Virtual Greats LLC and Goodwin Sports Management have recently announced a multi-year deal whereby NBA All stars Dwight Howard and Kevin Durant as well as WNBA MVP Candace Parker will be represented in virtual worlds. Not only will users have access to these signature line creations, but the trio will also be featured to promote NBA and WNBA licensed products within these online communities.
With this creation and insertion, Howard, Durant, and Parker will become the first pro athletes to launch avatars and associated virtual goods for purchase, joining the ranks of Elvis Presely, Snoop Dogg, Justin Timberlake, and Raven Symoné . First up on the virtual hitlist? The award goes to WeeWorld, one of the most popular avatar based virtual worlds, and a proven site by way of user self expression, creativity, and interactivity/communication. Virtual Greats includes to roll out the new properties to additional online communities in the near future.
“Sports are a key part of the content portfolio we offer to online social network, gaming and virtual world platform operators,” said Dan Jansen, CEO, Virtual Greats. “Dwight Howard, Kevin Durant and Candace Parker are breaking new ground as the first professional athletes to monetize their personal brands and content in these online communities – in doing so they’re proving their business savvy on top of their basketball prowess.”
“WeeWorld is all about self expression, and WeeMees were asking for more sports and NBA apparel to showcase their team pride,” said Lauren Bigelow, General Manager of North America and SVP of Marketing, WeeWorld. “The addition of the branded Howard, Durant and Parker gear at the height of playoff season is perfect timing. The 27 million WeeMees globally now get to show their team spirit.”
No word yet on the expected timeline to roll out these hot NBA and WNBA stars to other virtual properties, but chances are if they’re a hit within WeeWorld, Virtual Greats will step up to the plate and deliver in due course.
Tags: candace parker, dwight howard, goodwin sports management, kevin durant, nba all stars, nba apparel, virtual greats, virtual worlds, weeworld
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