"According to their writeup, Disney has partnered with a company called Jaxx to create a line of toys that can be recognized by phone or tablet apps, then trigger animations based on Disney's movies or other properties. In the example seen by Reuters, pointing an iPad camera at a set of Little Mermaid-branded bongo drums will cause the crab Sebastian to come on-screen and perform a song by "playing" them. Specific animations could also be used to sell the products in stores, like an animated Tinkerbell who flies out of her box when shoppers look at her with a smartphone camera."
Both Sony and Disney are among the first studios testing this new service, which makes its debut in South Korea, reports the Wall Street Journal. The move is being done to help curb piracy overseas by allowing people to rent movies a few weeks after they're released in theaters. For example, Django Unchained was released just three weeks after its debut in theaters across the country. Disney's Wreck-it Ralph, and Brave are also part of this new trial service.
"While the Google deal will help expand the appeal of purchasing Disney, Pixar and Marvel-branded movies, it will also boost the profile of the Google Play store, which has recently made a more aggressive push to increase sales and rentals primarily through partnerships with Hollywood studios."
Pleasants looks cites virtual world Club Penguin as the model for this sort of new IP development in the future, in light of the virtual world’s 400% growth in the last three years.