Ryan MacMillan

Here at RMM we do a nice little line in case studies of online engagement by well-known brands. Oft, these are tales of woeful misadventure (I’m a particular fan of the Raging Cow trainwreck) and hopeless mediaspeak chuffery (see here). Sometimes, though, our lives are brightened by a cleverly spent bit of digital social capital (Cylons! All shall have Cylons!) or a friendly blog post or two (oh, Last.FM, how you delight us with your chatty informality!).

And thus, mine ever-attentive readers, I am drawn to ask: upon which side of this cavernous divide will Hasbro and Mattel stand once the Scrabulous controversy has reached its conclusion? Will they insist on its removal and thus, in their wilfully twentieth-century attitude toward ownership, join the ranks of aggrieved bike-lock manufacturers everywhere? Or will they, in a fit of digital communality, work with the Scrabulous boys and develop, oh, I don’t know, some sort of licensed product which makes money for them via advertising or subscription, thus taking their rightful place next in the pantheon of digital social capitalists?

Should they, the operating officers of Mattel and Hasbro, be reading this (and why would they, as men and women of the world, not be, eh?) then I would humbly point them in the direction of the ‘Save Scrabulous’ Facebook group, whence we find this telling comment by one  Lucy Harrison of Vancouver:

It’s because I got back into playing Scrabble on Scrabulous that I went out and BOUGHT a Scrabble board so I could play with friends in coffee shops. Hasbro must see what great marketing this is - and they should certainly open up their own online gaming (if they haven’t already.) I think someone’s idea of getting them a cut in the profits is a great idea!”

Lucy has shown great wisdom… perhaps now Hasbro and Mattel will follow suit?