It’s All in the Wrist: Disney Parks and Big Data By Colleen O'Brien http://www.advirtues.com/2015/11/17/its-all-in-the-wrist-disney-parks-and-big-data/                                If you’ve been to the Disney Parks located in the United States or on a Disney Cruise Line this year you might have noticed people sporting wristbands ranging from various neon colors, all with a simple Mickey Mouse symbol on it. With a wave of their wrists they’re able to skip the line as your kids groan and moan, pleading for a chance of meeting Elsa. Instead of having to deal with giving the exact cash amount or fumbling with cards as you’re buying food, they wave their hand and are off on their merry way. You might think it’s a magic band and you would be correct. It is literally called the MagicBand and is Disney Parks way of creating a new experience for their visitors to the Happiest Place on Earth. It also gives them an insane amount of access to Big Data in a perfect, controlled environment. How magical!                              

 The MagicBands are RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) enabled bracelets that debuted in late 2013 for the Walt Disney World Resort Park, but have gained momentum this past year with their expansion to the Disney Cruise Lines. They sold over 9 million units in 2014. Through the use of the website called MyMagic+, visitors can connect their wristbands to credit cards, book fast passes (up to reserving three rides without having to wait in line!), and reserve and order food ahead of time at restaurants in the park before even stepping on the premises. They work as hotel access, so instead of having to worry about losing your room key between your family members you just wave your personal wristband to enter your room. They also have an app for the band so you can update your fast passes and food orders while in the park, along with being able to see your happiest memories in visual form. In addition, when you use the wristband cast members also greet you by name preference, whether if it’s by Steve or Mr. Edwards. It’s up to you! You’re the guest!                                      You might be worrying that these MagicBands contain your personal information but Disney executives swear they don’t and that, contrary to rumor, they aren’t able to locate your child with a flip of a switch. Watch your kids you crazy parents! The value of the wristbands for Disney is that they are able to get richer customer data by seeing where people are shopping along with their habits. Disney has claimed that people with the wristbands spend more than those who don’t, but they haven’t the released the actual figures yet. How it works is that they’ve placed multiple radios around the park in various locations. The wristband acts as a frequency identifier and sends a signal, allowing Disney to essentially follow your day from which rides you prefer to finding where you’re sitting in a huge ballroom to deliver your food. It lets them know how long you’re

willing to wait in line or when something inconvenient happens, allowing them to send you a new experience. It allows them to immediately recast your memory from a bad one to a great one. Basically, it restructures how Disney responds to humanity.                          “The whole system gave Disney a way of understanding the business,” Nick Franklin, one of the developers of the MagicBand, stated in an interview. “Knowing where we need more food here, how people are flowing through the park, how people are consuming the experiential product”. Walt Disney World is the perfect place to experiment with this. Disney has total access to the information with the full permission of the numerous visitors that go through their parks. They don’t need to worry about multiple business partners or privacy issues as they own everything on the property. When you buy the ticket, you’re essentially signing a “Observe me! Film me! Document me!” clause that allows Disney to view your habits. What’s more important is that you’re probably ok with it at the time because it’s Disney. It has the halo effect that makes people feel comfortable with giving out that information for free. If Facebook or Google was doing this, the responses might be very different. Disney is allowed to test new experiences with technology that changes our notions of what we’re comfortable with. They sell you a great experience and in return you give them Big Data. It’s an idealized world that shows an idealized life in a self-contained environment, similar to a snow globe. It even has fake snow for the holiday season! So the next time you go to a Disney Park you might be having a convenient, hassle-free, great time with your family but remember. The mouse is watching you create magic for them. All it takes is the wave of your wrist.

DDDDDDDDdddddddd  Dd                              http://fortune.com/2014/12/29/disney-ceo-bob-iger-empire-of-tech/ http://www.wired.com/2015/03/disney-magicband/ https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/plan/my-disney-experience/my-magic-plus/ https://datafloq.com/read/walt-disneys-magical-approach-to-big-data/472