Reuters is reporting that Malaysia might become the sight of Disney's next theme park. Citing a weekly business publication called the Edge, the news service stated that "The government unveiled a $105 billion blueprint late last year to transform the southern tip of Johor state, which neighbours Singapore, into a regional economic zone for industry, logistics, trade and leisure."
"The proposed Disneyland theme park and resort is slated to be bigger than Hong Kong Disneyland and about the size of Tokyo Disney Resort."
Other entertainment companies are also considering the development, including Warner Brothers and MGM, although at this point Disney appears to be the distinct front runner. If talks are successful, a deal could be signed as early as next year, with a possible opening date of 2014.
I spent about 4 years in Singapore back in the late 80's.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was there, Malaysia had a lot of undeveloped land. If that's still the case, then there is plenty of room for a nice sized theme park.
Granted, I wouldn't immediately think of Malaysia when someone talks about where to put a Theme Park.
They just didn't seem too keen on US Culture when I was there
I honestly hope Disney doesn't go through with this. With every new park that opens, they stretch themselves a little bit further. Unless they have another company to help back them up (like Tokyo's Oriental Land Company) I feel like it just sucks up money from the existing parks. Plus it begins to make the parks less special. If everyone has a Disney park in their backyard, the uniqueness is gone (a la Six Flags).
ReplyDeleteI'd much rather see the money spent on Disney-MGM Studios, Disney Studios in Paris, or California Adventure!
Don't bet your last dollar that Mickey Mouse will finally learn to speak Malay!
ReplyDeletehttp://sophiesworld-sophiesworld.blogspot.com/2007/11/mickey-mouse-going-to-malaysia.html
I agree with Jessica.
ReplyDeleteSpreading the brand is a good idea and most retail giants will tell you that you do attract more locals if you have more parks (see Starbucks). But will it add anything to the bottom line? Will it give us new rides at WDW?
hmmmmm...
I wouldn't be surprised if the people who frequently patronized a Disney Theme Park in Malaysia, were people who would NEVER go to any of the other parks.
ReplyDeleteWhen I lived there in the 80's the country, for the most part, wasn't very rich. It had pockets of urbanization but not alot. But, with the attractiveness of off-shoring to Malaysia (there is an entire city near Kuala Lumpur that was designed just for offshore work for large Corporations), there is probably alot more disposable income to throw around.
I think it is the proximity to Singapore that is the driving force on this. A second China location seems to always have been a part of the battle plan and this could actually be an extension of that idea.
ReplyDeleteJeff,
ReplyDeleteThe proximity to Singapore seems like a smart choice to me. To the north and to the south of Singapore are some not too wealthy regions of South East Asia.
If you stuck it near the more urbanized areas of mainland China you'd have a problem of appearing to support China and secondly, you'd probably be too close to Japan.
By sticking it near Singapore, you can tap into the very wealthy society of Singapore and not necessarily tap into the Hong Kong Market.
You might even grab some of that New Zealand and Australia tourist dollars.
I would be excited to see it happen.
Firstly, it would give me a reason to try and dust off my grasp of the Malay language and secondly it would give me a reason to take my wife in that direction and make a detour to Singapore and show her my old stomping ground from High School