NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - May 13, 2011) - HarperCollins Publishers and Woozworld announced today the launch of virtual books in Woozworld, the fastest growing online tween and teen community, as part of a pilot program to promote books and reading. This is the first time that books will be featured in Woozworld, the COPPA compliant alternative for teens and tweens who want to enjoy social networks.
Woozworld's over 10 million monthly visitors will be given the opportunity to discover, read, and interact with a series of selected books that will be made available to them in Woozworld. The players' experience will be greatly enhanced by the addition of such rich and proven content to their virtual world.
The program will provide the Woozworld community with a "Books & Games by HarperCollins" lounge inside Woozworld where Woozens (Woozworld Avatars) can find book excerpts called Bookz; as well as games, activities and virtual branded items related to the Bookz. The Woozens can then bring these Bookz back to their virtual rooms to collect in their Bookcases.
"Woozworld offers an innovative way to engage with young readers in a safe, fun, and fully immersive social space," said Diane Naughton, Vice President of Integrated Marketing, HarperCollins Children's Books. "Tween is a key area of growth for HarperCollins, and we are excited to share our popular books and authors with the Woozworld audience."
Over 60 Bookz will be integrated into Woozworld over the course of the 90-day pilot program, including titles in the bestselling Warriors,Big Nate, and Septimus Heap series. Links to HarperCollins websites and their innovative Browse Inside feature will allow players to learn more about the books. The goal of the program is to encourage tweens and teens to make reading a healthy part of their lives by presenting them with a varied selection of titles as well as engaging ways to play with them.
The program was created and deployed using Woozworld's unique brand activation platform which allows 3rd party brand owners to connect with the hard to reach tween and teen audience through multiple and persistent touchpoints.
"We are thrilled that HarperCollins has taken this initiative," said Eric Brassard, CEO of Woozworld. "This is the first time that young readers will have the chance to interact with stories in such an immersive manner. This program fits perfectly with our strategy to offer meaningful content to our younger community and we look forward to implementing more of these kinds of campaigns in the near future."
ABOUT HARPERCOLLINS CHILDREN'S BOOKS
HarperCollins Children's Books is one of the leading publishers of children's books. Respected worldwide for its tradition of publishing quality, award-winning books for young readers, HarperCollins is home to many timeless treasures -- Charlotte's Web, The Chronicles of Narnia, Goodnight Moon, Where the Sidewalk Ends, the Ramona series,Where the Wild Things Are; and popular new classics -- The Graveyard Book, A Series of Unfortunate Events, Warriors, and Fancy Nancy. Consistently at the forefront of digital innovation, HarperCollins Children's Books delights young readers through engaging storytelling in all formats, including ebooks and apps. HarperCollins Children's Books is a division of HarperCollins Publishers, one of the leading English-language publishers in the world and a subsidiary of News Corporation (
About Woozworld Inc.
Woozworld Inc. is a developer and operator of online tween & teen communities. Its flagship product, Woozworld.com, is an innovative global web 2.0 social world for tweens & teens that is built and led by its users. Its unique environment evolves continuously and allows users to create spaces, organize and participate in activities and even build their own businesses, among countless other things. The company has a highly experienced team with exceptional credentials in producing casual games, MMOG and virtual worlds for kids, as well as in marketing and business intelligence.