MindCandy acquires TutPup, raises funding

MindCandy, perhaps best known amongst the gaming community for its pioneering Alternative Reality Game Perplexcity, has been very active recently, according to TechCrunch.

MindCandy is now the home of Moshi Monsters, an educational virtual world aimed at kids. The TV world has long been aware of the huge value of creating IP that appeals to an endlessly renewing demographic, and companies like Club Penguin and Habbo Hotel have shown that the same attraction can exist online in virtual worlds.

MindCandy has recently:

• Acquired TutPup, a site “where kids from around the world can play maths and spelling games against each other”
• Raised a Convertible Loan Note from existing investors Accel, Spark and Index as well as a new unnamed investor
• Launched a premium subscription service
• Appointed Ed Relf, the popular head of marketing at Codemasters Online, as head of marketing.

Moshi Monsters has a much-wider appeal than Perplexcity and has some clear strategies towards monetisation. The world of child-friendly MMOs and virtual worlds is crowded, but initial signs for MindCandy are promising.