Topic > Disneyland Resorts and Walt Disney World Family-Centered Travel Destinations

Disneyland Resorts and Walt Disney World have historically positioned themselves as family-focused travel destinations. So, it's no surprise that the demographics of Disney's American parks and resorts fit this description. However, Disney also attracts families without children. And, among the families attracted to Walt Disney World, an overwhelming percentage are "affluent."[i] Geographically, Walt Disney World is disproportionately frequented by coastal residents, with the largest concentration centered around Virginia and New Jersey . While not conclusive, distance from Walt Disney World headquarters may be a factor in why the most likely attendees are so close to park headquarters.[ii] Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Disney Parks and Resorts face a wide range of competition; despite being made up of parks and resorts, it is threatened by many forms of tourism, as Disney provides services that other tourism businesses also provide. Major competitors include Six Flags, local and international hotels, local food festivals, and other similar businesses. Disney Parks and Resorts offers many products, from souvenirs to Disney apparel to the experience of visiting Disney attractions and using Disney hotels. These products are expanding globally, with locations in China and Japan. Its prices are moderately high, with tickets to local hotels costing hundreds of dollars[iii]. It is promoted through traditional means such as television advertising[iv], although it also uses social media[v]. Walt Disney Studios contains a diverse mix of subsidiaries that individually address distinct markets. Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios mainly focus on family-centric films like Up or Tangled which possess broad appeal[vi]. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Marvel Studios, and Touchstone Pictures each aim to capture a successively older and more mature demographic; while Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures has produced live action films with extremely pronounced appeal, such as Pirates of the Caribbean, Marvel Studios produces films that fit a slightly smaller niche, capitalizing on its titular intellectual property. Touchstone Pictures, although only a distributor, successfully positioned itself as a source of films for an even older demographic. Films like Good Morning Vietnam, Pearl Harbor, and Step Up were all individually marketed towards an adult population willing to engage in serious narratives grounded in contemporary events, a population not served by the other affiliates[vii]. Because it creates and self-creates and distributes films, The Walt Disney Studios competes with other producers and distributors. Some of its major competitors include Viacom Inc., Twenty First Century Fox, Comcast, and CBS. It offers a diverse mix of products, from films to music and live theater[viii]. These products are generally distributed through cinemas, radio and theaters and are often resold through other distribution channels such as iTunes[ix]. The prices adhere to those typically applied by the market and the promotion is a mix of social media and traditional advertising. For example, tickets for Guardians of the Galaxy were priced similarly to other films[x] and included both social media and commercial-based television advertising[xi]. Disney Consumer Products sells both books and merchandise. One of its subsidiaries, Disney Publishing, sells both magazines and books for children ages 0 to 12[xii]. His secondsubsidiary, the Disney Store, sells products for both children and adults, although its most pronounced product line involves clothing designed according to Disney's animated intellectual property[xiii]. Because Disney's animated intellectual property is tailored to appeal to children and families, childless adults may not consider themselves a member of the Disney Store market, even though there are some products aimed at that demographic. Disney Publishing, being a fully digital publishing station, is able to have a geographically unlimited demographic. The Disney Store, although several retailers exist across the country, is not. Disney Consumer Products competes with many other retailers and publishers. Major competitors include Penguin Books and HarperCollins LLC. It offers a wide variety of products, including books, merchandise, clothing and toys. These products are generally announced through social media with few traditional promotions and are priced more luxuriously than the market. A single Disney Cars Artists Series toy car, for example, after being announced on social media[xiv], could cost the price of several generic toy cars from another retailer[xv]. Disney Interactive has a similar market. Its products largely use its animated characters and intellectual property in games to appeal to a younger demographic. One of its products, a website, is explicitly described as a “virtual world for children”. It also features a blog space for parents, perfectly complementing Disney's typical family-focused demographic appeal[xvi]. It faces competition from other blogging websites, child-focused spaces and game makers. Major competitors include WordPress and Tumblr, PBS Kids, and kid-focused video game companies like Nintendo. These products are typically aggressively priced, distributed through retailers like Amazon, and promoted heavily through traditional advertising. Disney Infinity, for example, is priced lower than the average price of video games on the market, sold through distributors such as Amazon and Best Buy, and has been promoted with numerous commercial advertisements. Disney Media Networks is broad, covering a broad global demographic from early childhood. to late adulthood. Disney Junior, Disney - 49 demographic (as evidenced by Neilsen awards)[xviii]. News from ABC-owned stations reaches more than a fifth of all households with televisions[xix]. ESPN is also able to attract a demographic of young, largely employed and college-educated men[xx]. Disney's television demographics are generally affluent and are more likely to be family members living in an urban environment. The product mix ranges from adult-focused original programming such as Scandal or The View and programs aimed at children to news and sports broadcasts. Products like these are typically distributed through Disney channels, such as ABC-owned stations, and are almost always priced within a cable or television subscription package. Promotion takes place both through traditional means and social media. Being a news source, a television producer, and a sports hub, Disney faces stiff competition from several sources. The Fox Broadcasting Company, once again, serves as an obstacle, creating news,,