McDonald’s Reportedly Stops Disney World Toy Giveaway Due to Botched QR Codes

Earlier this month, McDonald’s released their limited edition Walt Disney World line of Happy Meal toys but now, those the fast food chain has reportedly stopped distributing those toys due to issues with the QR codes included. According to Yahoo!, an internal McDonald’s memo notes that distribution of the toys was halted when it was discovered that the codes led to “unintended search results” when scanned outside of the McDonald’s app. The codes were meant to allow consumers a chance to win a Disney World vacation.

“QR codes on game tickets packaged with the toys were intended to allow for parents to engage in the Happy Meal experience and enter a chance-to-win sweepstakes through the McDonald’s app as instructed on the packaging,” the statement said.

“We sincerely apologize that some customers who tried to enter outside the app experienced a technical glitch that in most cases led to an error message or, in limited instances, to unintended search results, and we’ve been in touch with these customers,” the statement continued.

The special Walt Disney World toys saw beloved Disney characters highlight various Walt Disney World attractions, such as Mickey on the Tower of Terror, Donald Duck riding a teacup at the Mad Tea Party, Pluto sailing on the Jungle Cruise, and Minnie on the Pirates of the Caribbean, just to name a few. Each of the toys connect with one another to create a 10-car train, making them a hot item for fans and kids to collect.

As for the issue with the QR codes packaged with the toys, some on Twitter suggested that the “unintended search results” obtained when the codes were scanned outside of the McDonald’s app were of an inappropriate sort, though McDonald’s has neither confirmed nor denied that claim. While the toys with the troublesome QR codes have been pulled, however, fans will still have a chance to complete their collection. Toys packaged without the codes are said to be arriving at McDonald’s locations in the coming days.

“We regret any delay in getting new toys to our teams,” the statement said. “We will continue to honor the sweepstakes promotion.”

What do you think? Did you get a Walt Disney World McDonald’s Happy Meal toy with an odd QR code? Let us know your thoughts about this situation in the comments.