A critical eye's been fixed on virtual worlds and gaming in general lately, with academics, pundits and parents wondering whether such play is constructive-- or destructive-- to children. Examining the issue is London-based Brunel University's School of Sport and Education, where Dr. Simon Bradford and Nic Crowe followed a group of kids ages 13 to 16 for three years, as they played RuneScape, a fantasy MMO from Jagex.

According to the press release, the research found that rather than creating a legion of pale, anemic shut-ins, online worlds "enhance, rather than constrict the imagination of young people," by letting them experiment with different identities and abilities, and try their hands at opportunities and situations they might not have access to in their offline lives.

"We met many players taking part in online role playing, sometimes to extend or to compensate for experiences in the real world," said Dr. Bradford. "For example, young people whose parents could not afford a summer holiday enjoyed virtual holidays online– hanging out with friends, visiting beaches and going to clubs at night to meet new people.”

Further, according to the study, kids seem to be able to reap benefits from interacting in virtual worlds that reach beyond leisure, such as managing virtual currency and property. Bradford noted "how entrepreneurial young players engaged in business deals online, experiencing positive opportunities often not open to them in the material world.”

It isn't immediately clear what specific markers were used to evaluate the study participants, or how many there were. Still, Brunel says it plans to continue its research into gaming, hoping to study behavioral differences in gender next.

Like Aardman's WebbliWorld, KnowledgeAdventure's JumpStartWorld doesn't yet have a multi-user component, but it is an educational online service for kids that lets them explore a "3D Theme Park" with mission-based rewards.

One key feature about JumpStartWorld is the opportunity for parental engagement. From the press release:

One of JumpStart World's distinguishing qualities is the opportunity for parent participation. Moms and Dads can send their child photos and other forms of encouragement that appear in the world as the child plays, allowing parents to stay connected, even on the road.

So, not a "world" per se, but an interactive environment for kids with an online component that demonstrates the way this kind of technology can be leveraged to create connected participatory experiences that extend beyond the familiar "web-portal-with-minigames" interface. The website features avatars that "grow" with the child, getting taller (and hipper) looking at each grade level, and promising "personalized learning that responds to your child's pace" and "new play experiences every time your child signs on."

JumpStartWorld is available either in a retail box or via download, both at a cost of $19.99.

[Via Virtual Worlds Forum Blog]

Numedeon's Whyville, a virtual world for kids, has gained some attention with its success over the past year. Now the San Antonio Express-News is reporting that founder and Chief Executive Jim Bower is leveraging his professorship in computational biology at University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio to help Whyville teach kids about life and science.

According to the Expresss News, the Texas Workforce Commission recently granted Whyville with over $440,000 to build a Whyville Biotech and a Whyville Advanced Manufacturing Center to educate young users in those areas -- kids will work to develop vaccines to the in-world virus WhyPox at the biotech center as they learn about world disease control and prevention, drug design and discovery, and new techniques in computational biology.

"From a work-force standpoint, this is huge," Bower told the Express-News. "We have a 'cool' factor, but we're also doing something very useful for these industries.

In addition to science, Whyville residents are also learning fiscal responsibility. Through a partnership with Toyota to sell Scions to teens and 'tweens in Whyville, kids learn about lending and financial services as they must earn enough in-world "clams" to make the payments on time, and a Whyville Toyota engineering facility teaches kids about advanced design.

"This activity is intended to teach kids how to manage credit and be responsible," Bower told the Express-News. "Every kid in Whyville has a credit score. Better to understand how that works now with clams than figure it out with real money when they grow up."

[Via San Antonio Express-News]

The BBC has commissioned a new kids' show from Ragdoll, the minds that brought us Teletubbies. It'll be called Tronji, and the BBC has picked development studio Nice Tech to produce and create an MMO for kids based on the series on its AliceServer technology.

Nice Tech says it expects to complete the game by early 2008 on a development schedule of only twelve months -- which pegs the release date at some point in the month of March, since Nice Tech's announcement says that Ragdoll and the BBC have been playing in the Tronji world since March of this year. Seems they release and auto-update new builds weekly, with no one involved more than five working days behind build reviews, for what they call a "near real-time tracking process."

"Working alongside a studio with a global reputation and strong IP has been a positive challenge for us," says Ben Simpson, Nice Tech COO. "We have been keen to learn from their experience and streamline our own working practices. We feel we have really grown through this partnership– and in such a short time!”

Nice Tech says it will begin focus-testing Tronji with kids over the next four months.

[Each day, Worlds in Motion will be taking a closer look at individual virtual worlds. We'll start with a nuts-and-bolts overview, then move on to an in-depth tour, to be followed up with a conclusion-- all with the aim of bringing you all the essential info and details on each world in the rapidly-developing virtual landscape.]

Let's start with an overview of Whyville, the educational virtual world for kids from Numedeon!

[Each day, Worlds in Motion will be taking a closer look at individual virtual worlds. We'll start with a nuts-and-bolts overview, then move on to an in-depth tour, to be followed up with a conclusion-- all with the aim of bringing you all the essential info and details on each world in the rapidly-developing virtual landscape.]

This week, we take a look into Millsberry,, General Mills' teen and 'tween-targeted virtual world. Though it's been called an advergame, it still enjoys considerable popularity among the young set -- let's investigate, starting with an overview!

[Each day, Worlds in Motion will be taking a closer look at individual virtual worlds. We'll start with a nuts-and-bolts overview, then move on to an in-depth tour, to be followed up with a conclusion-- all with the aim of bringing you all the essential info and details on each world in the rapidly-developing virtual landscape.]

Let's continue our trip into Millsberry,, General Mills' teen and 'tween-targeted virtual world.

From the website:

Kids Movie Creator" is a 3D world creation and movie composing platform, which are designed for kids aged 7 to 12. In KidsMovie, children are encouraged to use their imagination to create beautiful and interactive 3D virtual worlds and even 3D cartoon movies.

KidsMovie is one of the first professional 3D content creation platforms which can be quickly mastered by young children. Children can create and play safely in KidsMovie both in its online and standalone editions. Such creative activities will help children develop skills in imagination, story making, expression, and communication, etc.

According to the website, kids can create and share content, play together online, build on each other's work, and add character behaviors to avatars. It assures safety, of course, but for the extra-concerned there's a stand-alone mode. It comes in a free limited-resource download (available on CNET's Download.com), or via a one-time purchase for the full version.

Global Kids, the nonprofit organization that focuses on using technology to educate and inspire civic responsibility among underserved youth, recently announced a $550,000 MacArthur Foundation grant to use virtual worlds to support discussion and education on philanthropy; now, it has announced more details about its program for the upcoming school year, including the Virtual Video program which the MacArthur grant funds.

This year, Global Kids will conduct programs at more than 20 public schools and its own new headquarters in Manhattan. Among this year's current initiatives, the GlobalKids Online Leadership Program works with students to create online leadership programs:

Global Kids offers a number of programs that give youth the tools to create educational games, work in virtual worlds, construct machinima (digital movies made using interactive three dimensional environments), and take part in online dialogues. Among these programs are the Microsoft-funded Playing 4 Keeps, an after-school program in which young people create educational online games, and the MacArthur Foundation-funded Virtual Video Project, in which youth create digital movies using the virtual world of Second Life.

“We are very excited to begin another academic year with our strongest lineup yet of substantive, enlightening programs,” said Carole Artigiani, founder and executive director of Global Kids. “But the most exciting and rewarding part comes at the end of the school year, when we see how the youth in Global Kids’ programs have grown, developed a more global perspective, taken action on issues they care about, and gained opportunities to pursue higher education.”

