Get ready for Ocean Medallion Class™

[SoCal Cruiser78]

You can see by the number of people attending afternoon movies that it's not a big hit and I can only take so much sun by the pools so it gives me a chance to relax.

Lying in bed to watch a movie on a small screen just isn't the same.

 

That's one thing we like about the afternoon movies--they generally aren't as crowded as other venues on the ship!

[floridalover5623]

That's one thing we like about the afternoon movies--they generally aren't as crowded as other venues on the ship!

 

I miss the old style ships that had dedicated movie theaters and you know where they went. ;)

[latserrof]

Another angle that has not been explored here: What privacy and security protections will CCL maintain? Will their new database of all customers of "the world's largest experience enterprise" be a ripe target for hackers? What restrictions will CCL be subject to, since they operate convenience-flagged vessels in international waters?

[greenie082756]

I personally do not mind if Princess is tracking my steps.

 

Why?? Last cruise had a lot of issues. Extremely long dinners (over 2 hours),

not getting seats in shows (even though getting there 30 minutes early) and things like that. I would like to see them figure out how to make dining and entertainment go smoother. First time I ever felt they were not on top of what was really going on.

 

So if they can see what their customers are doing, and it seems a bit out of wack, they should be able to find an answer to fix it.

 

I think the Medallion will be a helpful tool for both the consumer and the company.

[XBGuy]

Another angle that has not been explored here: What privacy and security protections will CCL maintain? Will their new database of all customers of "the world's largest experience enterprise" be a ripe target for hackers? What restrictions will CCL be subject to, since they operate convenience-flagged vessels in international waters?

 

CCL is a publicly traded U.S. corporation. They are subject to the same privacy protection regulations as any U.S. corporation. A data base breech for any corporation is a public relations nightmare. IT executives lose their jobs when there is a breech. CCL's IT systems and procedures are examined by both independent auditors and regulators.

 

Now, consider this. Why would an evil doer want to hack into the Princess data base?

 

Easy answer: To extract private information that might have some black market value.

 

A hacker could not care less:

 

• What cabin I had on a cruise.
  
• What wine I enjoyed with dinner.
  
• How much I spent on Bingo.
  
• How often I visited the buffet.
  
• What deck I lounged on.
  
• Which dining rooms/restaurants I frequented.
  
• Which excursions I took.
  
• What I ordered from room service.
  
• What art auctions I attended.
  
• What spa services I used.
  
• What bars I visited.
  
• What shows I watched.
  

 

Much of the above has, in fact been, been collected by Princess for all my previous cruises.

 

Today, Princess collects my credit card information, my birthdate, my address, my passport number, and I'm sure I'm forgetting some things. I agree that this information may be rewarding for a hacker. However, Princess seems to have done a pretty good job of protecting that information.

Edited February 1, 2017 by XBGuy
Fixed typo.

[Pierlesscruisers]

A hacker could not care less:

 

• What cabin I had on a cruise.
  
• What wine I enjoyed with dinner.
  
• How much I spent on Bingo.
  
• How often I visited the buffet.
  
• What deck I lounged on.
  
• Which dining rooms/restaurants I frequented.
  
• Which excursions I took.
  
• What I ordered from room service.
  
• What art auctions I attended.
  
• What spa services I used.
  
• What bars I visited.
  
• What shows I watched.
  

 

Much of the above has, in fact been, been collected by Princess for all my previous cruises.

 

Today, Princess collects my credit card information, my birthdate, my address, my passport number, and I'm sure I'm forgetting some things. I agree that this information may be rewarding for a hacker. However, Princess seems to have done a pretty good job of protecting that information.

 

There you go, using common sense. How dare you! I'll bet you've been warned about this before! :D :D

 

Tom

[Loonbeam]

I was thinking specialty dining, where there is a POS terminal in the back.

 

You are correct, using the current system in the MDR they don't know who entered because they don't have any kind of logging or table management computer system that I can recall (as other lines do - RCCL for example your card is swiped upon entry and all tickets are handled electronically, when you get up, your server logs the table as available - may not be exact times, but close).

 

So that will be 'new' data but not out of line with what other lines already collect.

 

No.

 

All they know now is that you were assigned to a dining room time or anytime.

 

They have no idea if you actually went into any dining room unless you ordered a beverage that required a charge.

 

Your server may know you are there if in traditional, but that is not recorded anywhere.

 

With the medallion they can tell (and record if they wish) exactly when you went to which dining room and when you left.

[SoCal Cruiser78]

Deleted.

