Barbie: Battle of the doll divas hits cyberspace April 26, 2007

Mattel unveils its newest Barbie venture BarbieGirls.com and a Barbie MP3 player.

By Parija B. Kavilanz, CNNMoney.com senior writer

April 26 2007: 4:37 PM EDT

 

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — If Barbie can’t fend off bitter rival Bratz in the “real” world, then she’s going to take the battle to the “virtual” world and hopefully have better luck there.

Barbie’s parent Mattel (Charts, Fortune 500), the world’s largest toymaker, on Thursday unveiled its newest Barbie initiative called “Barbie Girls” which meshes together the online and offline play experience for girls.

Mattel had released some details about the new venture last week. However, the toymaker kept a few other surprises closely under wraps.

Barbie Girls actually is a two-part concept. It’s a Web site which comes to life on BarbieGirls.com, which launched on April 26. Mattel executives told reporters during a preview Thursday in New York City that the company hoped to create a “first-ever global online community designed exclusively for girls.”

At BarbieGirls.com, girls can create their own virtual characters, design their own rooms, shop at the mall using virtual money called “BBucks,” go to the pet shop or to the movies or just hang out with their other virtual friends and chat live with other girls.

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