May.02.2007 Disney Xtreme Digital is an all-time bad idea
The rage these days with all the kids is social networking. For the most part, other than News Corp buying MySpace, traditional media companies have been unable to control this integral Internet market. But with growing concerns for children’s safety, most publicly visible on shows like “To Catch a Predator” and websites like PervertedJustice.com many of these sites have come under fire for allowing would-be pedos for getting in touch with underage kids. Well, Disney says, “F that, let’s just get all these underage kids in one area but make them have only Disney content on their profiles and call it DXD. That’ll show those kid touchers!”
[Managing Director of Disney Online Paul] Yanover said the feature limits kids to using Disney content on their Web sites, and would allow parents to monitor interaction. At the same time, Disney can protect its image on the freewheeling Web, he said.
The goal is to create a community of kid marketers for Disney, as kids visit each other’s sites and talk up Disney TV shows, characters, and products.
“I want tons of kids immersed in my brands and franchises. What better marketer do I have than a kid?” Yanover said. “It’s really about building a kid community … (that) extends beyond individual Disney products, Web sites and titles.”
The main problem I could see is that while, yes, parents can monitor interaction, they can also monitor their children’s diets, interaction on MySpace, TV and video game habits…and yeahhhh, many tend to not do that. Also, don’t know if Yanover’s aware, but my understanding is that guys trying to molest kids also tend not to have parental supervision.
I also like that Yanover basically just says that this site will exist for the primary reason of talking Disney, pushing Disney products, and how incredibly awesome Lilo and Stitch are compared to Ratatatouille. Even if they limit all the social exchanges/messaging (which of course is a fine feature for a social networking site when even my 8 year-old cousin can email her friends back and forth on the computer), it will be absolutely disintegrate into pantsless men exchanging nude photos of Kim Possible while both pretending to be innocent 11 year-old boys playing for the local Little League team sponsored by Kwan’s Dry Cleaning. But it’s totally cool with Disney because, hey, at least it’s Kim Possible and not Katie Bowden.
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