3/17: D-Day

[KevinYee]

A rare voice of disagreement from the (very marginalized) "collector"... and I don't mean "everything-Disneyana" collector":

I too remember the 2005 Yearbook.... and I'm glad that I bought it in the first year, for it's now out of print and presumably hard to find. I'm taking the same approach with the D23 magazine. I did sign up, mostly because I'm a fantatical completist when it comes to print materials from Disney. I do recognize that most are not like me, though. And I share the belief that $75/year is way too steep for "value," though it is not steep ENOUGH to deter this particular "book completist."

[grrandram]

I'm a Disney fan from way back and I looked into D23 and I wasn't impressed. $75 for a quarterly magazine, a card and certificate, special events and a discount to the D23 Expo? Oh, and a "surprise gift". It's not worth the money.

Disney used to have a quarterly magazine. They just stopped publishing it. Am I supposed to get excited over a membership card and a certificate? Whoopee!

I might have signed up if I knew what the "surprise gift" was, and I thought it would be cool to have.

They might have had more people signing up if they offered FREE admission to the D23 Expo. But instead you'll get a discount? No I won't, because I'm keeping my $75.

[BlueSkyDriveBy]

Originally Posted by Club 33

The quality of the events and materials that unofficial groups have been able to put together (Celebration 25 and Laughing Place Magazine come to mind) mean Disney is capable of so much more if they can overcome their own beaurocracy.

[DavePurz]

Another BIG problem I have with D23 is that Annual Passholders originally would get invited to or have "access" to special merchandise events. Those Passholder Exclusive events have pretty much disappeared. Now they come up with D23 and we're expected to pay $75 for that which was a perk to APs.

I feel this diminishes the value of having an Annual Pass.

[surffnutt3000]

Originally Posted by cellarhound

I still think Disney needs to up the stakes here and give fans more bang for that $75. I think we are all in agreement on that.

I certainly am. There's little value here, based on what we know so far. For example:

What's the surprise gift?

How much is the regular cost of the Expo? What's the reduced price?

Is the magazine really going to be worth $16, issue after issue?

I don't know...if I was still collecting an allowance I might join. I happen to work full-time. It may not be everyone's decision, but I need to spend the money I earn much more wisely.

[sediment]

Originally Posted by DavePurz

Another BIG problem I have with D23 is that Annual Passholders originally would get invited to or have "access" to special merchandise events. Those Passholder Exclusive events have pretty much disappeared. Now they come up with D23 and we're expected to pay $75 for that which was a perk to APs.

I feel this diminishes the value of having an Annual Pass.

It's almost not worth it to have an AP? If only 700,000 others agreed....

[WDW1974]

Originally Posted by grrandram

I might have signed up if I knew what the "surprise gift" was, and I thought it would be cool to have.

The two cheapest things that can be given are pins (SPECIAL LE PINS!!!) or free park passes.

One item costs them about a dime to make and the other item has no cost whatsoever.

Maybe, it will be a special member's only litho ... those cost a little bit.

~I ain't buying~

[zeitzeuge]

I also don't post here often, but wanted to throw my two cents out there for what it's worth, which is probably nothing. Yes, does Al write anything that's positive?

Few observations:

1. Although there are SO many people ripping D23 to shreds as if it's some sort of personal attack on them, there are just as many people who love the site and what it has to offer. You can't please everybody all of the time. It must be doing pretty well since a few items have already sold out and are on back order. Meeting their expectations maybe? Don't know.

2. For pin (not 850 dollar PENS) collectors or people who want a tshirt, hoodie or something else, there's all sorts of price ranges. Not everything is an 850 dollar pen. They're catering to all income levels. If there's someone who wants to pay $1300 for a glicee or over priced pen then why not?

3. The website is FREE and full of articles and information. The $75 covers the 4 magazines a year. And don't call them magazines, they're more like coffee table books. I have one that I bought at Barnes and Noble last week. You can't call it a mag when it has a glued binding, high gloss heavy stock paper and incredible photographs. $15 more and you get the membership.

4. Already received a pin from the boutique. Already received a D23 pin from DisneyMovieRewards. Already have a stockholder release pin as well as a DL park pin release. I collect pins, so I'm happy about that.

5. My membership kit is already shipped. I'll know more about what you get on your first mailing and what the free gift is.

6. Expo tickets for members is $30, non members $37. Fourth day is free for everyone if you buy 3. They're claiming from what I'm reading, something along the lines of Comic Con. Disney forums, collectables, Disney Archives Display, special speakers, movie previews. What's not to like? Other conventions have ran 100 a day or more.

7. Site has already had updated articles, so they're not letting the site sit there stagnant with no new articles or information.

8. Give the site a chance. Sure, it might only last a year and flop. That's true. At least they're trying something new. If it does take off and continues to offer us deals such as movie passes, discounts and merchandise, I'm glad I'm a charter member. It's not like AP holders, DVC members and Club 33 members don't get any sort of exclusive rights for being members. Those three are out of my price range, so I'm glad I can at least join this one.

[Werner Weiss]

Originally Posted by zeitzeuge

1. Although there are SO many people ripping D23 to shreds as if it's some sort of personal attack on them, there are just as many people who love the site and what it has to offer. You can't please everybody all of the time. It must be doing pretty well since a few items have already sold out and are on back order. Meeting their expectations maybe? Don't know.

I wouldn't characterize the comments about D23 in Al's article, in this thread, or elsewhere on the Internet as "ripping D23 to shreds."

