• NY Times, Tuesday, December 13, 2005 10:34 AM

Plastic toys don't mean much to kids these days, but media files do, or so goes the logic behind a pending patent application by the Walt Disney Company. According to The New York Times, the patent actually involves fast food chain McDonald's, which tries to entice kids with plastic toys inside Happy Meals. With Disney's idea, a consumer would enter a restaurant, order food, and receive a portable media player along with an electronic code authorizing the partial download of a movie, video or other media file. It's unclear whether the device would belong to the restaurant or the consumer, but with each subsequent return to the restaurant, consumers would receive another portion of the movie, game or whatever. The idea is to keep kids (or adults) coming back for more. McDonald's is specifically mentioned in the patent, but neither company was quoted in the article.

Read the whole story at NY Times »