Word: disney
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...What They're Building in China: After two decades of on-again, off-again talks, China has agreed to let Walt Disney pursue plans to construct a 1,000-acre (40 hectare) theme park in Shanghai, at an estimated cost of nearly $4 billion--one of the largest foreign investments in the country's history. Disney already operates a theme park in Hong Kong, which has struggled because of travel restrictions and visa requirements that limit access for many of China's 1.3 billion residents...
...from the former British colony, which is part of China but has a semi-autonomous government (mainland tourists must obtain visas to visit Hong Kong). Since opening four years ago, Hong Kong Disneyland has underperformed due to its small size - at 300 acres, it's the smallest of any Disney park - as well as high ticket prices and competition from a nimble competitor called Ocean Park. (Read "The Fifth Happiest Place on Earth...
...Disney has also made several market miscalculations. Analysts say the company, in trying not to make the same mistakes it did at its Paris resort by failing to tailor the Disney formula to local tastes, may have gone overboard in its efforts to adapt the Hong Kong venue to Chinese customers. For example, the park's restaurants originally planned to serve shark's fin soup, a Chinese delicacy, until environmentalists protested. But the biggest knock against Hong Kong Disneyland - of which the Hong Kong government owns 57% - is a lack of attractions. In July, Disney and the government moved...
...Disney officials dismissed concerns that a new park in Shanghai will steal Hong Kong customers. "We see that Hong Kong Disneyland and the Shanghai park as complementary," said an official in an e-mail. "We believe the Greater China market is large enough to support multiple parks...
...Further expansion in Asia may be a good bet. Last year, roughly a quarter of Disney's revenue came from overseas operations. Asia contributed just 5%, but leisure-industry experts are bullish about the region's potential. Last year, eight of the world's top 20 amusement parks (by number of visitors) were in Asia, according to a report by Themed Entertainment Association, based in Burbank, Calif. The buzz in Shanghai is already tangible. "Chinese consumers have a lot of love for Disney," says Rein. "They're more excited about Disneyland than the Expo...