Edited February 1, 2017 by SoCal Cruiser78

[cruzrbachoua]

Me, too! And I miss full promenade decks with an ample number of lounge chairs. But we are in the minority, apparently :(.

 

I am with you on both. On HAL there was a movie theatre (while a bit cold with the ac) it was great...they had a nice deck too if I recall even Celebrity has a nice one. Celebrity has some real nice cushy bed type loungers...loved those. Although I don't believe we were able to walk all the way around like on some princess ships.

[WupperAV]

On Crown there weren't any. We were looking for them and Clarese was the waitress serving drinks through the whole movie. We were told 3 different times to get up and get them from Horizon.Princess changed the wording to warm cookies and milk in the afternoon but there still weren't any. A lot of our friends from CC even said the same thing. We are not alone:eek:

[B+S]

This truly is an ominous invasion with tons of room for abuse by an industry that already stacks the deck 100% in their favor. Of course the roll out was all positive, but what could they add once they're tracking you to this degree? I get an avatar? Seriously, I should care? What color do they come in? Oh my - what sheeple think about.

 

Wait till the real reasons show up - they aren't rolling out a multi-million dollar tracking program for the benefit of passengers! Anyone who thinks they are is, well, downright gullible, this is the same industry that makes money by paying people employees far below minimum wage.

 

User agreements do and will change without notice, software "enhancements" will get rolled out without announcement, and before we know it we'll be paying more for a cruise because we didn't gamble or drink enough or buy their shore excursions... (just a "for instance") but you get the point - just the opposite of what another reader suggests, this is a target to track you. Sure they rolled out the supposed "benefits" first. What comes next is what they are after - more of your money, and will be akin to an airline making all the seats smaller then offering you a "for fee" upgrade in coach to get back what you just lost. "For fee"... sound familiar? It should.

 

The industry is no longer first and foremost about passengers, but is clearly intensifying its focus on the bottom line. If you think otherwise you haven't read your passage contract, (which also is as subject to change as unilaterally as your ports of call are).

[floridalover5623]

This truly is an ominous invasion with tons of room for abuse by an industry that already stacks the deck 100% in their favor. Of course the roll out was all positive, but what could they add once they're tracking you to this degree? I get an avatar? Seriously, I should care? What color do they come in? Oh my - what sheeple think about.

 

Wait till the real reasons show up - they aren't rolling out a multi-million dollar tracking program for the benefit of passengers! Anyone who thinks they are is, well, downright gullible, this is the same industry that makes money by paying people employees far below minimum wage.

 

User agreements do and will change without notice, software "enhancements" will get rolled out without announcement, and before we know it we'll be paying more for a cruise because we didn't gamble or drink enough or buy their shore excursions... (just a "for instance") but you get the point - just the opposite of what another reader suggests, this is a target to track you. Sure they rolled out the supposed "benefits" first. What comes next is what they are after - more of your money, and will be akin to an airline making all the seats smaller then offering you a "for fee" upgrade in coach to get back what you just lost. "For fee"... sound familiar? It should.

 

The industry is no longer first and foremost about passengers, but is clearly intensifying its focus on the bottom line. If you think otherwise you haven't read your passage contract, (which also is as subject to change as unilaterally as your ports of call are).

Even the most gullible have to realize it's for Princess's benefit making charging easier than ever before. I suppose it saves then some dollars on the accounting/tracking etc but in the long run Princess is the only one who profits.

[B+S]

Even the most gullible have to realize it's for Princess's benefit making charging easier than ever before. I suppose it saves then some dollars on the accounting/tracking etc but in the long run Princess is the only one who profits.

 

I remember seeing a drunk - deeply behind in a casino, desperate, signing away his credit, his wife begging, crying, and pleading for him to stop and walk away. He didn't. I remember the pit bosses ignoring and even blocking her. They had his credit on file first "as a convenience to him!" It happens every day somewhere. Sound familiar? They are merely offering a service, right?

 

 

Eventually we will all be at a point where our "history" or "relationship" with the cruise industry is so well known (to them) that not only will they offer a deep discount to the heavy gambler, they will have a different rate for each of us based on what we've spent on past cruises. As it now stands, I am subsidized on my cruises by people who clearly spend vastly more on "for fee" items than I do.

 

Someone may suggest that I am so jaded that perhaps I shouldn't ever cruise again, but I am willing to, for now, run the gauntlet of the exponentially growing for fee "offerings" to enjoy the best of what's left of an "all inclusive" vacation before it completely sinks to the corporate ocean bottom - like the airlines have. They're really not too far behind.

Edited June 21, 2017 by B+S

[umuva]

No.

