14 DAY TRIAL // Sulake Corporation is planning to launch a mobile version of Habbo Hotel, a popular online community and game environment designed for teens. Sulake Corporation's aim is to become a provider of world-class entertainment.
Habbo is a virtual world where users can create their own virtual character and interact with other members of the community, thus providing a place where young people can meet friends and make new ones. The community has become so popular mainly due to the fact that it provides the means for self-expression, creativity and fun.
"Our strategic aim is to build Habbo into a new type of youth brand which is anchored in the largest online youth community. Habbo brand will extend to include e.g. animation series and merchandising products. Other key area for Sulake is to broaden the company's product portfolio with other kinds of game and community concepts for different target audiences." says CEO Timo Soininen.
A mobile pilot is running in Finland at the moment and Sulake plans to launch the mobile version globally during the first quarter of 2007. Pasi Ilola, head of marketing announced that the mobile features will be available both over WAP and I-Mode networks and will work on almost all color screen mobile phones. Habbo Hotel virtual community has over one million registered users, the average age of Habbo players being 15.
Mobile users of Habbo Hotel will be able to send and receive messages from other users in their friends list as well as participate in organized competitions or read the news. They will also be able to download content such as games, wallpapers or ringtones.
Users can choose from several payment methods for credit or subscription purchase including SMS, online banking, credit cards, single drop billing, prepaid youth cards, scratch cards, direct ISP billing and various other online methods.
"The prepaid cards were immediate success in Finland when they came to R-Kiosks. The word spread between Habbo players without any official marketing." Ilola said.