Warner Bros. has announced it plans to launch T-Works, a comprehensive online environment based on its animated properties like Looney Tunes, Hanna-Barbera and DC Comics characters. The ad-supported website will let users watch video, play games, customize avatars and explore a virtual world, which WB says is "tied to a user rewards system."

T-Works will also give fans tools for self-expression and personalization in order to “brand” their digital lives; In its press release, Warner Bros. describes a "grab-and-go" capability which enables fans to incorporate a custom avatar not only into the T-Works world, but into other environments like MySpace and Facebook.

Warner Bros. Animation is in development with Studio 2.0, the original programming digital production arm of the Warner Bros. Television Group, on two projects: an untitled Batman short-form series and an untitled project based on The Wizard of Oz, both of which will debut exclusively on T-Works with more details to be announced in the future.

In addition to the video channel, games channel and portable widgets, WB says the T-Works virtual worlds will let users interact with each other and assume a cartoon identity based on existing characters--they can play, chat and create a personal cartoon home complete with furniture, art, pets and more from Warner Bros. Entertainment’s animation asset library.

“T-Works will offer original entertainment content, social interaction and an intimacy with our beloved and iconic characters like never before in an environment that’s safe and appropriate for all ages,” said Lisa Judson, President, Warner Bros. Animation. “People have literally grown up with Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, the Flintstones and Scooby-Doo, and we’re building an innovative, creative, cutting-edge home where people of all ages can interact and play with our characters in a compelling entertainment environment.”

We recently discussed how nonprofit GlobalKids is using its recently-awarded MacArthur grant to use virtual worlds for education -- and how a peek inside their new program reveals a concentration on Second Life, which is surprising, when you consider that there are a variety of models for education-focused environments available out there.

Headway Strategies' Lee Wilson concurs; he's been attending the EdNet2007 educators' conference, and had the following impressions of a panel focusing on education in Second Life:

First off, I find it interesting that Second Life is getting most of the visibility in Education when other virtual worlds (Habbo Hotel, Whyville, etc.) are doing far more with K12 age kids and some have more intentionally educational content on them. Chalk it up to Second Life being a media darling and to good outreach from their Education team. If you are interested in this arena some of these other worlds merit a look.

Second Life is a big investment, but not where you think it will be. The software itself is free and content is inexpensive. It is expensive to train teachers how to use the new tools and it requires a high end machines (this alone is enough to give many schools a pause).

Focus on the interactivity aspects - that is where the power lies. It is a great tool for collaborative interactivity, immersion, visualization, and simulation.

Don’t make 3D PowerPoint sites. This isn’t a good environment for virtual lectures, it isn’t great for media delivery (even with high end machines), and chat is better in RL (real life).

Integrate it into existing practice. It isn’t going to replace what works well, so spend the time to figure out how it can compliment the learning ecosystem.

Lee also points out that Brecht raised some useful alternative platforms to consider for developing in this area; Croquet, Sun's Wonderland, Multiverse and private worlds from Sony and Microsoft; Lee also recommended Muzzy Lane and Numedeon's NICE (on which Whyville operates) as potential options, as they have been built with educational uses in mind.

[Via The Education Business Blog]

Among the interesting demonstrations at this year's TechCrunch 40 was FlowPlay, a self-described "next generation social entertainment platform for casual games." In other words, it's a network for browser-based casual games that implements an customizable avatar-based social element, where users can earn virtual goods and either integrate the gameplay experience into the social world, or simply do one or the other.

It seems to be targeted more at girls, with the ability to style avatars fashionably with accessible, 2.5-dimensional cel-shaded graphics in the anime style. Additionally, it looks like another one for the teen-and-'tween set.

Apparently the FlowPlay folks used their time to show a demo video, less discussion, and their new website has precious little information ready about the product itself.

[Via TechCrunch]

Earlier this week, we took a look at a research report published by market researcher eMarketer about kids, teens, 'tweens and virtual worlds that found that 34.3 million US child and teen Internet users will visit virtual worlds once a month in 2007 -- and eMarketer expects that number to rise to 34 percent in 2008, and to 53 percent by 2011.

Worlds in Motion spoke to eMarketer's Debra Aho Williamson about her findings. "I think what’s attractive about virtual worlds for kids and teens is that they exist at a 'sweet spot' between online games, which are very popular with younger kids, 'tweens and boys, and social networks, which are very popular with teens, particularly girls," she explains. "I think that virtual worlds combine aspects of both of those things."

Zeroing in on major factors in online social worlds, she elaborated. "There are a lot of games, there's the opportunity to meet friends, interact socially, learn about other people and express your interests. So I think those are the two driving factors." Real-time interaction also plays a big role, she says. "[It's a] very immersive experience. You don’t just 'poke' somebody like on Facebook -- you can actually, physically, poke somebody. What that means is that there’s that much more real-time interaction, no latency, no making a post on someone’s wall and waiting for them to respond. It’s all occurring in real time."

What Makes Kids' Worlds Special?

So what does this mean for marketers? "First, a lot of marketers went into Second Life, and now we're seeing a backlash these days- -- it's maybe not working out as well as they hoped," Williamson says, but cautions against marketers being turned off completely from virtual worlds by anti-Second Life hype. "They need to take a second look," she advises, "Especially if they're in the market of targeting kids and teens."

Moreover, Williamson sees some key differences in kids' worlds specifically that separate them from Second Life or other generally-focused environments. "Several of them have years of experience being ad supported and developing ad campaigns within virtual worlds, she notes, highlighting Neopets, Whyville and Habbo -- all of which began their experience in the late '90s and early '00s and have been ad-supported since then. "The second thing," Williamson adds, "is that there’s a strong focus within virtual worlds for kids and teens on engaging users and coming up with a marketing campaign fully integrated with an environment. It's not an island you have to go visit, but something part of the fabric of the virtual world.

The Real-World Tie-Ins

Companies like Whyville do that very well, as Williamson says, with its educational campaigns on disease biology and environmental studies that are integrated within the Whyville world, as we found on our visit there. As a side note, eMarketer's report indicates that Numedeon is looking to continue growing in the virtual worlds space on the heels of their success with the kids:

“In the coming months we will go from being a one-trick pony to having multiple virtual worlds under management,” Whyville’s Jim Goss told eMarketer. “We’re going to build our own and have a portfolio of virtual worlds operating on the same tech platform,but going after different demographics.”

Virtual Playing Becomes Real-World Paying?

But from the standpoint of marketers, does what kids and teens do in virtual worlds necessarily have any bearing on their real life behaviors? "In a lot of cases, I think it does," Williamson opines. "I believe that children and young teens particularly will be more apt to be like themselves in the virtual world. But overall, I think people who like something in real life will follow those interests in the virtual ones. If they like music and street culture, they might gravitate toward VSide. Fans of The Hills go to vMTV. If they own a Webkinz they go to the Webkinz world. So there are obvious interest correlations. I think that you express your interests by which virtual world you choose to interact with."

Moreover, the high focus in customizing and decorating in these kids' worlds can play an important role for advertisers. "People take a lot of pride in decorating," she says. "If there are real brands available, they might choose those real brands just as they might in real life. I think ultimately a brand impression is a brand impression, and there's still a real person behind the avatar that will be exposed to the brand regardless of whether that person in the virtual world is similar or dissimilar to how they are in real life."

A Question Of Security

One caveat -- a parent herself, Williamson was concerned when the results of her research revealed that these kids' worlds were not as safe in terms of kid security as they sometimes claim. "I think that ultimately some of these worlds could be targets for sex predators just as social networks have been," she says. "Actually, it's almost easier to hide behind an avatar than it is to hide behind a social networking profile. In my research I registered for a whole bunch, and signed up for BarbieGirls. You can select your age, and I signed up as a 7-year-old girl." Williamson explains that she was asked to provide a parent's email address to verify she had permission to be on the site. "So I just gave them my address without saying anything about who I was, and all I got was an email that [essentially] gave me a [verification link] that said, 'You affirm that you are the parent of this child.'