First, I don't recall anybody complaining about the D23 website.

There is legitimate discussion about whether it's worth spending $74.99 on a membership that provides a one-year subscription to a $15.95 quarterly publication and a few other benefits (which may or may not be of value to the prospective member). The Expo discount is only of value to people who are in a position to attend the Expo. $75 buys a lot of groceries, or even a fair number of movie tickets.

And there's legitimate discussion of whether the quarterly publication is worth the price, regardless of the quality of the binding and paper. Is the content worth the cost? How much of the content is new, genuinely interesting to the prospective member, not available elsewhere, and worth keeping on the bookshelf or coffee table for years to come?

I don't recall anyone saying that people should not buy $19.95 pins or $1,495.95 limited-edition cels, or that Disney should not sell them.

However, some people strongly believe that D23 is only another Disney initiative to sell expensive collectables, and others may have come away from DisneyShopping.com wondering if that's the case. I don't think that's the core mission of D23, but the way that DisneyShopping.com presented D23 on March 10, I can see why some people saw it as that.

Clearly, some Disney fans already feel that $75 for a year of D23 is money well spent. Other Disney fans have decided it's not for them. And it seems quite a few Disney fans are taking a wait-and-see approach.

[sediment]

What is the point in creating D23 if DIS can sell this stuff without creating it? Anyone think that anything sold exclusively to D23 members will not get out to the general market eventually? So, having a D23 membership is not really required in order to buy this "exclusive" merchandise. Will you be able to purchase these items at a lower-than-market rate? Maybe. DIS probably knows better what the market prices are, and it's only a matter of time before that difference is dropped to zero. One thing it does is it allows DIS to plan better in advance how many of everything to make, so there are none left over.

[TDSTOM]

I find it a little strange that Al is surprised he was invited to the conference call; 1/2 his banner ad $$$ for this very site is from Disney itself. He would be on their list of people to call.

If the mag is $16 a pop that $64 dollars right there, so you get everything else for another $11? Not too outrageous when you look at it that way.


Thomas

[Werner Weiss]

Originally Posted by TDSTOM

If the mag is $16 a pop that $64 dollars right there, so you get everything else for another $11? Not too outrageous when you look at it that way.

That math would work for someone who feels the quarterly magazine is worth at least $16 a pop and that the membership card, certificate, "surprise gift," and anything else are worth at least $11. As I wrote in my earlier reply, "some Disney fans already feel that $75 for a year of D23 is money well spent."

If someone is only interested in a few of the articles in the quarterly, and doesn't attach a big value to the nice paper, printing, and binding, then the quarterly is not worth $16 a pop, so the other membership benefits become more important in justifying the $75.

How much value does each Disney fan attach to the membership card and certificate? One podcaster attached a huge value to them; having these D23 documents was the next best thing to a Club 33 membership. On the other hand, I attach no value to the documents. I probably wouldn't throw the card away until it expires, in case it eventually provides some other benefits.

The D23 Expo discount is good for someone who will attend the D23 Expo. I live in the Chicago area. I have airline tickets to visit Southern California with my wife and kids this year, but not during the Expo.

The D23 team has said that the "surprise gift" is not a pin. Presumably, it's a reproduction of something from the Disney Archives, either an object or something that's printed. Or maybe it's a D23 logo item. In any case, at this point, I attach zero value to the "surprise gift." I don't want a dust collector or something that will require wall space in my home. Perhaps, once I find out what D23 members are receiving, I'll want it too, and my opinion about its value will change.

I realize this reply comes across as quite negative. I'm not trying to be negative. I'm just trying to explain why the math doesn't work out for me.

If the focus of the quarterly changes from "all things Disney" (such as features about High School Musical stars and news about upcoming movies) to timeless content that is worth keeping on the bookshelf for years to come, then my opinion of the quarterly's value will change.

If D23 adds membership benefits that are really benefits, not just pieces of paper, then my opinion of the value of membership will change.

[BlueSkyDriveBy]

Originally Posted by TDSTOM

If the mag is $16 a pop that $64 dollars right there, so you get everything else for another $11? Not too outrageous when you look at it that way.

From what I'm reading, that seems to be one of the major complaints: "the mag is $16 a pop."

Even though the production value is high as Werner pointed out, it's still pricey. Unlike the now dearly departed Disney Magazine that came free with the AP years ago, this is a serious chunk of change. And there's no established history to judge future issues against, as was the case with the fabulous E-Ticket magazine.

I don't blame fans for taking the wait-and-see approach here, especially when disposable income is so tight these days. And for some of us who have the money to spend, we'd still rather spend it elsewhere. We've been burned once too often by Disney's fickle finger of marketing fate.

[Tomorrowland67]

I miss E-Ticket magazine and the Magic Kingdom Club.

[daliseurat]

Werner has it 100% right. (As usual)

The extra 11 or so dollars for the club isn't a big deal. I'd pay it and take my chances that the club's going to be something special. But the price point of the magazine is the problem. It's expensive. And Disney has a track record of putting out magazines that don't really have the best content. Honestly, if Disney is putting out 64 pages of killer content I can't get anywhere else, I'm in. But, my experience has been that every other Disney magazine made by someone ELSE has been way better than Disney's own. Now if the D23 magazine could be a hybrid of Persistence of Vision, E-Ticket, and Tales from the Laughing Place, they'd really have something. And we all know the folks at the archives know exactly what material should go into it.

But, I do love the website. So I'm hopeful.