We bring you a lot of stories every single day. Sometimes it’s hard to keep up. So in case you missed anything from our feed, we have rounded up all our stories in one place to get the news at a glance. Here is your Daily Recap for Wednesday, August 9, 2023.
Walt Disney World
Magic Kingdom
- Westward Ho in Magic Kingdom is now serving a new breakfast biscuit sandwich with fried chicken, a half-egg omelet, and pepper jack.
- The true sign of the spookiest season’s arrival at Magic Kingdom is here: Mickey jack-o’-lantern wreaths now adorn the light posts lining Main Street, U.S.A.
EPCOT
- A Florida man was arrested this summer after he was accused of snatching a man’s car keys from an unattended stroller at EPCOT and then breaking into his car in the theme park parking lot.
- For the 2023 EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival, four new drinks can be found around the park at Joffrey’s Coffee & Tea Company kiosks, with different drinks catering to different flavors — and we tried them all!
New Merchandise
Disneyland Resort
Entertainment and Media
- A new video has been shared to the official Ravensburger North America YouTube channel that teases the overall narrative that players will explore in Disney Lorcana,
- During the Gen Con 2023 event that took place the first week of August, the highly anticipated Disney Lorcana trading card game was available for purchase. Now that we have our hands on cards, and the rules for the game, WDWNT staffers Alicia and Ben sit down to play!
- In today’s Q3 2023 earnings call for The Walt Disney Company, CEO Bob Iger shared a statement on the ongoing strikes in Hollywood, stating he is “personally committed” to ending them.
Disney+
- During the 2023 third quarter earnings call, Disney CEO Bob Iger announced Disney+ would be rolling out new policies to combat password-sharing in the year 2024.
- Direct-to-consumer revenues have increased by 9 percent while the operating loss has almost broken even in the third quarter of 2023. Disney+ subscribers have dropped to 146.1 million, below the 154.8 million goal, though core members of the service rose by 1 percent.
- During today’s Q3 2023 earnings call, Disney announced significant price increases for Disney+ and Hulu’s premium plans, also sharing news that an ad-free bundle of both platforms will roll out in the U.S.
The Walt Disney Company
- A recent article from The Hollywood Reporter has breathed new life into the longstanding rumor of a potential Apple acquisition of The Walt Disney Company.
- Disney Parks & Resorts have experienced a decent improvement over the previous quarter, announcing a 13 percent jump in revenue to $8.3 billion
- According to Deadline and official reports from The Walt Disney Company, a mixed third quarter for 2023 has seen some success, reduced losses, and a few disappointments overall.
- While Disney Parks & Resorts have overall seen a strong increase in this third quarter of 2023 over the previous cycle, this is being attributed to strong performances from international destinations and the Disney Cruise Line. Domestically, the situation has been a little more disappointing.
- Amid ongoing rumors and speculation over a potential sale of The Walt Disney Company to Apple, CEO Bob Iger is refusing to entertain the discussion.
- The Q3 2023 earnings report released today for The Walt Disney Company has revealed Disney is selling their stake in DraftKings, just one day after announcing their plans to enter the sports betting market on their own with ‘ESPN BET.’
- Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has replied to the motion to dismiss Disney’s ongoing lawsuit against him, citing that Disney does not have the standing to sue, and again claims that he is entitled to immunity from suit.
That’s it for today; we hope you enjoyed this Daily Recap. Thanks for stopping by, and we’ll see you tomorrow!