From there, I had this experience in the BarbieGirls world, and I wandered around, and within minutes I [was] approached by several avatars asking to be my friend. My only choice was to say 'yes' or 'no', and I have no way to figure out who they are, how old they are, or anything about them. So as a parent, it definitely raised some concerns. I wasn’t sure who these people were that were asking to be my friends."

A Brave New Frontier

And safety is definitely a growing concern, given the other result that surprised Williamson -- just how much traffic the kids' worlds get. She cites July 2007 comScore data that pegs Webkins and Club Penguin at more than five million unique visitors each in that month -- and not just kids and teens. Nicktropolis had 2.2 million, and Stardoll, which is avatar-based but has no actual virtual world at all, logged 2.3 million visitors. Contrast that with only 414,000 visits to the Second Life URL in the same time period. "Obviously, you don’t have to go to SecondLife.com to actually get into the site," Williamson says, "It runs on its own. What this captures is only visits to the URL -- but still, it’s a huge difference."

Why, then, all the continued attention to Second Life? "Right now, it’s really the only world out there for adults," she says, although There.com and Activeworlds, to name a few, also target the same base. "I think that the majority of marketers target adults," she continues. "They don’t target kids and teens. So I think that’s one reason. Honestly, I also think Second Life has a great PR team and they did a lot early on -- it’s kind of funny, but all of a sudden there were all these articles, and I remember thinking, 'I wonder who they hired to do PR!'"

"Marketers are looking at something new and interesting to latch onto," she adds. "We’re on the vanguard, the edge, doing something 'cool'. Maybe we will get some PR from it, and maybe a little bit of learning. Its not an adjunct; it's part of the world. And I think that says a lot."

PSFK UK has some goods on the highlights of the Ypulse Tween Mashup held recently here in New York. Speakers from Stardoll (shown), Cartoon Doll Emporium and Whyville all had one thing in common -- their young 'tween users actually demand branding in their virtual worlds.

Apparently, Stardoll now features "StarPlaza," where its users can shop for designer duds for their paper doll-like avatars. Although Whyville features user-generated designs, not brand labels, Whyville CEO Jim Bower recounts how some even feature the influence of brands like M&M.

All of the eyes and ears of kids' virtual worlds notice that kids actively want to flaunt their favorite brands to their friends in virtual worlds, and providing more in-world branding opportunities to marketers is just as much providing a service to its users as it is offering ad space to the clothing labels or snack food brands. It makes sense -- that age group behaves that way in the real world, experimenting with new ways of expressing and defining themselves, and sharing that with others.

With the sometimes instantaneous, almost sure-fire popularity of many of today's virtual worlds for kids, many marketers are, quite reasonably, seeing a lot of advertising and branding opportunities. When we talked to eMarketer's Debra Aho Williamson, she theorized that while adults seem to use virtual worlds to experience, to some extent, a fantasy life, kids are far more likely to use them to be themselves, to express their own interests -- and that includes the brands they want to consume. Recall one of the highlights of the Ypulse Tween Mashup, where representatives from Stardoll and Cartoon Doll Emporium said that their users were practically begging for name-branded clothing for their virtual dolls.

Which does beg the question that CNET asks in their latest article on the subject: Are kids ready for ads in virtual worlds? From the article:

"This kind of marketing is designed to operate at a subconscious level. And kids don't know how to think critically about how someone's trying to get them to be loyal to a brand or buy their products," said Kathryn Montgomery, a professor in the School of Communication at American University and author of Generation Digital: Politics, Commerce and Childhood in the Age of the Internet.

Montgomery said the purpose of ads in 3D worlds is often to blur the lines between content and product marketing, and that that's not a new concept. Product companies creating branded content to appeal to kids is as old as the first days of television. But Montgomery and others say virtual worlds and related games change the equation for brand marketers because a child's interaction and emotional engagement is so high.

It's true that virtual world play is often built on, or inspired by real-world environments; avatar technology is progressing and environments are developing in such a way that realism, or at least the approximate impression of a living, breathing world is currently desirable -- even fantasy, such as a futuristic planet, should appear and behave in a lifelike, physically consistent way. Could it be then, that users want brands to be a real part of their virtual lives, just as they are unavoidable in our real lives?

Kids are exposed to branding from the point of entry into this world, from their first McDonald's toy to their favorite cartoon properties. It's tough to imagine that a virtual playspace for kids could be any more damaging than a real one, especially if the trend continues of forming ad properties that contribute to a virtual world and mesh well with it, rather than simply bombarding users with banners.

[Via CNet]

A new NPD survey titled "Kids & Gaming" found that kids of all ages in the United States are spending more time playing video games today than they did one year ago. According to the NPD Group, this trend is particularly pronounced for online game play.

According to the report, PCs are the dominant platform for kids playing games in all age groups. The survey also found that the average child starts to use a PC for gaming by the age of 6 and continuing on to age 17, making it the platform used for kids' gaming for the most years.

The survey found that half of all kid gamers are "light users," clocking five hours a week or less, with the other half of the respondents comprised of medium, heavy or "super" users, at 6 to 16 more hours per week. The survey also found that more boys play video game consoles, while girls are more likely to play on PCs, cell phones and kid-oriented gaming products. Additionally, the report indicates that girls seem to "fall off the gaming wagon" later in life, while more boys move on from kid-focused gaming into console use.

Other statistics in the report focused on online games; kids ages 2 to 17 play games online 39 percent of the time, with the average time spent playing online statistically higher among females, kids 15 to 17, and the "super users", at least until the girls get older and their rate of play begins to decline.

Moreover, the survey found that 91 percent of online gaming among kids ages 2 to 17 is free; of the 9 percent that pay to play, these kids are more likely to hail from higher income households. In addition, the likelihood of a child to pay for games increases along with the child's age and time spent on gaming.

Toy company Playhut has thrown its hat into the kids' virtual worlds ring with the launch of GoLive2.com Kraze, which is actually a single brand name for two kids' spaces. One, Zynia, is home to the Mystikats Kutties (though it remains to be seen exactly what sort of Kuttie a Mystikat is), and is targeted at girls, while the other, Onimech, is populated by Wowbots, and is targeted at boys -- though the site stresses that both worlds are open to everyone.

There's not much info available on the site yet, but the About page explains that in Zynia and Onimech, kids can do essentially what you'd expect them to be able to do in a virtual world -- play games, chat with friends, send e-cards, dress up avatars and collect coins to funish a virtual room, spaceship or garden.

The social interaction requires a parental permission slip, and it's unsurprising that the area geared for parental information is the most thoroughly set up on the Playhut site so far, explaining what it is their kids will be doing in the worlds and how it is kept secure. And judging by the picture on the parents' page, Mystikat Kutties seem to be neither kats nor kutties, but girls that look a little bit like Bratz.

"As a parent, I wanted to create an online world where my children could have the freedom to express their personal style, connect with classmates and make new friends in a safe and fun environment," stated Brian Zheng, CEO. "By designing a virtual world that celebrates childhood through events like our Halloween party, yet protects children from online dangers, GoLive2 accomplishes just that."

MasterPieces Puzzle Company has taken the plunge by bringing Hidden City Games' horse-themed Bella Sara trading cards into a virtual world for girls, part of a multi-pronged extension for the brand, which features pictures of horses and positive messages for girls on trading cards.

Now, each card adds a code to unlock a virtual version of the pictured horse at the Bella Sara website, and kids can also play minigames, read info and look at pictures of the Bella Sara horses and unicorns. The company explains that Bella Sara was developed by Danish social worker Gitte Odder Braendgaard to encourage young girls to express their feelings and build self-esteem.

