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Hong Kong Disneyland Case Study

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Hong Kong Disneyland Case Study
EXECUTIVE SUMMERY This paper will analyze Hong Kong Disneyland that was built y Disney in conjunction with the Hong Kong government. The local culture of the people of Hong Kong and how it is related to the operation of business especially the tourism industry, which Disneyland will fall under, will be closely examined. The author chose Hong Kong Disneyland, a theme park built and operated by a new-joint venture, between the Government of Hong Kong and the Walt Disney Company. In this report the author uses Disney as the subject of the paper as it is a new business venture in the tourism industry in Hong Kong. Disney started its business in Hong Kong since September 12th 2005 therefore evaluations and analysis are still in their early stages. This report will give a brief background of Disney and will then go on to analyze the various methods for strategic analysis to examine the culture. The paper will use some cultural theories in order to provide a comprehensive background as to the cross cultural awareness of the company with the culture of a state. INTRODUCTION Hong Kong Disneyland (HKD) is among five such theme parks located on a reclaimed area in Penny’s Bay, Lantau Island. According to Miller (2007), it was opened on September 12, 2005, considered a good date by Chinese calendar for opening a new business. Hong Kong Disneyland was built and operated by a new-joint venture company, the Hong Kong International Theme Parks Ltd (HKITP), as formed by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government which owned 57% and the Walt Disney Company owning 43% according to Miller (2007). According to Hills and Welford (2006), although Disney invested $316 million and the Hong Kong government invested $2.9 billion, Disney has no ownership of the land. Disney tried to avoid the culture clash that was experienced when Disneyland Resort Paris was opened in France by incorporating local cultural elements in HKD. It was projected that the theme
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