If my talking Teddy Ruxpin could have traveled with me, given me tidbits about our new location and played games with other kids in a virtual environment, I think I’d be a smarter person today. Or maybe not. Either way, I would have had so much fun with that kind of toy. So I’m pretty excited about SGN’s new toy, which bridges the gap between physical and virtual worlds for children.
SGN, the gaming company, has launched a new project today at the TechCrunch50 conference. Called Toybots, the new project debuted Woozees, its prototype of an interactive toy. You can think of Woozees as mini computers wrapped in fur. In the words of SGN founder Shervin Pishevar the Woozee is "like a toy Kindle, or an iPhone inside of a toy." That’s because this adorable toy can be synchronized with its online and mobile apps, giving children instant and constant access to their games and the other interactive applications that can be run through this toy.
The most interesting aspect of Toybots so far is the approach SGN is taking with its plans for the new project. Toybots will enable developers to create applications for the toys, just as 
they would for an iPhone. That makes Toybots products new conduits for interactive applications. This creates yet another platform-atop-a-platform approach that has been a signature strategy for SGN, even when it was creating game applications for Facebook’s platform. As far as its application to the toy industry, I think it’s quite brilliant.
This means that toy manufacturers such as Matel can leverage Toybots as a way to enter a new market for their own products. Just as the iPhone has revolutionized the gaming industry by providing a new device for classic and innovative games, so too can Toybots do the same for children’s products. I think Toybots’ concept can also provide a distribution and marketing channel for new games.
From marketing to the education sector, there is a great deal of potential behind Toybots. Already, the company has partnered with an unnamed telecommunications company for the provision of the network upon which the toys can operate in order to remain connected to an online network.
That means that children can play virtual online games using their toy as a game controller, they can learn about their current location based on the toy’s ability to orient itself through GPS, and even present itself as a safety measure for parents that would be more comfortable with their children having network-enabled toys instead of cell phones. Toybots actually opens up a new door for a children-oriented marketplace that’s akin to the iPhone App Store.
Speaking of safety, Pishevar has noted that all applications will be approved by SGN prior to being available for download and synchronization with the children’s toys. Parental and other controls will also likely be put in place to ensure that safety and brand protection are at the core of any marketplace derived from the Toybots initiative.
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