Penguins worth $400 million?

Anyone noticed the crush of penguin movies we've had lately? There's been Happy Feet, March of the Penguins, and some other one whose name I can't remember but that appears to be about a surfing penguin and his friend who is a chicken -- really, you can't make this stuff up.

Maybe that's why Sony and News Corps are considering paying up to $400 million for Club Penguin, an online world where the tween set interacts with each other through penguin avatars. Or it could be because these online worlds might just be "next big thing" in ongoing efforts to capture the hearts and minds of consumers.

Online worlds offer some attractive benefits to anyone seeking to market a product or service. First of all, they're pretty niche -- if you want to market something to tech-savvy 8 to 12 year olds (which feels like probably ALL 8 to 12 year olds), Club Penguin is the place to do it. Second, online worlds offer a gaming and interactive environment. In the new "engagist" culture, people don't want to be advertised at -- they want to be part of the brand development experience. Online worlds are uniquely suited to providing that kind of experience.

Other virtual worlds that are drawing attention (according to a recent article in Business Week) include Webkinz.com, RuneScape.com and Neopets.com. What's most of these worlds have in common is the fact that they appeal to 9 to 17 year olds, a coveted up and coming demographic with advertisers.

Come to think of it, if 9 to 17 year olds are so focused on online worlds, I wonder what they'll be like in 5 years when they hit the working world -- perhaps you should wonder about that as well!