MasterPieces CEO David Rolls said, "The positive themes and eye-catching imagery featured throughout Bella Sara trading cards and online world for girls are a perfect fit with MasterPieces' commitment to create products that enhance children's lives, and Bella Sara provides an appealing opportunity for us to move seamlessly into the girls' craft activity market with an established brand. MasterPieces is passionate about the message and obligation we have to little girls. It is exciting to see we have retail partners who feel the same way."

The Center For Public Diplomacy at the University of Southern California has announced a panel titled "What Are Kids Learning In Virtual Worlds?" It's being presented in conjunction with MacArthur Foundation and Common Sense Media, and appears to be a bit basic in nature; from the event site:

Club Penguin, Whyville, The Sims, Second Life.
You've heard these names, what do they mean for kids?
Hear from a panel of experts as they discuss:

* What are kids really doing in virtual worlds?

* How are they learning?

* What does this mean for parents and educators?

This conference is specifically being held to create a balanced conversation between parents, educators, researchers and media. People with an interest in child development, virtual worlds, and the effect media is having on children, will benefit from the information provided in the panel discussion.

Similar events have been cropping up all over the place; it seems like an encouraging sign, in a nascent industry, that early on the use by children as separate from the use of adults is being discussed regularly; perhaps it may allow the online worlds industry to cope effectively and avoid some of the controversy that often plagues the worlds of film, television and video games.

A new study by Alloy Media and Marketing and Harris Interactive examines what friendship means to today's teens and 'tweens, in an era where online interaction and social networking are a part of their lives. The study showed that teens today, in some cases, connect more intimately online than offline, that they're "more at ease" through virtual communication, and "more likely to reveal their true selves and to share more personal information with friends online than face-to-face."
Impact the life of one child today

According to Suzanne Martin, Ph.D., research manager for youth and education research at Harris Interactive, "The Internet plays an increasingly important role in kids' friendships. Social networking websites aid in youth development by providing an arena to build meaningful relationships, establish independence, strengthen their identity and become connected to a community that is not limited to their physical community."

Kids aged 8 through 12 prefer to spend time with their parents than their friends, according to the study (58 versus 31 percent), but the preference, as might be expected, appears to reverse dramatically by the teen years, with 56 percent of teens preferring their friends to the 22 percent who prefer to be with Mom and Dad.

Teens are also much bigger IM users than 'tweens are (74 versus 26 percent); when it comes to text messaging, it's regularly used by 37 percent of teens versus 9 percent of 'tweens. While young people still prefer face-to-face contact over all -- 53 percent of teens responded this way -- when you look at the fact that 81 percent of 'tweens prefer person-to-person contact, it still sends a message that kids go steadily digital for their social lives as they grow into their teens.

Interestingly, young people reported having more friends when the word "friend" was put into the context of an online profile or IM buddy list -- which means that young people have more friends online than in their face-to-face lives, but it also indicates kids draw a distinction between "Facebook friends" and "real friends." 36 percent of teens -- more than one third -- reported having a "friend" they'd never met in person.

Samantha Skey, SVP, of strategic marketing for Alloy Marketing and Media, commented, "Today’s teens look to their friends above any other influence for guidance and approval. The extensive accessibility to ‘friends’ in the current media environment and the evolving definition of ‘friend’ affords peer networks greater import than ever. The shift extends to brands endeavoring to reach this influential audience as advertisers look to use the power of youth connectivity—and the evolving definition of ‘friend’—to enable online propagation of their messages."

The Build-A-Bear retail franchise lets kids (of all ages) assemble, personify and accessorize their own stuffed animals, from stuffing and fluffing to dressing and naming, complete with a naming ritual and accompanying birth certificate. It's not such a stretch to see how these elements make it ideal for a virtual world -- and now, apparently, that's just what they're doing.

Now kids can take home a code along with their furry friend at the store by talking with the "Virtual Bear Builder Associate," and can sign up to take their avatar online in Build-A-Bearville. Users also can create an avatar of themselves in the virtual world, where they get a "Cub Condo" they can decorate. They've got an in-world currency -- Bear Bills -- and can play minigames with their virtual animal pal.

The virtual world isn't quite ready yet, but seems like it could launch every day, already complete with FAQs, a trailer, screenshots, and, of course, the essential "Parents' Info" section.

[Via Heroine Sheik]

Online entertainment studio Pileated Pictures has announced it's the developer behind Hasbro's recently-announced virtual world based on their line of Littlest Pet Shop toys. The Pileated team built and is maintaining the entire virtual world app for Hasbro, titled Littlest Pet Shop VIPs (virtual interactive pets).

Pileated Pictures president and CEO Michael E. Levine commented, "Littlest Pet Shop VIPs shows our commitment to browser-based virtual worlds. Hasbro’s support and collaborative spirit allowed us to make a ‘next-generation’ product and we look forward to expanding Littlest Pet Shop VIPs in the months to come."

Cookie Jar Entertainment has announced that an online RPG world based on its animated television series Magi-Nation, which currently airs Kids’ WB on the CW and CBC (Canada), will enter beta testing in December,

Cookie Jar says its entertainment strategy involves "reaching kids wherever they are, be it via through television, consumer products or online worlds." The online RPG, called Magi-Nation: Battle for the Moonlands is a free-to-play, web-based game that incorporates a micropayment model. Additionally, the company says "consumer products" will also be integrated into the online world starting in 2008.

The TV show follows the adventures of 15-year-old Tony Jones, an average teen from Earth who finds himself transported to the magical world of Magi-Nation, where friends and creatures join him to solve riddles, battle evil and discover the secrets hidden in each region of the Moonlands.

Kenneth Locker, SVP of digital media for Cookie Jar, said, “We are thrilled to be working on such an ambitious undertaking as Magi-Nation: Battle for the Moonlands and can’t wait to bring the Magi-Nation online entertainment package to our fans. Our young viewers are extremely Internet-savvy and routinely monitor their TV shows online. With this project we will extend that connection and enable players to have a fully interactive experience with their favorite characters in one of their favorite worlds.”

Fashion branding is a big draw for young people in online social spaces, and the R. Lilly Tuckerwear company has launched a virtual world called The Fashion Fantasy Game, which aims to teach business to 'tweens and teens through a fashion world simulation that lets users design and sell girls' clothes or own a clothing store. It's a bit of the departure from the usual dress-up-doll thematics of online worlds targeted at girls, and actually delves into the business of the fashion industry.

Users earn rankings from other players and by participating in competitions. Players start with a "Fashion Buckz" account, thereby continuing the trend of pluralizing everything aimed at young girls with a letter "z", and users can manage the Buckz to make real estate purchases, manufacture goods and promote their designs. Kids can rank their friends or buy designs from them, and compete together.

Founder and creator Nancy Ganz, who developed the Body Slimmers by Nancy Ganz shapewear line, said, "The idea behind this fashion game is to give girls a sense of accomplishment and a way to feel good about themselves, from the inside out." No word if the avatars can wear Body Slimmers to feel good about themselves.

The CBBC wants to know what kids want from their online experience, and they're asking them directly. They've got an interest, of course -- the network is developing the Adventure Rock online world, along with another online play space based on its Tronji IP, through a partnership with development studio Nice Tech.

So in soliciting feedback from its young users, what did the CBBC learn? Says Callum from Birmingham, "I'd launch a football style virtual world, where you would start off in your back garden and gradually get better. Once you were good enough you would get signed for a team's academy and eventually make the first team. If your stats were really high you'd get picked for your international team."

Apparently the boom in virtual pets is right on in its target, as County Durham's Zoe enthuses, "I would put a virtual pet shop in mine because I'm simply crazy about animals! I'd also have a mansion where me and my dream pets could live and in the garden I would have giant stables or maybe even a ranch!"

