Jump to content

Stardoll

Page semi-protected
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Birdstothewind (talk | contribs) at 10:06, 6 September 2011 (→‎Participating brands on Stardoll). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Stardoll
Developer(s)Stardoll AB
Publisher(s)Stardoll AB; Mattias Miksche
EngineAdobe Flash
Platform(s)OS Independent (Web Based Flash) (Flash 7 Required)
Release2004
Genre(s)Ages 8+
Mode(s)Superstar (Paid account) or Non-Superstar (Free account)

Stardoll is a browser game for girls and boys based around the paper doll concept. Launched in 2004, the website was attracting a reported 200 thousand unique users a month (as of September 2009); as of September 2011 there were over 124 million users worldwide. Users can dress up dolls using a range of tools and can participate in interactive activities depending on the type of account they used. There are also "educational" games included in the site which are claimed to improve quick thinking.[1] Members can create clubs,In which they communicate with friends.

History

Stardoll first appeared as Paperdoll Heaven in 2004 as the personal page on paper dolls of creator Liisa Wrang (a 57-year-old Finnish retired housekeeper[2]) grew from its original home on Geocities.[3] It expanded in 2006 after receiving venture funding from Index Ventures[4] and Sequoia Capital.[5] Relaunched in 2006, the site targets a demographic of girls and boys between the ages of 9 and 17, who can either register for free or sign up for a paid account (called a 'Superstar' account) that opens a number of aspects on the site.[6] The site also has user-run fashion magazines, clubs, instant messaging, and virtual shopping. Each Stardoll member is supplied with a personal page and message one another via a built-in chat. The site has drawn interest from celebrities and fashion designers, some of whom are represented on the site either as one of the figures that can be dressed up (such as Avril Lavigne and Hilary Duff)[7] or through use of their respective fashions labels.[8] It has been named a Webware 100 winner by CNET.[9]

Some critics of Stardoll and similar sites have expressed concerns with the commercial aspect of Stardoll.[10] The site has also experienced controversy around their use of celebrity likenesses without permission from the celebrities' management.[11]

Real celebrities on Stardoll

Well known people with verified accounts are identified as "Real Celebs" on Stardoll. As of the July 8, 2011 listing on Stardoll they included the following: [12]

Participating brands on Stardoll

Stardoll also makes one-off stores for various promotions like movies, TV shows, stores etc. and also makes 'Hot Buys' which are new items are released for a certain period of time. A new range of items is announced each month, and these items are often inspired by real life brands like Topshop, Forever 21 and H&M among other brands that include designer brands.

Tribute shops

In the summer of 2010 and again in the summer of 2011 Stardoll released several couture shops that users could buy. Every shop item was superstar and highly priced; and are now highly valued, since each store was available for one month only. (List in order of shop release)

References

  1. ^ Walker, Rob (February 17, 2008). "Dress-Up for Dollars". New York Times Magazine. Retrieved April 25, 2008.
  2. ^ [http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Liisa+Wrang+-+the+rags-to-riches+story+behind+Stardoll/1135262186716 Snellman, Ritva Liisa. "Liisa Wrang - the rags-to-riches story behind Stardoll" Kuukausiliite December 2010
  3. ^ "Stardoll.com: From Little Things Big Things Grow". TechCrunch. Retrieved April 25, 2008.
  4. ^ Index Ventures, accessed April 25, 2008]
  5. ^ "Virtual Dress-Up Site Gets $6M". Red Herring. Retrieved May 4, 2008.
  6. ^ "MySpace not their space". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved April 25, 2008.
  7. ^ "Word of Mouse: Creating a musical buzz online". NPR. Retrieved April 25, 2008.
  8. ^ Gershberg, Michele. "Donna Karan, Sephora to sell in Stardoll Web world". Washington Post. Retrieved May 4, 2008.
  9. ^ "Webware 100 Winner: Stardoll". Webware. Retrieved May 4, 2008.
  10. ^ "When the Internet becomes child's play". iol.co.za. Retrieved May 4, 2008.
  11. ^ "Millions Of Us and Virtual Greats; Merchandising and Virtual Goods". Virtual Worlds News. Retrieved June 12, 2008. [dead link]
  12. ^ Official List of Real Celebs on Stardoll

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Stardoll&oldid=448725296"