 

All they know now is that you were assigned to a dining room time or anytime.

 

They have no idea if you actually went into any dining room unless you ordered a beverage that required a charge.

 

Your server may know you are there if in traditional, but that is not recorded anywhere.

 

With the medallion they can tell (and record if they wish) exactly when you went to which dining room and when you left.

 

 

 

When we go to Anytime dining, we are asked names and cabin numbers. So we are effectively checked in by time we show up and time seated. That goes for everyone in our group.

 

 

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[LeeRB]

I agree they will have the capability and probably will track every passengers on the Princess ships equipped as Medallion Class; and now with the addition of 3 more ships (Golden - Nov 2018, Crown - Nov 2018 & Ruby - Jan 2019) the total is up to 7 active ships and one (at least) projected for delivery in 2022. I also believe one of the primary uses will to help Carnival Corporation and (all of) its subsidiaries market more effectively to the past guests of their cruise lines; regardless if someone has sailed with them or not. I currently have two of their companies on my blocked senders list.

 

What everyone seems to be missing about this discussion is it is not Princess Cruise Line that is rolling this “Medallion Class” out. It is Carnival Corporation doing the roll out; and it is just starting with Princess Cruise Line. From what I have seen and heard, Carnival Corporation is planning to expand it to all of the cruise lines they own; not just Princess.

 

One other little point, they can change the customer contracts that give them all the rights and us none, that we have to agree to when we sail on their ships now; but they cannot make us book a cruise with any of their cruise lines. We still have the right to spend our money where we want to and on what we choose. If they start having problems getting ‘guests to book other cruises because of this “Medallion Cass” or start having difficulty filling the upper end cabins or even ships without deeply discounting; maybe, just maybe, they will come to the conclusion that their customer base is not happy with the way they are going and they need to take a second look at the decision they have made before their shareholders also become unhappy.

 

I am currently booked on what has been advertised as the first introduction to Medallion Class cruising on November 13, 2017 aboard the Regal Princess. I am also booked on a B2B on the Crown Princess in 2018 that would make me Elite with Princess if I do not cancel it. If I do not like what I see or experience with this new “Medallion Class” in November 2017, the two Crown Princess cruises will be cancelled, along with a cruise I have book on the Carnival Ecstasy 2018, if I can find another, non-Carnival Corporation ship that is sailing to Bermuda.

[cruzrbachoua]

Leerb celebrity and NCL go to Bermuda. We did celebrity and very comparable to Princess.

 

Also did anyone notice on the new release it mentions luggage tracking...I hope this means it can tell us when the bags have been delivered to the room . We like to unpack as soon as possible to truly relax and be ready to vacay....

[latserrof]

This truly is an ominous invasion with tons of room for abuse by an industry that already stacks the deck 100% in their favor. Of course the roll out was all positive, but what could they add once they're tracking you to this degree? I get an avatar? Seriously, I should care? What color do they come in? Oh my - what sheeple think about.

 

Wait till the real reasons show up - they aren't rolling out a multi-million dollar tracking program for the benefit of passengers! Anyone who thinks they are is, well, downright gullible, this is the same industry that makes money by paying people employees far below minimum wage.

 

User agreements do and will change without notice, software "enhancements" will get rolled out without announcement, and before we know it we'll be paying more for a cruise because we didn't gamble or drink enough or buy their shore excursions... (just a "for instance") but you get the point - just the opposite of what another reader suggests, this is a target to track you. Sure they rolled out the supposed "benefits" first. What comes next is what they are after - more of your money, and will be akin to an airline making all the seats smaller then offering you a "for fee" upgrade in coach to get back what you just lost. "For fee"... sound familiar? It should.

 

The industry is no longer first and foremost about passengers, but is clearly intensifying its focus on the bottom line. If you think otherwise you haven't read your passage contract, (which also is as subject to change as unilaterally as your ports of call are).

 

I'm with you.

 

This is obviously a Big Data grab --11 million vacationers annually, individually tracked 24/7 -- for CCL's use/abuse, largely beyond U.S. regulation. CCL masking it as improved service is insulting. After years of cost-saving service cutbacks, CCL is suddenly spending hundreds of millions to improve service? I don't think so.

[Zooguy]

I could do without Ocean Medallion. The benefits are for CCL, not for the passengers.

 

 

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[Pierlesscruisers]

I've been amazed by the dire threats seen by some in the plan to come up, or down depending on your point of view, with the medallion program and what it entails. I wonder if the same thoughts were present when the cruise lines "way back when" decided to go from staterooms with actual locks and keys to staterooms with the current cruise-card setup. Did people see hidden nefarious plots about people going around with magnetized cards that someone would use to go around and sneak in other cruiser's rooms and steal them blind? Probably so, I'd wager. Of course, back then there was no internet for the cruisers to instantaneously post messages to other cruisers around the country, oops, make that the world.