Amy from Bouillac, France, wants a world where she can be a successful safari veterinarian, and Zara from London just wants a big palace so that she and her friends can see each other all of the time. Cute!

[Via CBBC]

The New York Times recently cited Webkinz and Club Penguin as the leaders of the kids' worlds craze -- so it's also no surprise that Newsday is reporting that the Webkinz site may be so popular, attracting so many users, that it's straining parent Ganz's technical capacity. According to Newsday, Webkinz has been experiencing outages over the recent weeks -- not coincidentally, holiday time, which suggests that many kids may have joined the Webkinz brigade, or bolstered their fuzzy forces, over Christmas. Ganz operations director Elaine Parson told Newsday that the site ran into "a programming issue that was unforeseen."

Newsday also spoke to "toy expert" Chris Byrne about the issues:

"It's not a conspiracy to rob children of the delight of playing with Webkinz," Byrne said. "I'm willing to bet the traffic has been way up in the past two days and inevitably when traffic spikes, you're at risk for technical problems."

In the meantime, Byrne said he was sure Webkinz customers were able to find other amusements. "They'll read a book," he said.

[In this opinion piece from Worlds in Motion sister site Gamasutra, industry veteran Kim Pallister looks to a surprising source - the Build A Bear Workshop - to suggest that personalization and customization of games before their delivery may be the key to developing a relationship with the gamer, incenting them, and helping stem game piracy.]

While traveling with my family recently, my wife and I decided to treat our four-year old twins with a visit to the Build A Bear Workshop. For those unfamiliar with this great little enterprise, here's how it works: You bring the kids in, they pick a type of bear, various accoutrements, and go through a ritual where the bear is 'brought to life' by filling him with stuffing, inserting a heart, stitching him shut, etc.

Before inserting the heart, the kids rub it on their heads to make it smart, on their muscles to make it strong, etc. For those interested in the full ritual details, they are laid out in syrupy-sweet level of detail here.

The whole thing struck me as kind of a sugar-coated version of Frankenstein, but that’s beside the point. The result is that they get a bear that is 'unique', and are given a birth certificate for the bear with the name they give him.

Building Relationships With Purchases

It occurred to me that this kind of visceral experience - which develops quite an bond between child and bear - would be ideal to partner with a kids virtual-world company to go compete with Webkinz and other kids’ virtual worlds which have been talked about in our industry quite a bit as of late (I blogged about a few of them a while back.)

My thinking was that if Webkinz is more compelling than Club Penguin because of the plush toy that acts as a physical connection to the experience (not to mention moving the financial transaction back to a parentally-comfortable retail channel); then Build-A-Bear is more compelling because the plush toy is now personalized.

Of course the thing with good ideas is that other people have the same ones – usually before I do! So it is in this case, as lo and behold, there already exists a BuildABearVille.

Now the key point is this: With Webkinz, you enter your product code, and the online animal matches the physical product you bought at the store - which for kids, is COOL. With BuildABear, you enter a unique ID number off the birth certificate, and you get an online version that is identical to your one-of-a-kind, custom bear that you built. Of course the "one of a kind" bear is only one of given number of permutations of options, but still, to a kid, this is MAGIC!

So anyhow, it's cool, and I suggest you check it out. Take your kid, or a friend’s kid, or a kid-at-heart, to your local Build-a-Bear Workshop and give it a whirl.

So what does this have to do with software piracy? Bear with me (and my puns) while I first talk a little about music.

The Fan Relationship In The Music Biz

2007 was a pretty incredible year for the music business. Not because any record amount of money made, but because of some pretty amazing occurrences in the business. Radiohead’s “Pay what you want” release of their latest album, artists breaking with their labels in favor of self-publishing or leaning more heavily on touring as their revenue source. Most significantly of all, as of last week, Warner was the third of the four major labels to sign with Amazon for DRM-free MP3 music distribution (Sony BMG is the last hold-out).

The significance of this last point cannot be over-stated. There may be some Amazon-vs-iTunes gamesmanship afoot, but at the end of the day this is at heart a response to customer demand. Customers are saying (with their wallets as well as their mouths), that they prefer not to buy from companies that treat them like criminals, and that they are willing to pay for music but not when its usability is hampered by DRM.

The direction here is clear: DRM-burdened products will lose in the music world. And then the consumer is going to look at how they consume video and begin to ask the same questions. And after that, they are going to have the same questions about their games.

Wired recently ran a great piece in which David Byrne interviews Radiohead's Thom Yorke to discuss these recent shifts in the music business, discussing how music went from being about performance and artist relationship to being about manufactured product and now it's being shifted back the other way, where the manufactured product is no longer monetizable as it once was, and so the value will come from performance and from the relationship that artists can have with fans.

Others have been talking about this too, how the value is in the artist/fan relationship, not in the product per se; and how if the relationship is there, people will gladly pay for it (and for the product in turn).

Traditionally in games, the discussion around 'relationship' has been around that of service provision. e.g. You provide a service and the pays for that service on an ongoing basis, whether it's on a per-month basis, per-game basis, per-item basis or whatever. MMO's, Xbox Live, Kart Rider, GameTap, are all examples of this.

But perhaps another path exists, other than "service provision as proof of relationship". What if we think about "Personalized product as expression of relationship"?

On Building Personalized Objects

So what do I mean by this? Consider things like architecture plans. These are copyrighted; architects that do plans for 'cookie cutter' houses, and the like have to worry about their designs being used without their permission.

However, an architect hired to do a custom design for a client very likely has to worry less. Why? Because the plans were done for that client, and that client very likely doesn't want his design copied and takes pride in its uniqueness and that it was done for him. "You like my kitchen? It was personally designed for me by Hans Arkitekt."

To take this to games, if we could find a way to build a game for a specific customer, tailored to them, then this should mean that they could share it with a friend, but that friend wouldn't want it, they'd want their own. In the same way that I may covet my friend's tailored suit, but that doesn't mean I want his suit, but rather that I want one of my own. Meanwhile, off-the-rack designer label suits do have to worry about counterfeit copies of their designs.

So what would it mean to build a game *for a specific customer*? I'm not sure. But I'm not talking about binding it to the user's machine with DRM. No, people will find a way to strip it out anyway. No, the personalization has to add value in some way. DRM doesn’t add value for the customer, it adds inconvenience at best and outrage and resentment at worst (one need only to look as far as the numerous postings about the PC release of the otherwise-wonderful BioShock for an example).

I’m not advocating for the removal of DRM from games. I understand why games are distributed today with DRM today. I just believe that it’s a losing game, and that we need to start thinking about ways in which we make it irrelevant. Moving from ‘games as product’ to ‘games as service’ is one path. There may be room for another, and that may be ‘this product was built just for me’.

The Future - The Personalized Game?

The personalization has to add value, make the game *better* for that individual customer. It could be an object of social status ("Look, Cliffy B personally autographed my copy of Gears and thanked me for my business"), an element of personal integration ("It came pre-built with my character stats already set up, and the villagers were singing songs about the time I single handedly held off that Orc assault!"), or custom fitting ("all the graphics assets and settings came perfectly tuned for set up for my personal machine").... who knows.

Actually, it's very likely none of the above. Minds more creative than mine will come up with far better ideas. The best example I can think of is that of The Behemoth and the custom trophies they built for leaderboard winners; not personalization of the game but certainly a commitment to personal relationship with customers.

I do think the idea of the ‘personalized game’ is a path to be explored. The first requirement to finding the pot of gold at the end of that path is a change in mindset.

To change from viewing the game as mass-produced product to viewing the finished game as an asset; 95% completed, and now ready for customization and personal delivery to each and every one of your fans. The extent you *value* each one of those relationships, is the extent to which they'll provide value in return.

