The Magic Cashless Kingdom: Why Disney Is Betting $1 Billion on Wearables

The Magic Band tailors a guest's user experience and eliminates the need to carry cash
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In the future, you don't carry cash or credit cards, and you don't wait in line. Instead, a magical piece of wearable tech is your everything.

There's a gadget that's already testing this vision of tomorrow, and it's not the Apple Watch. It's at Disney World, of all places. Wired has an interesting report on Disney's new $1 billion gamble: a smart wristband preprogrammed with the user's trip itinerary, granting them access to the entire Disneyworld park without the need to carry cash or card.

The Magic Band, connected to the guest's credit card, would mean that meals, rides, accomodations, concessions, and souvenirs would be taken care of with a quick scan. So, too, would be checking in to existing reservations at the park, with the wristband sent weeks ahead in anticipation of the visit. As guests entered a restaurant for dinner, they would be greeted by name and sit where they like, and still have their food find them. It will mean being able to reserve a space on a ride instead of waiting in long lines by building a trip itinerary from beginning to end.

Even if you're not planning a family vacation to the Magic Kingdom, it's time to take notice to a real-world test of what everybody expects the real tomorrow land to look like.

Source: Wired

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