Drake Hatchery will be an Application Service Provider. Users will pay a subscription fee for access to their own unique virtual world, bereft of any advertising or merchandise targeting.
DrakeHatchery.com is to be the eventual site where parents can go and sign up for a Virtual Pets site for their child. Once they sign up, the child can create their own animals, creatures, games, etc. to either play themselves or share with friends and family.
For additional information on proposed budget and target revenue, please contact Drake Hatchery directly.
Industry Outlook
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Site traffic info for Webkinz.com
(currently about 6 million visitors per month, growth of about 366% this year) -
Site traffic info for Neopets.com
(currently about 3 million visitors per month, growth of about 15% this year) - Brooks Barnes, "Web Playgrounds of the Very Young", New York Times, December 31, 2007
Disney’s biggest online world is Club Penguin, which it bought in August from three Canadians in a deal worth $700 million. At the time, more than 700,000 members paid fees of $5.95 a month, delivering annual revenue of almost $50 million.
Still, one world, even a very successful one, does not alter the financial landscape at a $35.5 billion company like Disney. So Disney is pursuing a portfolio approach, investing $5 million to $10 million per world to develop a string of as many as 10 virtual properties, people familiar with Disney’s plans said.