• November 7, 2000

AdTools, Inc., the leader in developing unique email and extreme viral promotions, in partnership with nick.com, the number one destination for kids on the Web, yesterday unveiled an innovative viral marketing campaign, supporting the nationwide Fall release of the Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies feature film "Rugrats in Paris - The Movie." AdTools worked with nick.com to bring the loveable Nickelodeon "Rugrats" characters online directly to fans in advance of the first intercontinental "Rugrats" adventure. "Rugrats in Paris – The Movie" opens in theaters nationwide November 17, 2000.

For the promotion, housed exclusively at nick.com, AdTools’ technology allows "Rugrats" fans to download individual animated characters directly to their desktop, including Dil, Angelica, Tommy, and Chuckie.

For each of the six months leading up to the release of "Rugrats in Paris - The Movie," one new character has been added for desktop downloading and emailing to friends. Users are encouraged to keep and pass along these characters and to consider them as ‘collectibles.’ The monthly character unveiling gave users an incentive to return to nick.com repeatedly for ongoing exposure to film marketing. To provide further incentive for repeat exposure, users who ultimately downloaded all characters receive access to a special collector’s edition "Rugrats" character.

ScreenMate Movies are viral, 30 to 60-second, windowless desktop cartoons with sound and movement. Extremely small in file size, they require no plug-ins or players, and allow for two-way communication between marketers and end-users. Consumers download files, which appear to them as animated desktop characters. Users can save and collect the characters, as well as email a personalized version of them to other users, thereby encouraging pass-along and user endorsement of the marketing message.

Will this approach work? November 17 will bring the answer.