Disney for infants

What? You thought Disney was already marketing to the newly born?

Not so, at least, not to the extent it will be from now on, according to the New York Times.

Late last month, the company quietly began pressing its newest priority, Disney Baby, in 580 maternity hospitals in the United States. A representative visits a new mother and offers a free Disney Cuddly Bodysuit, a variation of the classic Onesie.

Disney sees a gold mine:

Disney estimates the North American baby market, including staples like formula, to be worth $36.3 billion annually. Its executives talk about tapping into that jackpot as if they were waging a war. “Apparel is only a beachhead,” said Andy Mooney, chairman of Disney Consumer Products.

...

“To get that mom thinking about her family’s first park experience before her baby is even born is a home run,” Mr. Mooney said....

And here's why the company will succeed:

Rachel Bernstein, an obstetrician-gynecologist in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., who is pregnant herself, said she was concerned about marketers using hospitals as customer hunting grounds. “But Disney is a nice company,” she said, “and I think my patients would actually be thrilled to get free Disney stuff.”

Disney is a nice company. Um, no: it's not.

Disney park employees may be unfailingly courteous and helpful, as they have been in my experience (even the Davy Crockett canoe guide who warned his reluctant passengers, "Hey, if you don't paddle, that's fine: they'll send a boat out to pick me up"), but that doesn't make the company nice. It's not. It's a business, one of the most successful of our time, and it is successful because it makes hard business decisions that promote its bottom line over all else.

What else might be a consideration? Well, how about growing up with different myths than the ones Disney promotes? How about imagining different worlds and possibilities than the ones Disney packages? How about the freedom not to be indoctrinated into the Mouse's ranks before your critical thinking faculties have developed?

Forget Agent Smith: the guy coming after Neo will have big, black, round ears.