Walt Disney Company Case Analysis

The Walt Disney Company has been known to more than just the Americans.

It has made a worldwide impact in the entertainment industry for several years. With the popularity of the Walt Disney Company, it was no question for them to expand into something bigger than just their media output. The success of the Disneyland theme park in the USA has made quite an impression internationally. So much so that the number of foreign or non-American citizens visiting the original Disneyland theme park was something to take note of. Through extensive research and planning, Disney was motivated enough to create theme parks around the world.By doing this, Disney was staying true to its mission:“The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to be one of the world's leading producers and providers of entertainment and information.

Using our portfolio of brands to differentiate our content, services and consumer products, we seek to develop the most creative, innovative and profitable entertainment experiences and related products in the world.”Other aspects that emphasize the reasons of Disney could be that due to the company being more internationally present, not just in picture, but also in terms of service, merchandise, etc. people are getting the “Disney experience.” With this experience, Disney could gain more fans and increase their popularity. The diversity of international theme parks can bring in people who were never even fans of the movies or the shows.

Disney would be known as more than just something you watch, but something you experience.Of course there will always be the downsides to any given situation. Disney would be in trouble in terms of maintaining one general image. This is due to the cultural differences found around the world.

Disney is and will always be an expansion of the American culture, and not all areas of the world are ready for that type of cultural integration.Disney will also still have to adjust to some cultural standards in order to put up a Disney theme park in a certain location. Due to the different adjustments done to the different international theme parks, the company will have a tendency to drift away from the original Disney. They will still have to balance the “standard Disney image” with trying to cater not just to the locals visiting the parks but also tourists.Some countries are more accepting to the American cultures as compared to others.

One would be Japan. Japan made it easy for Tokyo Disneyland to be established at had less limitations in the construction and less differences as compared to the original Disneyland. The Japanese were accepting of using English as the primary language in the park as to remain true to the original. This was so that the visitors could get a real Disney experience.The Oriental Land Company of Japan agreed to not having The Walt Disney Company fully finance the project because they noted how successful other Western Franchises, such as McDonalds, have had positive impact on the Japanese.

The cultural adaptations made for Tokyo Disneyland originated from Disney rather than the people of the country as compared to the other Disney theme parks that were put up.The deal with France is still remarkably low considering they only had to pay $140 M for approximately half shares in a 5 billion dollar operation. However unlike in Japan there were many problems from the start as the people of France were very against it going as far as to egg Disney’s Chairperson.Additionally Disney had to pay 350 Million dollars to extend the railway going all the way to the theme park. However the French Government agreed to pay 22 percent of the 350 Million dollars to offset the cost incurred by Disney.

Unlike Disneyland in Japan, for it was Oriental Land Company who proposed the deal towards Disney, while in the Hong Kong one it appears as if Disneyland was the one who first started negotiations. Indicates that Hong Kong might have had more reservations and maybe more negotiating power than Japan in regards to this theme park deal. Disney saw the potential in Hong Kong being one of the more popular tourist destinations. With this said, the target market of Hong Kong Disneyland doesn’t seem to lie on the Hong Kong residents themselves, but rather the tourists of Hong Kong.

Disney had to make a large investment in order to make it more accessible to the outsiders who had to go out of their way to visit the park as compared to in Tokyo where the residents are the target market. Disney made use of the convenience of Hong Kong’s all-around railway stations. This cause them to invest in creating a stop especially for Hong Kong Disneyland visitors. They also invested in making Hong Kong Disneyland a straight from the airport location to make it easier for the tourists. Disney had to make several adjustments to be able to incorporate the Chinese culture into the theme park so that they could attract their target market, family-oriented Asians.

Due to Chinese traditions and several groups eager to fight for their beliefs, Hong Kong Disneyland encountered several problems where they had to adjust to these activists and make decisions that could please or anger their customers which caused them to put out more money as compared to the other Disney theme parks. Without the large investment, Hong Kong Disneyland wouldn’t have been a success because if it weren’t accessible, it wouldn’t have been a preference to their target market.The several external factors have different effects on the theme park depending on which country it’s in. The major reason for success in the case of Tokyo Disneyland was that the cultures of America and Japan in this case were compatible. According the the readings it is currently popular in Japan to embrace American culture.

As such the Oriental Land Company capitalized on this and more or less made Tokyo Disneyland a carbon copy of the original with all the signs being in English and serving usual American food. There was however a concession made to include Japanese history so as to be unique in a sense.For Paris Disneyland on the other hand their success can be contributed to fortuitous events and the willingness of the management to adjust to European culture. Fortuitous events because due to the problems listed earlier for Paris Disneyland, it almost went bankrupt and only managed to survive due to an investment by a Saudi Arabian investor.

As time passed however, the management finally adjusted policies in such a way so as to make going to Paris Disneyland attractive to Europeans, namely removing the wine ban. As such they now make a small profit, with the number of visitors easily double those that visit the Louvre.For the shortcomings of the parks, some can be attributed to outside factors. For example during the winters the park, Paris Disneyland, wasn’t as accessible as the other Disneylands due to the weather.

Even though they took certain measures to mitigate the cold, it wasn’t as effective as they would have hoped.Another reason for trouble were the cultural differences amongst all the Disneylands except perhaps for the Tokyo one as the American culture simply added to the appeal of the place. Which leaves us the question “Should Disney set up a park in Shanghai? If so, what types of operating adjustments might it make there?”In a word, yes.For Hong Kong they had to come to a compromise as Hong Kong agreed for the construction to push through as they wished for a more “Family Oriented” image to project to tourist. The downside to this is that Disney wished to target the Asian Market, with the Chinese perhaps beings the main targets.

However this has become a difficulty as many Chinese people would find it hassle to go to Hong Kong Disneyland as to go to Hong Kong the people from mainland China would have to apply for an “exiting visa” which the reading says is very stressful to acquire.With Shanghai they would not have this problem as it is already part of mainland China. Additionally Disney may be able to make Disneyland Shanghai more appealing to the Chinese people, instead of more or less compromising like they did with Hong Kong, who wanted the place to appeal to both natives and tourist. The reason why Disney is also targeting Asia is because it has 50% of the world’s population.

China is one of the most, if not the most, populated country of the world. The possibility that Shanghai Disneyland will rob HK Disneyland of its patronizers is minimal, or won’t be enough to cause HK’s downfall. Operating adjustments:To avoid the problems the company has experienced in the setting up of theme parks across different countries of the world, Disney has to know their market well. Already having two established theme parks in Asia, the operating adjustments the company has to deal with for Shanghai may not be as surprising.

The Chinese people are very strong nationalistic and cultural sense. It is important that Disney incorporate Chinese traditions and culture in the park. The main language of the park must also be in accordance to that of the Chinese people. The presence of Chinese food is also important.

Similar to that of the Hong Kong layout, the Shanghai branch must consider having a feng shui expert help in the planning of the park’s layout.