Club Penguin Goes Disney

Disney, which is trying to figure out how kids want to spend their time online, has bought Club Penguin, where kids ages 6 to 14, flock every day.

Disney will pay at least $350 million for the site, but the deal could grow to $700 million if profits grow. Club Penguin, where kids sign up and design personal Penguin avatars to roam around, play games, and earn coins, tripled in usage over the past year to 4.7 million unique U.S. visitors in June. Disney would like to take that gem of a site and expand it to an overseas market, while figuring out how Club Penguin does what it does.

Disney will have to tread lightly and restrain from Disneyfying a site which just may be as successful as it is because it does not promote any commercial characters and is not rife with advertising. Kids know when something is being forced upon them as "fun" and what genuine fun is. Sites like Club Penguin and Webkinz have taken off in part because they are another world away from TV and movies.

My 10-year-old loves Disney shows (believe me, the same shows get watched over and over) but she doesn't go looking for her favorite characters online after the TV is off. She heads for Webkinz or Club Penguin. When I told her about the sale, she frowned and said, "Oh no, they better not make it 'Club High School Musical." Then, she added, in her best mock-TV-commercial voice, "Help Troy sled past obstacles and sing his heart out!"

Like I said, kids know when they are being marketed to and when they are having fun. So as long as Disney doesn't tinker too much with Club Penguin, young penguins will keep stopping by.

LINK: Disney acquires Club Penguin for $350 million [AP]

Related: Where the Young Kids Are Online
Club Penguin: A Safe Place for Kids to Social Waddle