I guess like any relationship, you have to decide if you are ready to put some work into it and hold up your end of the bargain...

[Kim Pallister is Content Director for Intel’s Visual Computing Group. He recently re-joined Intel after a few years at Microsoft working on casual games for MSN and Xbox Live Arcade. He’s been around the game industry for 15 years. When not migrating between large technology companies in the Pacific Northwest, he finds time to blog at www.kimpallister.com - from which this article was adapted and expanded - and at www.vgvc.net. His views on those blogs and in this article and others are entirely his own and not those of his employers past nor present.]

InterFUEL, which has created virtual worlds and interactive online content for the likes of Shining Stars, Nickelodeon, MTV and Sesame Street, has released a new report identifying and detailing seven features it says are must-haves for virtual worlds targeted at kids.

InterFUEL estimates that about 1 in 4 of about 35 million online kids in the US go to virtual worlds "often," citing eMarketer stats that anticipate the number will be 1 in 3 by 2008 and 1 in 2 by 2008. The company's goal in creating the report is to help marketers who want to tap this market

So what are the seven key features, according to InterFUEL?

-Mom's approval, since the ultimate decision to admit a child rests with the parents.
-Safety, under the law, and in the eyes of parents and children.
-Fun, fun, fun!
-Fresh content, so that visiting the world becomes part of a child's routine.
-Ways to connect and socialize with other kids.
-A feeling of control over the child's appearance, personal space, and resources.
-Means to encourage self-expression.

"Fun, fun, fun!" Seems a bit obvious, doesn't it? The full report apparently details the key features in-depth, but I wonder if they've got "fun" for kids down to a formula so easily!

A California-based company called Handipoints has launched an eponymous online community and "parenting tool," claiming over 140,000 users. It lets parents track and organize various tasks like chore charts and kids' weekly allowances -- and has an online avatar-based game component for kids to play that corresponds to the tasks parents set for them.

Kids can adopt and care for a cartoon cat in a virtual world, called HandiLand, and they can earn points to use in the game as they complete the real-world chores their parents can set. They can also save up their points to redeem with their parents for real-world rewards the parents have chosen.

The company says it'll continue evolving HandiLand, adding new content weekly, always with the goal of "making chores fun" and encouraging parent involvement. Currently it's free to play, but Handipoints says that eventually it will migrate to a tiered subscription model.

Handipoints CEO Viva Chu commented, "Club Penguin and Webkinz are great games and very fun to play, but these games provide no value to the parents and teach kids the wrong lessons about consumerism. Kids end up spending hours in these worlds playing mindless games in order to earn enough coins to buy clothing. Handipoints is completely different. In our game kids earn points by staying healthy and active in the real world."
. There will always be a free version of the Web site available but families will need to subscribe in order to buy certain clothing and play premium games on the site.

Toy maker Spin Master's interactive entertainment subsidiary, Spin Master Studios, is planning to launch a multiplayer online skate park based on the company's Tech Deck brand. The Tech Deck toys are miniature finger-skateboards, and the company also makes various skateboarding figurines and toys.

They're calling the online world "Tech Deck Live," and it's anticipated to launch in Summer 2008. It will be free to play and browser-based, with subscriptions for premium content. Players create a custom skater avatar with gear and skateboards, and can visit various skate park levels with friends for chat, teaming and skate competitions.

Spin Master Studios VP John Reale said, "We’re excited about combining the authenticity and fun of Tech Deck with the immersiveness of virtual worlds, providing a truly unique online experience for kids."

YPulse's Anastasia Goodstein has published a useful guide on The School Library Journal on how social media, including social networking sites and virtual worlds, are essential in understanding how to attract the attention of teens and ‘tweens.

Along with her suggestions, Goodstein provides examples of working models that’ve successfully captured a sizable teen and ‘tween audience. Her advice includes providing byte-sized entertainment, encouraging user participation so users feel they have a part in content and products, and supporting causes that kids are passionate about.

“Boys and girls, and teens and tweens use the Internet differently—and you’ll want to tweak your strategy to take advantage of those differences,” explains Goodstein, encouraging marketers to know their audience. “Teenage boys, for example, create and upload more videos onto sites like YouTube. But girls spend more time designing, decorating, blogging, commenting, and communicating on social networking sites.”

She continues: “Tweens tend to view the Internet as one big playground, and they love to play games like Runescape or casual memory games in virtual worlds like Club Penguin. While there’s a certain amount of social interaction on younger kids’ sites, like Webkinz, the exchanges are less frequent and much more controlled and monitored than on those for older kids.”

Educational software developer Knowledge Adventure has launched JumpStart Advanced Preschool World, a 3D virtual world hoping to teach 3-to-5 year olds pre-reading, early math, social studies, art, music, computer skills, and critical thinking skills.

JumpStart Advanced Preschool World includes unique adventure-based learning activities and covers over 30 core pre-reading, math, and critical thinking skills, as outlined by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). Kids can customize avatars and design their own virtual homes. The virtual world also offers "rewards" through its adventure-based games that can be "used throughout the neighborhood." This sounds a lot like some sort of in-game currency!

The software will be available at stores like Target and Best Buy at first as an offline experience, but Knowledge Adventure plans to launch a web site in July that will enable kids to share artwork with peers, personalize their environments, and play new games, according to a report from consumer website CNet. The online world will offer a monthly subscription plans, though specifics for the billing model and features haven't yet been announced.

Parents are encouraged to participate in the virtual world, and are invited to specify which holidays will be celebrated in the game, upload photos for arts and crafts projects, and track their child's progress. A My Storybooks CD is also included with JumpStart Advanced Preschool World for parents to read along stories with their kids.

“Blending learning and entertainment is the best possible development environment for kids,” states David Lord, President and Chief Executive Officer Knowledge Adventure. “By being the first to create a 3D virtual world for preschoolers, JumpStart’s adventure-based learning approach raises the bar for inspiring kids’ minds.”

Online child protection services provider Crisp Thinking has added virtual world and social networking site Xivio to its client list, incorporating its online safety features to shield children from adult content and other hazards.

Reporting record growth in the last 60 days, Xivio offers children, 'tweens, and teens a Flash-driven virtual world chat room environment where they can interact in customizable rooms with their personalized avatars. Xivio's existing child-safety features include Parents Zone, which is a control panel for applying child security settings, and a patent pending democratic content rating system.

Crisp Thinking will add NetModerator monitoring of live chat interactions to protect children from inappropriate conversations, bullying, and potential sexual predators.

Said Crisp Thinking CEO Andrew Lintell: "Increased usage of social networks and virtual communities is putting web site moderators under immense pressure to identify and track inappropriate content and potentially harmful relationships. Xivio is amongst the first to recognize that this will only increase exponentially. Crisp's NetModerator will dramatically enhance Xivio's ability to police their site effectively."

Online child protection services provider Crisp Thinking has announced that it has added Myril Shaw to its executive team as its new vice president of business development in the U.S. Working alongside sales vice president Campbell Ferrier, Myril will be charged with expanding Crisp's partners, customer development, and partnership programs.

Previous to Crisp, Shaw worked at Adtron as managing director of international sales. He has also held management and executive level positions at RLX Technologies (acquired by HP), Sequent (acquired by IBM), Cap Gemini, and Tandem Computers.

Headquartered in Leeds, UK, Crisp Thinking offers a variety of child protection solutions for virtual worlds and social networks designed to fend off abusers, predators, and bullies. The company recently announced partnerships to incorporate its safeguards into Xivio and Cartoon Network New Media's FusionFall.

Said Crisp Thinking CEO Andrew Lintell: "The last six months have been tremendously busy for Crisp and we are expanding very rapidly to meet the huge demand, Myril will play a crucial role in helping us to deliver exciting opportunities quickly and effectively."