 

So what if they can track where you are, what you're eating, what you're drinking, or when you're gambling? Do that many people really feel that they themselves are so very important as individuals that a multi-million company really cares what they are doing for every second of the day? I sincerely doubt that Princess Corp. or Holland-America Corp. or any other company really cares what every individual is doing every moment of every day. Do they care how many people go into a given theater for a comedy show, spend 15 minutes there and then leave instead of staying for the whole 1 hour show? You bet they do. It's much easier to get that data for every show by use of a medallion rather than paying an employee to sit there and make a count of that same info every day and then enter the data into a computer (hopefully entered correctly with no human error of course.) Info like that provides good info to those trying to provide good entertainment to their passengers.

 

The same people who are apparently so very concerned with their "privacy" being held hostage by a medallion that they are going to carry around on a ship that a company already knows the exact location of on the face of the planet should, perhaps, be more concerned with their smart phone that they carry around in their every day lives! They have GPS tracking capability also, you know. Yes, I know that some shut that feature off, but I suspect that is a small percentage.

 

I do also find it amazing that now people are finding nefarious reasons behind cruise companies spending money on upgrading services. If they don't spend money to make improvements, they're accused of being cheap. If they do, they're accused of having hidden purposes. Damned if they do, damned if they don't. Can't win. Amazing.

 

Maybe I'm just too trusting, or too ignorant, to see all these hidden plots but having discovered the enjoyment that my wife and I get from seeing things/places we've not seen before and meeting new people, both fellow cruisers and interesting crew members from parts of the world that I may or may not have visited before and doing it in a relaxing way, we'll keep cruising as long as our finances & health allow us to.

 

Tom

[latserrof]

John Padgett, chief experience and innovation officer for Carnival Corp.:

 

"You hear about machine learning and big data and big data analytics, and we are really taking the next step in that space. .

 

"We are literally running hundreds of algorithms on the edge of what we call experiential computing devices in our overall sensor network aligned to our experiential Internet of Things that is plowing back intelligence and machine learning in real time." Padgett said.

 

Is this all to unlock your cabin door, locate your wife onboard, or spare you from actually having to say "extra spicy"? No, those are just the gimmicks to encourage/require you to carry your identifier. To believe that CCL will amass all your data and then not exploit it is, it seems, at best very naive.

[julie3fan]

......we'll keep cruising as long as our finances & health allow us to.

 

Tom

 

Us, too. We're not interesting enough for anybody to give a darn about where we are. Maybe as part of the herd, but not individually. And we don't do anything we need to hide, so no worries there, either.

 

Tom, your post was well written. Thanks for your perspective.

[Pierlesscruisers]

Us, too. We're not interesting enough for anybody to give a darn about where we are. Maybe as part of the herd, but not individually. And we don't do anything we need to hide, so no worries there, either.

 

Tom, your post was well written. Thanks for your perspective.

 

Yep, we sound like similar people. Maybe we'll run across each other in the future, we've got a Wine Country cruise this coming Oct, an Eastern Caribbean (the 3rd Medallion one-want to see what it's like) in Nov., a Voyage of the Glaciers in May, 2018 and a North. Calif. Coast in Sep. 2018.

 

 

And thanks for the kind words, I appreciate them.

 

Tom

[DoulaAnn]

But on the Royal, you use your cruise card to put in the slot to turn on the lights in the cabin. Wondering, will the room "know" you've entered and just turn the lights on, or will you need a different card to turn on the lights?

[Pierlesscruisers]

But on the Royal, you use your cruise card to put in the slot to turn on the lights in the cabin. Wondering, will the room "know" you've entered and just turn the lights on, or will you need a different card to turn on the lights?

 

It doesn't have to be your cruise card, you can put a card of any type in there and it will work, as I remember. I didn't know that until I noticed that the room steward had a different card of some type in there one day.

 

 

Tom

[miagirl]

Yep, we sound like similar people. Maybe we'll run across each other in the future, we've got a Wine Country cruise this coming Oct, an Eastern Caribbean (the 3rd Medallion one-want to see what it's like) in Nov., a Voyage of the Glaciers in May, 2018 and a North. Calif. Coast in Sep. 2018.

 

 

And thanks for the kind words, I appreciate them.

 

Tom

I totally agree with you Tom and Julie. Thanks for the rational view point.

 

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