Stardoll and Random House Launch Interactive Virtual Story for Teens
By Stardoll.com, PRNESunday, September 5, 2010
STOCKHOLM and LONDON, September 6, 2010 - Stardoll, the world's largest virtual entertainment and social
gaming site for teenagers interested in fashion, celebrity and entertainment,
today announced a partnership with Random House Children's Books to deliver
Mortal Kiss, an innovative virtual story aimed at teens. Mortal Kiss is the
first interactive story Random House has published on a social networking
platform.
To view the Multimedia News Release, please click:
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Mortal Kiss is a paranormal mystery created in collaboration between
writers and editors at RHCB and artists and programmers at Stardoll, crafting
everything from plot and personas to virtual environments, illustrations and
wardrobes; building a synergy between the reading experience and the
interactive features of the website. Mortal Kiss will be serialized globally
via the Stardoll website over an 8-week period from the 6th of September
until Hallowe'en. The story will deliver 3-5 minutes of reading material
daily, building to a cliffhanger every week. Going beyond an ebook
experience, Stardoll members are invited to shape the story as it is told -
to have a voice, create images, shop for items from the story and get
involved with the story's outcome.
The story will be told through an interactive book and map of
Winter Mill, a fictitious town in New England. The four main characters (Liz,
Faye, Finn, and Lucas) will have character Stardolls, complete with profiles
and outfits to dress up in - all drawn from the events of the story. The main
story hub will be the place for Stardoll users to catch up with Mortal Kiss,
gathering all the events into one central locale and providing back-story as
the mystery unfolds.
The project will also include writing contests with themes
from within the book and will ask members to vote on plot points, encouraging
teens to read and involving them in the creative writing process at the start
of the school year.
"Mortal Kiss is breaking new ground in teen publishing as we
explore imaginative ways to interact with this digitally savvy group," said
Gail Rebuck, Chairman and Chief Executive of The Random House Group. "Teens
will always be engaged with great storytelling and we are delighted to
partner Stardoll on this innovative concept to create new ways of reaching
young people and encouraging them to read."
"We're excited to be partnering with leading global publisher Random
House," says Mattias Miksche, CEO at Stardoll. "This initiative and new
relationship combines the engagement of contemporary media with the printed
page to the online game - in ways that encourage the development of
creativity and individual voice among teens."
More about Stardoll
With over 100 million registered users worldwide, the Stardoll
Network is the leading group of websites devoted to young women and teens.
Launched in early 2009, the network includes: Stardoll.com - the
entertainment destination for young women focused on fame, fashion and
friends; Piczo.com - the original platform devoted to social self expression
and visual blogging; and PaperDollHeaven.com - a simpler game-play
environment for the younger, female demographic. The Stardoll Network now
works with the world's biggest brands as they look to engage with an
increasingly elusive teen audience. The network is the number one publisher
in ComScore's teen category, both in Europe and globally. The business is
headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden with offices in the US, UK and Germany,
and is backed by two of the world's top venture capital firms: Sequoia
Capital and Index Ventures.
More about Random House
The Random House Group is one of the largest general book
publishing companies in the UK. The Group is based in London and has
subsidiary companies in Australia, New Zealand and India, with a joint
venture in South Africa called Random House Struik. The Group comprises five
publishing companies: Cornerstone Publishing, CCV, Ebury Publishing, Random
House Children's Books and Transworld Publishers, boasting more than 40
diverse and highly respected imprints. The Random House Group distribution
business services its own imprints as well as 60 other UK publishers. The
Random House Group is an independently managed subsidiary of Random House Inc
in the US, the trade book publishing division of Bertelsmann AG, one of the
world's largest and most diversified integrated media companies.
For more information, contact: Stardoll Network Email: joan@stardoll.com Random House Children's Books Email: clarehallcraggs@randomhouse.co.uk
Video:
multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/prne/stardoll/44210/
For more information, contact: Joan Lockwood, Marketing & PR Europe, Stardoll Network, Tel: +44(0)20-7292-7143, Email: joan at stardoll.com; Clare Hall-Craggs, Publicity Director, Random House Children's Books, Tel: +44(0)20-8231-6412, Email: clarehallcraggs at randomhouse.co.uk
Tags: September 6, Stardoll.com, Stockholm And London, sweden, United Kingdom