WiseHealth announced the launch of Wisenhimer, a new virtual world for children ages 5-12 that teaches them to make healthy choices about eating well, staying active, and building life skills such as integrity, generosity, and manners.

Built with the goal to combat childhood obesity and Type II diabetes, Wisenhimer allows children to create avatars, design treehouses, and play interactive games that challenge them to get up and move. They can also earn points by completing quizzes and educational challenges, which can then be spent at the virtual world's store for treehouse upgrades.

WiseHealth is a healthcare, pharmaceutical, disease management, and preventative health initiatives solutions provider. Based in the Baltimore-Washington DC corridor, the company's corporate mission is to help families and children to take responsibility for their active management of personal health.

Said CEO and president Linda Kreter: "Like it or not, our children are in a full-scale battle where their health and their lives are at stake. As parents, we need to actively arm our children with valuable life lessons so they can flourish as adults. That's why we created Wisenhimer."

Rock Paper Scissors, the developers of Dizzywood, a virtual world and online game for children ages 8-12 have announced that it has surpassed 500,000 registered users since its beta launch in November 2007, claiming rapid growth with "thousands" of new users joining each day.

Dizzywood was recently investigated as part of our Online World Atlas, where we noted it is "a bit of a contradiction. The world doesn't look great and the technology behind it isn't particularly special. The games included are (mostly) derivative and boring. But it's brilliant fun to explore, and a great place to meet and collaborate with other players to discover its mysteries."

Dizzywood was developed to "encourage children to use their imagination, cooperate with others, and participate in activities that promote caring, honesty, respect and responsibility, among other important values – all in a setting that is safe, interactive and fun," and remains free-to-play with subscriptions for premium content to become available "in the future."

"Getting to this scale shows how Dizzywood can both capture the imagination of kids and promote safe, high quality online interaction from them, by encouraging teamwork and collaborative play" said co-founder Sean Uberoi Kelly. "We're encouraged by the strong word-of-mouth growth we've seen, as well as the validation of our approach we've received through our partnerships with elementary schools and the YMCA."

Asylum Entertainment have announced an open beta for a new online world for children aged 5-11, GardenParty. Previously released in a unannounced, invitation-only beta called "incredibly successful" by the developers, the public beta is expected to last for a month.

After launch, GardenParty is to be free-to-play with premium activities requiring a subscription fee. The title's concept is for players to "grow their own fun" -- players take the role of Harvest Moon-esque gardeners, buying seeds, planting and tending to them while also being able to explore the world outside their own private garden. Beta testers are invited to post suggested improvements on the company's forum.

Asylum Entertainment have also stressed the importance they place on child safety online, promising that GardenParty is a "fun, safe and friendly online community for kids," and that they've gone to "extreme lengths" to partner with relevant bodies and comply with laws in regulation.

" Safety of children online is often a huge concern to parents, and GardenParty prides itself on the lengths it has and will go to, to ensure children remain safe whilst they play online," said Asylum Entertainment's Victoria Pearson. "We have been testing GardenParty in a school which proved incredibly successful. The children enjoyed the fact they could speak and play online with their friends as well as meet new children in a safe and moderated environment."

Online child protection solution developer Crisp Thinking has announced its latest partnership -- with Metaverse Mod Squad, an avatar staffing provider that itself concentrates on protecting the safety of children online.

Metaverse Mod Squad moderators are to be trained to use Crisp Thinking's NetModerator solution, which intends to enhances the effectiveness and efficiency of moderation teams, and is to allow the two companies to mutually participate in advertising and marketing their similar products/services – the partnership has been created because of a recognition that maintain a safe environment for children online is a challenge that requires both technology and trained staff.

Crisp Thinking have previously announced partnerships with Cartoon Network and Xivio.

Andrew Lintell, Chief Executive of Crisp Thinking said, "Crisp Thinking is proud to offer our solutions in conjunction with Metaverse Mod Squad as a powerful combination in the virtual world environment. This opens up a whole new area for our customers to continue protection of their younger audience."

Toy and game developer 10VOX Entertainment has announced two new entertainment properties -- KooKeys and Tracksters. Both offer real world toys which offer connectivity to virtual worlds – KooKeys being plush animals, while Tracksters are die-cast vehicles.

The toys are to be available at retail this fall, with no additional costs to users for continued access to the virtual worlds.

In the KooKeys virtual world, players will be able to create avatars as well as design their home and clothes in "KooLand." The world is to also offer games that are to be "both entertaining and educational," with unlockable rewards including earning “KooKoins” to buy additional items.

To maintain player safely, player interaction will be limited to predetermined communication phrases emoticons and animations. There is to also be a translator feature to allow communication between native languages around the world.

With Tracksters, users purchase one of twelve licensed die-cast vehicles (such as the Chevy Camaro, Ford GT or Dodge Viper) and in the world can create their own racing avatar and compete in racing environments, including drift, drag, off-road and oval track racing against online competitors worldwide. Players can buy, sell or trade cars and socialize.

"Track Pack" trading cards are to also be available at retail, to allow users to upgrade cars, design custom wheels, buy turbo boosts, superchargers, custom paint schemes and more.

“10VOX is very excited to announce the launch of our first two toy and massively multiplayer online games for kids: KooKeys and Tracksters,” said Alex Reece, 10VOX Entertainment partner. “The toy and online game hybrid category is the hottest segment in both the traditional toy and video game markets. At 10VOX, we have teamed up with toy industry veterans, top licensors and first rate video game developers to take this fast growing category to an entirely new level – by adding higher production values, deeper gameplay experiences, educational content and a more compelling pricing model for parents.”

Child-orientated virtual world Woogi World and online child protection developer eGuardian have announced "Every Kid Votes," a campaign intended to engage elementary school-age children in the voting process in "a safe and welcoming environment.

Also partnering in the campaign is the classroom supplement, Studies Weekly and 55,000 teachers across the United States.

Every Kid Votes is specifically a new feature in Woogi World, and between now and one week before the 2008 United States presidential election, children will be given the opportunity to share their comments, debate issues, communicate with politicians and other children and vote for their candidate of choice.

The winning Every Kid Votes candidate will be announced after the online election ends Nov. 3, 2008.

"The United States is 139th in the world in voter turnout," said Ron Zayas, chief executive officer, eGuardian. "We, as a country, need to re-instill in our children the importance of the right and responsibility to vote. Every Kid Votes is a great way to empower our children, giving them the opportunity to cast their vote and participate in the upcoming presidential election in a safe online atmosphere."

As the presidential election looms virtual worlds are getting in touch with us to explain the ways in which their inhabitants are involved in the process – you might remember our earlier post on Woogi World's "Every Kid Votes" promotion.

Teen-orientated virtual world ourWorld has let us know they're getting their audience involved by allowing them to make a "fashion statement" by letting players voice their opinions through election t-shirts. Since Oct. 6th, players have been able to buy baseball tees emblazoned with either Obama or McCain '08, and has revealed number of players who have chosen to wear each: 328 for Obama, 32 for McCain.

In addition, we've just been sent an invite to sit in on "for the first televised presidential debate in Second Life" on October 25th. It sounds almost deliriously exciting, but they don't mean a debate between the presidential candidates within Second Life, but between a pair of Second Life residents on opposing sides ("Cubsfan Pugilist" of Obama for President and "Wyatt Forster "of McCain for America). The debate will be streamed live at the Metaverse TV website, and throughout the Metaverse TV sim within Second Life.

"This in-world debate will be a way for anxious voters and onlookers to get a better feel of what is going on within each of the political parties," said a Metaverse TV representative.

Developer Fluid Entertainment has announced the launch of a new free-to-play (but subscription supported) kid-orientated MMO, Emerald Island.

