Disney Headlines for June 25th, 2024
This week in Disney Headlines, would you play a game within a commercial?
Also, how big a deal is the Disney Lake Nona lawsuit, and how is Inside Out 2 doing so well?
Interactive Commercials?
I don’t often discuss the advertising side of Disney, much to my wife’s chagrin, as she’s an expert on the subject.
She’ll casually mention a DSP, and then I’ll have to Google most of her conversation to understand what she even means.
Photo: Disney
However, a Headline this past week has become a point of emphasis for Disney.
Currently, executives are trying to crack the code on how to market to the gaming generation that drives the 18-49 demographic.
Photo: Disney, Epic Games
Other Disney executives had to drag a kicking and screaming Bob Iger into the Epic Games deal.
Disney’s CEO was simply too old to understand the necessity of his company having a strong gaming presence.
Photo: EPIC Games
Fortunately, Disney hires plenty of bright executives, and Iger’s not someone who ignores the advice of others. (Bob Chapek should feel attacked right now.)
That’s why this story caught my attention. According to The Verge, “advergames” are coming to Disney+ and Hulu.
Photo: Epic Games
For all I know, this initiative may have already started. I have the ad-free version of the streaming channels. So, I’ll never see this.
The idea sounds fascinating, though. During commercial breaks, you may be served one of two advergames.
What Are the Advergames?
One is Quiz Show, and it’ll provide a series of questions to keep viewers engaged during the commercial.
The other is Beat the Clock, which is the idea that fascinates me. It sounds like a non-starter, yet I can envision it becoming popular.
Photo: BrightLine
With Beat the Clock, you use your remote control “to land golf balls into specific targets.”
Effectively, you’re playing Topgolf on your remote during an ad break.
Photo: Disney
Advertisers worry that viewers naturally tune out commercials because so many of them are prescription drugs for old people.
With advergames, Disney can reassure its sponsors that viewers are engaging with the content.
Photo: Disney
For example, during Quiz Show, branded ads will appear simultaneously with the questions. You can’t see one without the other.
That’s an innovative approach to a field that has struggled mightily this century.
Photo: Disney
If I were a betting man, I’d predict that Quiz Show will prove more popular since viewers don’t need to fumble for their remotes as much.
I’ll change my opinion if the Topgolf game proves addictive to play, which is a distinct possibility.
Photo: BrightLine
To me, the funniest part of the deal is a completely irrelevant side note.
The name of Disney’s partner in advergames is…BrightLine. No, not that one. It’s this company.
Photo: BrightLine
You can watch a demonstration of the trivia game here. And here is a (non-golf) example of Beat the Clock.
What do you think? Is this a good advertising idea or a waste of everyone’s time and money?
Employees Sue Disney
Last week, the most predictable lawsuit in recent memory finally came to pass.
I’m not joking when I say I’ve been waiting for this since May 2023. It was inevitable.
Photo: Disney
The Walt Disney Company told workers that their jobs were moving from California to Florida, with or without them.
Many of these workers dreamt of being Cast Members and Imagineers their entire lives.
Photo: Central Florida Development Council
So, they grudgingly agreed to uproot their lives and change coasts.
The problem was that their new office was supposed to be in Lake Nona, Florida at a facility that remains unbuilt.
Photo: Lake Nona
After feuding with Florida political officials, Disney chose to cancel the Lake Nona project.
While that was the right move at the time, it was an infuriating turn of events for many workers.
Photo: centralfloridaprimerealestate.com
You don’t need to possess much empathy to appreciate their frustration.
Their employer demanded that they move. Otherwise, they’d lose their jobs. Then, the move proved needless.
Photo: The Business Journals
At the time, I wondered why Disney required workers to relocate long before the building’s construction had begun.
Realistically, I’m giving Chapek too much benefit of the doubt there. He wanted to reduce the headcount and bring in his own people.
Photo: Tavistock Development Company
Many Disney workers called that bluff by moving to Central Florida. Ridiculously, their jobs never moved with them, though.
Once again, those same folks are having to switch coasts again, returning to California.
The Ramifications of a Serious Blunder
As I said the other day, Disney wins in court so often that I’m shocked at the rare instances when they lose.
Since people get confused on this point, a loss is when a judge actually sides against Disney on a final decision, not some pre-trial ruling.
Photo: Disney
When Disney is in danger of losing, it typically settles, which explains why Magic Key owners are currently receiving checks.
Disney’s exposure with the Lake Nona move is ridiculously high. So, you can expect this to be a Headline indefinitely.
Photo: Disney
People will follow every aspect of this case unless Disney gets ahead of it and makes an offer.
Disney originally “asked” roughly 2,000 workers to move. It’s unclear how many of them actually did.
Photo: Disney
Even if only ten percent of them switched coasts, Disney’s exposure here could be in the eight-figure range on a settlement, even more on a court judgment.
That’s why I think Disney should make private offers to everyone involved.
Photo: Raftermen 2018
This one’s a PR nightmare waiting to unfold. It’s just a bad look for Disney to treat its workers like this.
Inside Out 2 Could Be Pixar’s Biggest Hit
Incredibles 2 earned $1.243 billion in the global box office, making it Pixar’s biggest blockbuster to date.
However, that record is in danger due to the ascending Inside Out 2. I can’t believe I’m typing that, but it’s true.
Image: Pixar
As MickeyBlog has documented, Inside Out 2 is an absolute juggernaut at the box office.
This past weekend, it earned another 100 million domestically and has grossed $724 million worldwide, making it the number one film of the year.
Image: Pixar
This seems like a good time to mention that Inside Out 2 has only been in theaters for ten days.
In fact, the movie’s performance has been so stunning that I’m not even sure which point to emphasize.
Image: Pixar
Last year, we cheered on Elemental as the plucky film relied on word-of-mouth to shock everyone who wrote it off after its opening weekend.
Elemental debuted under $30 million but fought its way to $154.4 million domestically and $496 million overall.
Wade and Ember
Even Pixar executives were dubious that it’d reach $460 million, and they said that after the film had been out for a month.
Elemental just plugged along until it became profitable and then some. It was a triumphant story for Pixar.
Photo: Samsung
Folks, Inside Out 2 beat Elemental’s total in eight days. Similarly, it was the number one domestic release of 2024 by Friday.
We’re halfway through the year! How did a film become the biggest worldwide blockbuster after just ten days?
Image: Pixar
I’ve covered the box office for more than 25 years, and I can assure you that this sort of thing is rare, bordering on unprecedented.
Since Inside Out 2 is already more than halfway to Incredibles 2’s total after just ten days, that record appears likely to fall.
Image: Pixar
We never know for sure, especially these days, but Inside Out 2 has a real chance to become Pixar’s first $1.5 billion hit.
In fact, the film is already nearly halfway there! It may be there by the time you read this.
Thanks for visiting MickeyBlog.com! Want to go to Disney? For a FREE quote on your next Disney vacation, please fill out the form below, and one of the agents from MickeyTravels, a Diamond Level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, will be in touch soon!
