As more teen and tween-focused virtual worlds launch, their business models will inevitably come under scrutiny. Advertising is a touchy subject for many parents and campaign groups, yet premium subscriptions or micropayments could also strike the wrong note. On the plus side, parents may be willing to pay a monthly subscription for a world that they feel their child is safe using. All of this is being explored, not least by Mattel, which has just launched a subscription offering for its Barbie Girls world.
It’s called Barbie Girls V.I.P., and it costs $5.99 a month. What do you get for paying? A virtual pet, a glitzy tiara for your avatar, and access to an area called the Extreme DreamPark, to name but three. If the subscription is popular, it’ll be highly lucrative for Mattel - with more than 2.3 million monthly active users, if just 5% persuade their parents to sign up to the V.I.P. option, that’s nearly $8.2 million of revenues per year.
Will parents pay more than $70 a year for a virtual world subscription? There are two ways of looking at it. Compared to the many freeplay worlds out there, it’s expensive. But compared to the price of an actual Barbie doll (up to $50 judging by a quick look on the Toys R Us website), it doesn’t seem so bad. Although as pestered parents will doubtless point out, the Barbie Girls subscription is likely to come on top of their existing spending on dolls, not replace it…
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