As has become recently quite fashionable in the MMO space, Emerald Island is a "green"-themed virtual world (hence the name, I guess—because it's not set in Ireland, anyway) and players are tasked to save Emerald Island from "environmental destruction" from the "Pirat invaders". That's not a typo, by the way—the enemies actually are called "Pirat"s, because they're sort of half-pirate, half-rat creatures.

The world has been designed for children aged 6-12, and includes "player-driven characters and an evolving plotline", as players tend for gardens, growing over 100 (real-world) plants and playing mini-games.

In addition, Fluid Entertainment has partnered with Trees for the Future (an organization dedicated to sustainable agroforestry and to helping communities around the world plant trees)—for each new subscription received over the next 30 days, Fluid Entertainment is to donate 10 trees to Trees for the Future.

Hmm, we managed to completely overlook this release last week, so our apologies, because it's kind of interesting—just look at these things! They are "Huru Humi"s, a name which just trips off the tongue (or not), and they are the physical toys that users can use to connect to the Huru High "virtual high school".

Yep, it's another virtual world/toy combo—we've seen a lot of these recently—and this one, like others, promises "secure place for kids to play games, chat and interact," while "learning lessons about environmental responsibility, the importance of going to class, and the value of hard work".

Users don't need to buy the Huru Humi toys, of course, as the world is free-to-play, but players who own one "get a special locker combination that opens up a personal online locker to safely store belongings."

In the world, players can find jobs and play mini-games to earn money to spend on clothes and accessories, and have access to a social network-eseque "yearbook" where they can share stories, note their interests and message in-world friends.

“Huru High is a fun, secure online world where kids can come together to play and a perfect complement to the Huru Humi toy," said Mike Nakamura, CEO of Senario. “Our first priority was to provide kids with a keep everyone safe and protect them from harmful or negative content. That’s why we filter all communication through white-listed word menus, prevent kids from revealing personal information and empower parents to monitor their kids’ accounts. Not only have we brought healthy play online, we’ve also made sure that we’ll keep it fun by protecting everyone.”

Educational game developer Knowledge Adventure has announced that its "JumpStart" brand has launched a 3D, browser-based virtual world.

The world is subscription-supported, with a monthly fee of $7.99, and includes a "family membership" model, allowing all parents and children in one family access to the virtual world. Parents can get involved in the game by writing personalized messages, customizing rewards and observe their child’s in-game progress.

In the world, users create a "Jumpee"—a custom avatar—and can explore "StoryLand" a collection of five areas, Neighborhood, Town Square, Petland Beach and Jungle, each of which features "games, learning activities and missions.

To celebrate the launch, Knowledge Adventure is hosting a avatar contest for three months starting mid-December where children can create their own avatars and submit them online at JumpStart.com for a chance to win daily prizes. One grand prize winner will be chosen to receive a college scholarship.

“The all-new JumpStart virtual world provides us the opportunity to leverage our tremendous brand and game content online where today’s kids play,” said Knowledge Adventure president & CEO David Lord. “Our commitment remains stronger than ever to creating the best adventure-based learning games available and we’re doing this by evolving the brand online to meet the needs of parents and kids in a vibrant, trusted community they can enjoy together for years to come.”

Free-to-play browser-based virtual world Planet Cazmo has announced that the they are currently running a virtual concert series in the teen and tween orientated world. The series features five artists from Sony Epic Records and Interscope Geffen A&M Records.

Concerts occur on each Saturday of the month, beginning at 2 p.m. Eastern Standard Time and replaying each hour until 9 p.m. EST; the concerts are to take place in a virtual concert arena, with the musicians to appear as animated characters miming (our word, not theirs) to recordings of their recent releases.

Artists to appear include The Clique Girlz and Soulja Boy.

“We designed Planet Cazmo to serve the audience that is graduating out of Club Penguin and the other virtual worlds for children. This concert series, with top artists who appeal to a more mature audience, is part of our strategy to appeal to kids aged 10 – 16,” said Mike Levine, Founder and CEO of Planet Cazmo.

Online virtual entertainment company Planet Live has announced the soft launch of a “virtual football chat world” Planet Soccer Live.

Developed with digital agency MCM Net, Planet Soccer Live is aimed at 6-14 year-old children and consists of a virtual world where users can explore a football stadium, training ground and other virtual rooms to interact with others, and features football-related single and multiplayer games, a live chat function, and the ability for users to personalise their own football character and custom design their own virtual home.

As in many other virtual worlds aimed at children the real-time chat function consists of users selecting phrases, emotes, questions and responses from a predefined menu. Usernames are also to be monitored on a regular basis.

Sam Fairweather and Jodie Abela, co-founders of Planet Live said: “The vision of Planet Live was to create a world where soccer-passionate kids can be their own soccer star, interact, socialise with other kids, go shopping and play and compete in games. We are really excited to be finally launching such a unique online gaming experience for kids and strongly believe it will be embraced by the worldwide soccer community. Planet Soccer Live is suited for boys and girls of all ages who are passionate about soccer, learning and having fun, and we aim to continually improve and develop the soccer planet with new features and single/multiplayer games for kids and families to enjoy for many years to come”.

It seems like the current "hot" concept in kids virtual worlds is creativity, and on that topic Webcarzz has pre-launched its "CarStructor"—a 3D vehicle creation tool for its upcoming virtual world specifically targeted at boys, which is currently in closed beta.

Users can create vehicles—such as cars, trucks, planes or motorcycles—by starting with a basic canvas consisting of two cubes and a set of wheels. By clicking and dragging users can pull or shorten the cubes into chosen shapes before customizing their vehicle with colors and textures.

Once finalized and saved, every custom car can be posted in the Webcarzz Gallery, where it can be voted on, shared and used for racing and exploring in the Webcarzz world once it has been launched.

“CarStructor provides a simplified introduction to modeling and modifying 3D shapes and also provides children with the basics of geometry,” said Nique Fajors, Executive Vice President of Webcarzz. “Children’s minds are full of imagination, and CarStructor opens up more roads for them to explore.”

Publisher Six Degrees Games has announced that its sports-themed virtual world Action AllStars—developed in partnership with the National Baskeball Association and Major League Baseball Advanced Media—has reached over 100,000 registered users within two weeks of being launched in mid-December.

The title is a free-to-play, youth-orientated virtual world that allows users to create an athlete avatar, interact with other users, play sports themed mini-games and compete in daily challenges, using real-world sports scores and statistics.

Though free-to-play, Action AllStars includes subscription memberships that allow players enhanced feature such as more avatar customization and new challenges.

“The initial success of Action AllStars provides our team with a great sense of achievement, especially at a time when we are still aggressively developing several key features of our world,” said Minard Hamilton, CEO and co-founder of Six Degrees Games. “The extraordinary response at this early juncture shows the appeal of not only our creative concept for this new form of sports-themed entertainment, but also the strength and consumer demand that our league partners at both the NBA and MLB add to the experience.”

Remember Moshi Monsters? It's a fairly cute online pet-raising title that we took a look at in our Online World Atlas way back when—we noted that at the time was "artistically fully realized, but that "many players will find themselves waiting for the designers to catch up with the artists".

In the intervening time the designers have clearly been hard at work, with far more on offer than there was when we tried it out, and now developer Mind Candy has announced a paid membership.

While the basic game remains free-to-play, players who are willing to stump up the cash—starting at $4.95 if you agree to a 12 month term or $7.50 per month—will receive benefits such as access to new areas, an unlimited friend list, new color combinations for their monsters and new "Moshilings" (which are pets that your pet monster cares for.)

"It’s been a lot of hard work and we’re thrilled to be able to share it with you all," said Ryan on the Mind Candy blog.