketing.
“They’re going to have to do a lot of things to make this a destination on its own and in a way use the park to introduce people to their characters-- like the Star Wars characters and Marvel Comics superheroes,” he argues. “And then maybe hope someday they can get them to watch the movies around them.”