Who really owns DVC???

[elijahpep]

Mr. Elijah Pepper is a little busy today and I have a question that I'm having trouble processing. So, what better people to ask on a lazy afternoon than the wonderful Folks here on DIS. The question I raise was talked about on another board and was a little confused....

Disney is a HUGE parent company to many other companies and entities.
Isn't DVC through DVD an entity of Disney? Is DVC not such an entity that sets it own rules and such as long as it is within Disney, the parent company, views and standards? Does DVD have it's own board, lawyers, executives,etc? Would DVC, in fact, be considered on it's own, a separate corporation under the Disney umbrella company?

SO, Does Disney own DVC , is in fact my question that I'm looking for an answer to ?

Just wanted to ask, I have faith many of you already know these things, but I was curious. TIA!~

~DW

 

[tjkraz]

DVD (Disney Vacation Development) is the entity that secured the leases on the land for the resorts and constructed the resorts. DVD is the unit that earns the revenues on points sales.

DVC is simply the management company. It exists to take reservations, set resort budgets, collect annual dues, negotiate member discounts with other Disney entities, and so on. DVC is funded by member dues and exists to service members.

 

[jarestel]

I would agree with tjkraz. Disney owns the land on which DVD leased and developed the vacation club properties that DVC was created to manage. And the land will revert back to Disney in another 40-50 years barring any extensions of the original leases.

They probably are inter-related to a large degree but are not the same entity.

 

[CarolMN]

..(snip)....They probably are inter-related to a large degree but are not the same entity.

And yet all the profit from them somehow ends up on the Disney Corporation's bottom line. Therefore, I say they are, for all practical purposes, the same thing! JMHO. YMMV.

 

[speakupjc]

All of us owners.

 

[jarestel]

And yet all the profit from them somehow ends up on the Disney Corporation's bottom line. Therefore, I say they are, for all practical purposes, the same thing! JMHO. YMMV.

I wonder if profits from ABC end up in the same bottom line? If so, Disney has far reaching tentacles indeed!

 

[CarolMN]

I wonder if profits from ABC end up in the same bottom line? If so, Disney has far reaching tentacles indeed!

IIRC, the Disney Corporation owns the ABC network - so the consolidated statements for the Disney Corporation do include profits (are there any yet, LOL?) from ABC.

 

[jarestel]

so the consolidated statements for the Disney Corporation do include profits (are there any yet, LOL?) from ABC.

Good point. Profits from ABC is probably a hypothetical argument!

 

[DisneyDVCdad]

ABC actually has a few watchable shows now! So turning a profit is not out of the question!

 

[DVCconvert]

DVD (Disney Vacation Development) is the entity that secured the leases on the land for the resorts and constructed the resorts. DVD is the unit that earns the revenues on points sales.

DVC is simply the management company. It exists to take reservations, set resort budgets, collect annual dues, negotiate member discounts with other Disney entities, and so on. DVC is funded by member dues and exists to service members.

Tim is correct - with a point of clarification - that being that; DVD secured those leases from WDW/Disney Parks & resorts/TWDC. That said, as a part of the legal chain, individual owners of DVC do infact "own" what their contracts entitle them too.

 

[drusba]

OK, here is the breakdown:

1. The Walt Disney Co. (TWDC): the parent holding company (owner) of all the Disney companies (including ABC) and the entity whose stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange.

2. Walt Disney World Hospitality & Recreation Corporation (WDWHRC): the subsidiary of TWDC that owns all the land that is Disney World and owns and operates the Disney hotels and parks.

3. Disney Vacation Development, Inc. (DVD): a subsidiary of TWDC that is the developer and controlling entity of the DVC resorts. It leases the land for the WDW DVC resorts from WDWHRC. The leases run till the termination date applicable to each resort. It sells the legal interests which you buy. You as a purchaser own a real estate interest (like one would own in a condominium) in a unit at a DVC resort and together all such owners own the buildings and common areas for the life of the land lease, with DVD keeping a small percentage ownership of each unit. Note, do not confuse a "unit" with a room as a unit is usually a combination of several rooms (or, in the case of OKW or SSR, each individual building).

4. Association: each resort has an association that has its own name, e.g., Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas Condominium Association. The association is, at least in name, in charge of all things involving the running and maintenance of the particular resort, setting of budgets and dues, and reservations. You are a member of the association of your resort. However, when you buy you assign your right to vote on almost all matters controlled by the association to DVD. You actually retain the right to vote on certain things that would fundamentally effect your interest in the resort, e.g., a decision to end all relationships with any Disney company and other things that are never likely to occur. In other words, the members (meaning all of us) are the controllers of the association in name only and DVD actually gets to control essentially everything (and set dues) as your agent pursuant to the assignment of the voting right you made.

5. Disney Vacation Club Management Company (DVCMC): another subsidiary of TWDC that is retained by the association (meaning hired by DVD which has the controlling vote) to manage each resort. Pursuant to agreement with the association, it runs the resort, including all operations, maintenance, and repair.

6. Buena Vista Trading Company (BVTC): another subsidiary of TWDC which each association retains to provide a service called the Disney Reservation Component, which handles for members the making of reservations at any DVC resort or trading out to anywhere else. You know BVTC by the name given to it for purposes of taking your calls -- Member Services.

7. Disney Vacation Club (DVC): not a legal entity but the tradename given to an unicorporated club of which you are considered a member.

 

[elijahpep]

Thank you Drusba~ That's the breakdown I was hoping for. You are really a gem about explaining and breaking things down in a way that is really clear.

~DW

 

[jarestel]

SO, Does Disney own DVC , is in fact my question that I'm looking for an answer to ?

It looks like the answer is... Yes, through the long chain of subsidiaries that drusba listed.