Disney Headlines for October 1st, 2024
This past week, a Disneyland Magic Key owner experienced a humiliating moment in front of her small children.
Also, Disney revamped its plans to dominate on streaming by…shutting down several apps and cracking down on password-sharing.
Choices were made in the latest batch of Disney Headlines.
I Have So Many Questions
Sleeping Beauty Castle
Earlier this week, viral videos showed a mother in handcuffs at Disneyland Resort.
Security officials were escorting her off the premises as her daughters, ages 3 and 4, cried in terror.
The strangest part is that the Orange County Register described the perpetrator as a 26-year-old Magic Key owner.
In other words, Disneyland was arresting an annual passholder at the park where she had paid for a year’s worth of park admission.
Photo: Disney
You’re probably wondering why, but there’s a good reason why this happened.
The mother hadn’t paid for her daughters’ tickets. According to park rules, admission is free for children under three years old.
Once you reach three, you need a children’s admission ticket for park admission.
As mentioned, the woman’s children were 3 and 4, making them both ineligible for free admission.
World of Color
Apparently, this mother had passed the two girls off as two-year-olds several times in a matter of months.
There’s an open secret in many Disney communities that some parents lie about their children’s ages to save money. It’s been happening since the 1950s.
Halloween Time at Disneyland
This case was a particularly egregious example in that the mother kept going back, raising suspicions as Cast Members watched the children grow.
Eventually, a Disney official asked for some identification, which the mother refused to provide.
Photo: Disney
Here’s the shocking part: “Disneyland offered to let Diaz buy tickets for the children and stay in the park, but she refused the offer, police said.”
In other words, this woman could have avoided the incident by paying for her daughters’ admission. She willingly refused, which led to this:
@diz.tok That’s one way to do it #disneyland
This Isn’t Over?!
The woman has promised to tell her side of the story on her TikTok feed, which is apparently this one.
She has also threatened to sue Disney. In that eventuality, any decent attorney would tell her to remain silent until the trial.
Photo:ofx.ie
So, I’m skeptical any news will break on her TikTok. If she does say something, it’s counterproductive to her cause.
However, this single mother is facing the scorn of the entire internet right now.
Photo:seoclerk.com
Generally, when that onslaught ensues, people (understandably) don’t think clearly.
This mess could grow worse if the woman starts hurling accusations.
Photo:Rappler
From Disney’s perspective, her sneaking her children into the park at least five times could be grounds for felony charges.
That would be the equivalent of $500 in theft based on a $50 children’s ticket for two children per visit.
Photo: Wikimedia
For this reason, if I were her attorney, I’d strongly encourage her to adopt a conciliatory tone here.
With that approach, she could possibly monetize her plight by setting up a GoFundMe for sympathetic fans.
Photo: Wikimedia
Really, all she needs is enough to pay for season passes for her kids to avoid this mess.
Then again, a Disneyland trip may be a trigger for her and her kids, as it’s no longer The Happiest Place on Earth for them.
Photo:Disneycoupon.jpg
This entire incident was bizarre, and I’m mystified as to why she didn’t just pay for the tickets when Disney offered them.
That would have been $100-$200 then instead of court and legal fees now. But hindsight is 20/20.
Disney Goes a Different Way
Photo: Deadline
During the early days of the internet, streaming was a nascent technology that nobody understood how to monetize.
A few years ago, CEO Bob Iger got wise and introduced Disney+ to provide his company with a safe landing as cable television collapsed.
Bob Iger
You can think of the entirety of Disney’s streaming services as a golden parachute away from conventional television.
In between the start of streaming and the invention of Disney+, Disney tried a few things, as did Fox.
FX
Then, when Disney swallowed Fox in 2019, the Mouse controlled some of those assets like FX.
I will let you in a (fairly obvious) secret you may not know. FX is just Fox without the O.
Fox
Fox created FX as its digital entity all the way back in 1994, and it remains on the Fox studio lot to this day.
Like Disney, Fox wanted to monetize streaming. So, it tried some stuff, too.
FX NOW
My favorite of all these attempts was FXNOW, a streaming service that hosted various FX and Fox programs.
In 2013, FXX paid as much as $1 billion (depending on who you ask) for the licensing and digital rights to The Simpsons.
FX NOW
Since August 2014, FXNOW has hosted Simpsons World, a hub for most Simpsons content.
That glorious era lasted for almost exactly ten years, as Disney just shuttered FXNOW on September 23rd, 2024.
Families Streaming Disney+
Disney also shut down other apps like DisneyNOW, Freeform, ABC, and Nat Geo TV. And the reason why should be obvious.
Disney executives want you to watch that content on Disney+ and/or Hulu.
Photo: Disney
So, operating several other digital apps was counterproductive to that goal.
Thus, they had to die, much to the chagrin of many viewers. They loved the content because it was free with ads.
The Password Crackdown Begins
Photo:cnet.com
On a seemingly unrelated note, Disney has started its password crackdown. From now on, Disney+ will police usage via automation.
So, when the system recognizes multiple IP addresses using the same account, you’ll receive a notification.
Photo: Disney Careers
In polite terms, it’s a warning that you’re sharing your account, which is now apparently a huge no-no to usually family-friendly Disney.
You can add another address to your account – but only one – by paying $6.99 per month for the ad tier or $9.99 for the ad-free tier.
Image: The Wall Street Journal
Importantly, adding an extra address/account isn’t available to Disney Bundle subscribers, which means people like me are out of luck.
So, this is my public apology to my sister and my niece that they’re cut off. It wasn’t my choice but rather Disney’s.
Photo: Washington Post
The two moves in combination paint a picture about Disney’s goal to make more money from its streaming services.
Disney just discontinued its free streaming apps, forcing everyone to pay.
Photo: skillastics.com
Then, Disney+ cracked down on password sharing to prevent people living at multiple addresses from sharing.
The goal here is to get more people paying for the service, and these two tactics help in this regard.
Photo: Netflix
While Netflix took a social media beating for doing the same thing, it has added (at least) 22 million subscribers since its password-sharing crackdown.
Disney would be thrilled with half that total, and it’s willing to enable some anti-consumer/anti-family tactics to get there.
Free advice: Look for a Black Friday/Cyber Monday deal that includes annual service.
Otherwise, you should expect multiple Disney+ price increases over the next calendar year on top of the one already announced for October 17th.
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