WDW Daily News

Today The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) announced the 2015 class of the Disney Accelerator program powered by Techstars. The second Disney Accelerator program features ten startup companies that will participate in a three-month mentorship and investment program beginning today and concluding with a Demo Day on October 6, 2015.

The companies selected for the 2015 Disney Accelerator program include:

• Decisive: Decisive is a Software as a Service (SaaS) platform that uses real time data to enable advertisers to optimize mobile ad creative and targeting based on user engagement.
• EMOTIV: EMOTIV is a bioinformatics company that uses electroencephalography (EEG) to track mental performance, monitor emotions, and control virtual and physical objects with thoughts.
• FEM Inc.: FEM Inc. has developed a personalized video engagement platform based on neuroscience and psychology that maps the emotional dimensions of how and why content resonates.
• HYP3R: HYP3R enables businesses and brands to identify influential customers at their locations and engage them in real time, when it matters most.
• imperson: imperson provides an artificial intelligence platform enabling fans to have conversations with their favorite movie and TV characters.
• Littlstar: Littlstar aggregates industry leading virtual reality content with its device agnostic discovery and distribution platform.
• MakieLab: MakieLab lets kids bring toys to life by building their own customizable 3D-printed toys through creative games and apps.
• Open Bionics: Open Bionics is a robotics company creating affordable 3D-printed bionic hands for amputees, researchers and makers.
• Pundit: Pundit lets creators host audio Ask Me Anything (AMA’s) with their Twitter network, transforming the talk radio experience for the social media age.
• StatMuse: StatMuse is developing an artificial intelligence platform to help sports fans explore data using simple, natural language.

“Last year’s Disney Accelerator exceeded our expectations on many fronts,” said Kevin Mayer, Chief Strategy Officer of The Walt Disney Company. “We are excited to roll up our sleeves again this year and help these cutting-edge startups achieve their goals.”

Participants receive up to $120,000 in investment capital to develop their ideas, along with mentor support from top Disney executives, including Chairman and CEO Robert A. Iger, and leaders from Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, ESPN and Walt Disney Imagineering, among others. Mentors will also include other entertainment industry leaders, venture capitalists, and Techstars’ extensive network of entrepreneurs, investors and executives.

The startups from the 2014 Disney Accelerator have reached many milestones since completing the program. All of the startups have either raised capital, been acquired or become profitable since the end of the Accelerator and many of the participating companies have launched products and programs in conjunction with The Walt Disney Company:

• ChoreMonster launched a Disney•Pixar’s Inside Out takeover of their app that unlocks characters from the film with completed chores.
• Naritiv’s Snapchat campaign for ABC Family’s Pretty Little Liars has amassed more than 1.3 million followers on Snapchat.
• Robotics company Sphero is currently building an official toy based on the BB-8 droid used in the upcoming Star Wars: The Force Awakens that will be available later this year.
• App creator TYFFON released the Show Your Disney Side app for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, which was downloaded more than 1.25 million times in the first two weeks.

For more information on both the 2014 and 2015 Accelerator programs, please visit: http://DisneyAccelerator.com.

Today, Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media (DCPI), along with Hasbro, Inc., announced the pre-sale of Playmation Marvel’s Avengers – the groundbreaking new system of toys and wearables that uses smart technology to inspire kids to run around and use their imaginations, as they become the hero or heroine of stories from Marvel’s Avengers. The Playmation Marvel’s Avengers Starter Pack, Smart Figures and Prowler Bot are available to pre-order online at Amazon.com, BestBuy.com, GameStop.com, Target.com, ToysRUs.com and Walmart.com, as well as DisneyStore.com and at select Disney Store locations in the U.S. and Canada.

Kids and parents can experience Playmation Marvel’s Avengers for the first time only at participating Disney Store locations beginning July 7, where two- and five-minute training sessions will be available daily. For those who want to take part in an expanded experience, 30-minute Avengers Gear Orientations will be available on Saturdays and Sundays by reservation only. During the 30-minute Avenger Gear Orientation, kids and parents will learn more about the Avenger Gear, follow instructions from JARVIS and interact with other participants to complete missions and adventures. In-store training experiences will be available through October; parents can visit www.disneystore.com/playmation for a list of participating Disney Stores and to reserve a spot for the Avenger Gear Orientation.

“Playmation Marvel’s Avengers puts kids at the center of stories from the Marvel Universe, taking them on active adventures right alongside Earth’s Mightiest Heroes,” said Paul Gainer, executive vice president, Disney Retail. “Kids can team up with the Avengers by trying on Repulsor Gear and going on a mission with the help of JARVIS as they take part in exclusive demonstrations at Disney Store.”

The Playmation Marvel’s Avengers Starter Pack includes five connected toys: one piece of Avenger Gear (Repulsor), two Power Activators and two Smart Figures – a Super Hero (Captain America) and a Super Villain (Iron Skull). Additional Smart Figures – such as Iron Man, Black Widow, M.O.D.O.K., Hulkbuster and more – help players unlock new characters and content when placed on the Power Activator and synced with Avenger Gear. The Prowler Bot – a robotic villain – can find and hunt your Avenger Gear with 360 degree movement, while taking on dozens of enemy personas and abilities making game play more challenging.

Playmation Marvel’s Avengers, developed in collaboration with Hasbro, uses familiar technologies including wearables, wireless technology, motion sensors and more, but applies them in ways that are completely new to create a play experience that’s never been possible before. The Repulsor Gear connects with the Power Activators and Smart Figures to take you on a variety of adventures through locations around the Marvel Universe, from the Avengers Lab in New York to the jungles of Wakanda. Playmation is purposely not tethered to an Internet connection so players can run around and explore each adventure from anywhere they want – a bedroom, living room or yard. With multiplayer modes, players can sync their Avenger Gear to tackle missions and combat arenas together, or face-off in competitive play.

Playmation marks a new chapter in the long-term relationship between Disney Consumer Products and Hasbro, and their record of innovation and consumer insights make them the perfect partner to ensure that Playmation is a truly ground-breaking play experience.

Those who pre-order can expect to receive their purchase when Playmation Marvel’s Avengers becomes available at Disney Stores, disneystore.com and mass retailers in the U.S. and Canada beginning October 4. The suggested retail price of the Start Pack is $119.99, Smart Figures are $14.99, and the Prowler Bot is $39.99. The Disney Store and other retailers will be offering special pre-sale promotions beginning July 7; visit retailer websites for more details. The Playmation Marvel’s Avengers Starter Pack, additional Smart Figures, and Prowler Bot are each sold separately. Batteries are not included.

For more information on Playmation Marvel’s Avengers, visit http://www.playmation.com/avengers.