Why Do Consumers Submit To Such An Invasive System

Enticing the Proletariat

At this point the question might be asked, “Why do consumers submit to such an invasive system?”, and to that question there are many possible answers why Disney’s patrons would willingly choose to become part of the system. A simple answer would be that the customers understand and accept the risks and/or benefits associated with letting Disney harvest their personal data; however, the real-world answer is less clear cut. Some customers that have already used the MyMagic+ system later discover that they are uncomfortable with the amount of information Disney knows about them, but by this time it is too late for them to take any meaningful action (Dockterman; Pollack). Several strategies that Disney uses to entice increasing

The final way that Disney entices the average consumer to come to their park and use the MyMagic+ system is purely through the system’s functionality. After all, the MagicBand system was developed to give guests at the park a more streamlined and enjoyable experience, which the bands have excelled at (Palmer; Borkowski et al. 148; Fox 18). Without the bands or MyMagic+, parkgoers must wait in the standard, long lines for rides and must produce photographic identification in order to enter the park; or to quote what Huddleston and others said about the heavy use of MyMagic+ which is that “through [MyMagic+] … , Walt Disney World exploits visitors’ desires for predictability and convenience as a means to obtain valuable data that enhance and the company’s ability to control and monitor every aspect of guests’ visits to the park.” (Huddleston et al. 227). The previous quote describes the ability for Disney to passively “strong-arm” customers into getting a MagicBand, or else those who choose not to use a band will have

Some concrete evidence of the exact ways that Disney uses someone’s data besides targeted adverts, promotions, etcetera would be invaluable as currently most sources are generally speculation or inferences by those outside of Disney. It will be interesting to observe what direction Disney goes with its MagicBands in the next decade as there is already speculation that Disney may be shifting away from MagicBands and more toward using smartphones and biometrics (Pedicini). If Disney were to take the route of using more biometrics in its parks — beyond the fingerprint scanners already in use, to identify guests, a new evaluation of Disney’s privacy and data storage policies would be in order. It would also be interesting to know if MyMagic+ or another similar system expands to Disney’s other parks around the world. No matter the future circumstance of Disney’s big data system, the shepherd will still nurture his ever-hard-working