Wearable tech

Image: shinyasuzuki, Flickr (license)

Disney made a foray into this space when it debuted MagicBands at Walt Disney World in 2013, but it hasn’t iterated on the idea since its debut 5 years ago. This is made more baffling by the rapid innovation in wearable technology over that same time span.  

In the interest of full disclosure, I am an Apple Watch wearer and, as such, I’m a firm believer in the potential of this technology. But what has been surprising isn’t just that Disney hasn’t adapted some of the Apple Watch’s best features to its MagicBands — rather, it’s that Disney hasn’t better integrated its apps with the wearable tech on the market. 

MyDisneyExperience has no Apple Watch app. This is more shocking when you consider the potential uses: Having FastPass+ notifications appear on screen or having your return window displayed on a custom watch face; real-time wait time notifications for popular rides; full itinerary watch faces that keep you updated as to the next step on your trip. 

Disney has a relationship with Apple and could easily build out a fully-featured WatchOS app. If they created that app in concert with a themed watch band you could only get at Walt Disney World, Disney would create a de facto Deluxe Magic Band. Talk about a license to print money. 

AR and VR

Image: Marco Verch, Flickr (license)

Disney began dipping its toe into the water of at-scale virtual realty with DisneyQuest back in 1998, and for the most part, it was a lukewarm success at best. The technology and graphics became quickly dated, were costly to operate, and were even more costly to update.  

But that was 20th century VR, and now that we’re comfortably in the 21st century, the technology has grown dramatically. 

Consumer-grade VR can be had for a few hundred dollars all in, and it already provides an experience far greater than the DisneyQuest attractions of old. The more expensive industrial and commercial uses are in a brand new class altogether, and Disney has shown a willingness to experience with this technology by introducing The Void’s “Secrets of the Empire” experience at Disney Springs.

But that experiment should be the beginning of a larger move for Disney Parks. VR, and its cousin AR (augmented reality), have the ability to change Disney’s approach to themed entertainment forever. Imagine a Disney Attractions Hall of Fame, where guests could pay a fee to ride virtual reconstructions of famous defunct Disney rides. Or, for something more current, imagine an attraction like Star Tours, only instead of a randomized flight experience, guests get to choose their own. 

Disney has long been about immersive entertainment, and at the moment, there is no immersion quite like well-executed VR. The company is only beginning to explore where that technology might lead, but here’s hoping they dive fully into the tech in their next generation of attraction design.