Nancy and I joined about an hour before the official announcement was even made. Apparently, they opened up the section of DisneyShopping.com for sales of the membership before it was even announced.
Not me. If I want the magazine I will just go to B&N and buy it. Hopefully in a few months when not enough people have joined they will add more to sweeten the pot. I am hoping for downloadable video of past rides and archival photos. They (Disney) have such a vast archive that if they really put in an effort they could produce decent DVD's for each ride with history and construction photos. I have the Treasures series of DVD's and there is ALOT of interesting stuff in them, I think those DVD's are just the tip of the iceberg in terms of footage and interviews. Wow, I went off a little there....sorry.
i have all but about 6 or 7 of the treasures dvd's. the disneyland one from about 2 years ago is incredible.
Disney has already made it clear that more perks are coming in the future. They are working on possible tie-in with DVC members and AP holders
We probably won't join, but not out of protest or anything devious or angry. It's funny that d23 wants to make sure this doesn't turn into the disneyana conventions. Dina and I used to go to public day in the mid nineties and ALWAYS had a blast. Sitting in line for 5-6 hours and socializing with other Disney nuts was always fun. Remeber this was kind of pre-internet and 56k was top speed, so we didnt do too much surfing and forums! It was always fun to watch the groups of people go into the main room and come out excited or disappointed that what they wanted was already gone. The main room was like a Disney flea market, and Mickey's attic was AWESOME! we got one of our 25th banners in Mickey's Attic!
I haven't decided yet myself. Probably like the others, I may see if anything else comes of it by way of perks or exclusives...and to see what the DVC tie in or annual pass tie ins are if any.
You are a "charter member" so long as you register by 2009 (if I read the fine print correctly), so I planning to wait and see what else will happen. Also, I want it confirmed that the magazine is not just a really pretty commercial and that it will be packed with meaty information not easily available somewhere else.
I tend to agree with Deniz. For me to join they are really going to have to sweeten the deal, because I don't see it as a value at $75 at the moment. I guess my wife is rubbing off on me.
I won't be joining. A) Disney's track record with these things. Remember the MKC: they used to use it as perk for their shareholders that you had to pay a little bit extra for...that went away. So did the Disney magazine.... B) Disney's events for fans usually turn into an exclusive merchandise event. I am a survivor of DL's POTC 2000 event. Completely sold out, and after the previous summers' problem with the Haunted Mansion event, they changed everything to make it more fair to buy the exclusive merchandise. (HM was first come first serve, and eBay was the #1 destination for the goods) People were on Main Street til the park opened the next day to get their merchandise...one line. And it still wasn't that exclusive unless you were buying the expensive stuff. Things like the VR "walkthrough" of the ride ended up on the Black Pearl DVD. And the CD was released to the general public. But to be honest, this was inevitable. When Mousefest got big enough it would attract Disney's attention, and Mousefest just got too big to be for free and run by volunteers. Naturally, who has the pockets to have those kind of events? And do they actually do things for free? The D23 gala thingy at DL is interestingly starting right after their next HM event, which at $400+ a pop, seems odd in the current economy, but it sold out quickly. And the last thing...will the D23 community go contrary to the official stance on stuff? There was a huge outcry and attempt to stop Disney from implementing IASW Under New Management (I'm withholding judgment until I see it in 5 weeks), so what would D23's view be? Having an official Fan Club is one thing...but making a community with the expectations of Web 2.0, and opinions of those who are members may be interesting to watch. Perhaps I should join and get some popcorn.... ;D
Roger, I highly doubt the "voice" of the unofficial community will ever be stifled. Even if D23 becomes an army of loyal community members, there would still be the outlet for an outcry for issues like the distaste for the IASW refurb (my sister-in-law who lives in Long Beach and is at Disneyland at least once a week, loves the changes). Any attempts by "the company" to stifle such voices would most definitely be met with painful attacks on their pocketbook.
Ahh, yes, but D23 is the "official" community. And while the unofficial communities will still be out there, the question is how much in the fringe will they be? And even then, the fringe elements can still ruin things. Personally, I never got to witness Light Magic. But Emperor Pressler stepped on his own foot on that one by having the APs buy tickets to the exclusive unveiling then telling them that night it was only a dress rehearsal (not to mention selling off the light bulbs of the MSEP which glowed out FOREVER hahahah)...no wonder it became the first ever Disney Internet Fanatic revolt, leading to Light Magic's demise. But when you consider the problems they had with that parade, it's amazing that they got the bugs worked out by doing a similar thing with the Block Party Bash. I think they should have given the parade a chance. We'll probably see something else this summer when Remember gets shelved in place of something a little more SCAQMD* friendly. I meant "non-ride closure" friendly. *: Justin, this is the South Coast Air Quality Management District. Did you know that Disney uses their biodiesel and parking lot tram credits to run the fireworks show? And that's why the subs are electric now?
I'm in the wait and see mode myself. I don't see a great deal of benefit right now to forking over $75 for each membership based on what they are making available. The magazine sounds nice, but I can't help but feel that a lot of that information will be free on the internet before you know it. I don't plan on going to the convention so there is no "savings" there. Right now it looks more like an opportunity to sign up for the ability to spend more money on various collectibles. I'll keep watching to see if Disney makes more details about what members will have access to online. I would be very interested if they made some of their unreleased films/shorts/footage of parks available for members to view or some type of access to the Disney archives.
great discussion, folks. i am still reserving judgment at this point but the discussion has been very provocative to say the least.
I think people, like myself, who "buy in" now are making a purchase with the hope for the future. I also know that I waste more money than $75 on useless junk at the Disney Store. Heck, I just need to abstain from a purchase of a snowglobe and it's paid for But, Nancy's family is constantly trying to find excuses for us to visit them at the West Coast and the lure of Disneyland alone is never enough. They are ecstatic that the Disney Expo is going to bring us back to their neck of the woods again this year
