Mumbai: Paramount Digital Entertainment announced that the popular VooZoo application is launching in MTV Networks’ vMTV virtual world and Makena’s There.com. This marks the first movie studio to partner with There.com and underscores Paramount Pictures’ commitment to making famous scenes from its most popular movies available to users in social environments and on wireless devices.
With VooZoo, vMTV and There.com members can send each other video emoticons called ‘Voohoos’, which are made up of video clips from Paramount Pictures’ library that last from a few seconds and capture the most famous one-liners from a gamut of movies including classics like Footloose, Flashdance and Beverly Hills Cop to mainstream favorites including Mean Girls, Clueless and Zoolander.
Members of both worlds will be able to purchase the clips for about $1 each and use them when chatting with other members just as they would use other emoticons such as smile, lol (laugh out loud), or twist (a dance move).
Instead of just quoting lines from pop-culture icons like Cher Horowitz (Clueless) or Ferris Bueller (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off), etc., members can actually express themselves with the actual movie clip, which plays in a small window above their head.
"We are very focused on giving consumers premier choices from our catalogue of movies that goes way beyond a passive experience," states Paramount Digital Entertainment senior vice president of new business development Derek Broes. "VooZoo allows consumers to differentiate themselves from one another by which characters and lines they choose to express their thoughts during virtual conversations."
Over time, thousands of movie clips from Paramount Pictures’ library will be made available to There.com members. All of the movie clips offered will comply with There.com’s PG-13 environment. Consumers will also have the opportunity to purchase a DVD via a sell-through capability that will pop up once a video clip is selected.
In addition, MTV Networks will offer clips reflecting the best pop-culture moments from its extensive stable of hit shows. The VooZoo application is currently in private beta in There.com and will be available some time in Q2 in vMTV.
"vMTV marries the great programming of television with the unparalleled interactivity of the Internet," said MTV Networks executive vice president of program enterprises Jeff Yapp. "With the VooZoo application, our audience can have an even deeper level of engagement with the popular major-motion picture and television franchises they love."
"There.com is all about social interaction and self-expression. Your avatar can already dance, talk, run, jump and drive a buggy and the addition of video movie clips takes social interaction to another level," said Makena Technologies CEO Michael Wilson.
"Rather than repeat a movie quote when talking with friends, our members can use the actual movie clip, allowing them to share their thoughts and feelings in a richer, more engaging way," he added.
VooZoo in vMTV and There.com marks the third migration of the application onto multiple platforms since its debut on Facebook last month. Earlier this week, Paramount Mobile Entertainment, a division of Paramount Digital Entertainment, announced the launch of VooZoo Mobile, further demonstrating themselves as a studio leading the charge in the creation of digital solutions for short form content.
