Yes! Pre Cure digital toys a sign of focus on tech for girls

Written by: Rebecca Milner on September 8, 2008 at 3:27 am | In DIGITAL LIFE | 3 Comments

Odds are, if you are 4 to 6 year old girl in Japan (editor’s note: Anyone here fit that demo?), you are probably obsessed with the Toei Studios animation series Yes! Pre Cure 5 and its sequel Yes! Pre Cure 5 GoGo, now airing on TV Asahi. The current story follows 5 young heroines (the Pre Cure, literally Pretty Cure, team) in a magical world as they work to protect the Cure Rose Garden, by searching for the four kings who hold the keys to the secret paradise.

While the story is pretty standard fantasy fare, the accompanying merchandise is a far cry from the dolls, t-shirts, and tiaras marketed to previous generations of girls. The top three best selling tie-in items all come from Bandai and none of them are cuddly.

Top of the list is the Henshin Keitai (transformation mobile) Curemo, a multi-mode toy that mimics the functions of a mobile phone.

The first, “shot mode,” is activated by turning the top of the handset sideways (like many mobiles). A creature from the anime appears on the screen and players try to “capture” its image when it smiles, a direct shot means the creature could turn into one of the sought after kings or a useful item. “Dekakeru (“go out”) mode” summons “Syrup,” the Pre Cure team’s magical bird of transportation, for a ride to another land. “Phone mode” brings simulated telephone correspondence from the characters to the screen and “communication mode” allows transference of items between Curemo users, in a manner that mimics contact info transfer by infra-red between real mobile phones.

The next popular product is the Rosepact, a flip-up device with a pen touch panel that, like the Curemo, involve simples games to acquire items to help the kings; in fact, items can be transferred between the two.

Rounding out the top three is the Mirukyu Plate (short for Milky Cure, one of the characters), a hand held plastic device with wand that, when touched to panels, activates a recording of character voices and an LED light display. That isn’t to say that Bandai is offering more standard costume fare, but it is the digitized toys that are selling.

Through toys like this, the newest generation of girls is learning to express their admiration for the favorite characters through digital means, leaving little doubt that they will be well-primed to embrace whatever digital lifestyle items are marketed their way in the future.

Tags: anime, Bandai, Children, Digital Toys, Pre Cure 5
Category: DIGITAL LIFE
Other categories: MARKETING IDEAS, LIFESTYLE / FASHION, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS

Japanese retailer Cecile opens in Second Life

Written by: Michael Keferl on June 13, 2007 at 1:24 am | In MARKETING IDEAS | No Comments

Back in February, WhatJapanThinks.com blogged about a poll in which 80.3% of those polled had never even heard of Second Life, and only 1.1% had actually used it. Now that Second Life Japan is in beta and will be opening soon, will Japanese buy into the hype?

Massive Japanese catalog retailer Cecile has recently opened a home base in the Ginza district of Second Life to promote the brand as well as bring customers directly into their online catalog system. Visitors to the shop are offered free clothes for their avatars, with a complete suit for men or a skirt and top outfit for the ladies. The front of the shop has a stage where the models/staff hang out and talk to people who come and promote the company.
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Tags: Digital Toys, ecommerce, Second Life, Virtual Worlds
Category: MARKETING IDEAS
Other categories: DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS