Steep Disney Parks Prices Gives Disney Increased Revenue in Last Quarter

On May 10, 2023, the Walt Disney Company had its earnings call for the second quarter of the 2023 Financial Year. During the call, Disney CEO Bob Iger had a lot of announcements for the Disney community. Among them was news about the Disney Plus (stylized as Disney+) streaming service, the new app that would combine Hulu and Disney+, and some words addressing the Disney vs. Florida Gov. DeSantis lawsuit. Mr. Iger doubled down on the lawsuit, posing a question to the Florida Governor: “Does the state want us to invest more, employ more people, and pay more money in taxes, or not?”

Along with this, the company released its earnings report, and the numbers tell an interesting story when it comes to pricing at Disney Parks.

Disney Parks Steep Prices

For years now, Disney fans have noted with unhappiness the constant increase in average ticket prices. In addition to this, fans have pointed out that food and Resort hotel prices have also been increasing. More and more families are being priced out of going to a place they have been going to for decades. Many of these changes began during former Disney CEO Bob Chapek’s tenure.

However, of note is that every time the earnings reports were released, it became apparent that the Disney Theme Parks were bringing in enormous amounts of money for the company; translation: it was unlikely that the prices were going to come down, especially considering the Parks attendance is as strong as its ever been.

Read More: Disney’s “Pricing Bubble” Means More and More Families Can’t Visit the Parks

FY 2023 Q2 Earnings Report

In quarter two of this financial year, the Walt Disney Co. has posted $7.8 billion in revenue. Per the report, “revenues for the quarter increased 17% to $7.8 billion and segment operating income increased 23% to $2.2 billion.” The report also added, “guest spending growth was due to increases in average ticket prices and food, beverage and merchandise spending.”

From the report,

Guest spending growth was due to increases in average ticket prices, average daily hotel room rates and food, beverage and merchandise spending. The increase in costs was primarily due to inflation and higher costs associated with new guest offerings. 

In addition to this, Disney also reported that “Direct-to-Consumer revenues for the quarter increased 12% to $5.5 billion and operating loss decreased $0.2 billion to $0.7 billion. The decrease in operating loss was due to improved results at Disney+ and ESPN+, partially offset by lower operating income at Hulu.”

It seems apparent that while most Guests and former Guests are markedly unhappy with Disney’s prices, they are unlikely to change for the better anytime soon.