Jesusfreakhideout.com Music News, May 2012: VEGGIETALES® SIGNS WITH RUCKUS MEDIA GROUP FOR INTERACTIVE DIGITAL STORYBOOKS

VEGGIETALES® SIGNS WITH RUCKUS MEDIA GROUP
FOR INTERACTIVE DIGITAL STORYBOOKS

Big Idea Entertainment Continues to Expand in the Digital Game Play Space
with Engaging Apps and Games for Young Kids

NEWS SOURCE: Hoganson Media
May 10, 2012

FRANKLIN, TN (May 10, 2012) -- Big Idea Entertainment, a leading studio and producer of children's and family programming, and Ruckus Media Group, the global children's digital media company, announce a digital partnership under which Ruckus has been granted worldwide rights to develop interactive storybook applications - iReaders -- based on VeggieTales, the most successful faith-based brand in the world. With witty humor and lively animation, VeggieTales teaches timeless values and meaningful lessons to children through hilarious storytelling, silly songs and lovable characters with brand sales of more than 60 million videos, 13 million books, 7 million CDs, and licensees with over 400 very Veggie fantastic products. Designed for children ages 4-8, these new Ruckus mobile applications for iOS devices give families the opportunity to interact with their favorite characters at home or on the go and, at the same time, empower parents with a digital report card providing direct, actionable feedback on their child's reading, the cornerstone of the Ruckus Reader program.

The VeggieTales Ruckus iReaders will present wholesome values and lessons like honesty, forgiveness, patience and thankfulness, lessons that are easy for children to understand and that help guide them in their day-to-day lives. Designed for children ages 4-8, Ruckus will launch three iReaders in varying reading levels, worldwide with English language distribution via the App store in June 2012. The iReaders will be based on Big Idea's bestselling DVD's "Pistachio" (level 1), "Sweetpea Beauty" (level 2), and "Big River Rescue" (level 2). A fourth title is already in production to tie-in to Big Idea's major Fall 2012 release "The League of Incredible Vegetables" (level 3).

Powered by the Ruckus Reader, iReaders are designed to match age-appropriate standards determined by the Common Core State Standards and reinforce national educational standards for preschool through second grade. As children enjoy VeggieTales® original stories and content, parents receive weekly Reader Meter reports that assess their child's in-app reading skills, such as phonics and word recognition, print and phonological awareness, fluency, alphabetic knowledge, sequencing and story comprehension in real time. Story-driven activities such as word builders, letter and word hunts, hidden pictures, mazes, find-the-difference games and make-your-own-sticker or diary pages help teach phonics, letter and word recognition, rhyming, syllables, reading comprehension and more.

"We are delighted to continue to provide fresh new content to VeggieTales fans with these new digital storybooks from Ruckus," said Brian Mitchell, Vice President of Licensing, Big Idea Entertainment. "The emphasis on learning to read and develop motor skills promoted through each story delivers great value to families with young children, and creates a new and engaging VeggieTales experience."

"We are pleased to offer VeggieTales to the Ruckus family of iReaders," says Rick Richter, Ruckus CEO, "a truly inspirational brand that that has already found an audience among millions of Americans."

About Ruckus Media Group
Ruckus Media Group creates interactive applications for mobile devices designed to entertain and educate children ages 3-8. Launched in September 2010, the company's centerpiece is the Ruckus Reader (released April 2012), a breakthrough learning program for the iPad featuring digital storybooks that delight children with interactive content from the most popular names in entertainment (Hasbro, Crayola, SeaWorld, The Wiggles, Cyberchase, Dino Dan and Veggie Tales). It also provides parents with an innovative reading assessment tool and personalized feedback on their child's reading experience. Within days of its launch, four of the initial Ruckus Reader bookshelves hit the iTunes Top 10 Chart (Books category, free iPad apps).

Previously released award-winning digital storybooks include the #1 iTunes best-selling and Mom's Choice Gold Award winner "My Little Pony: Twilight Sparkle, Teacher for a Day," based on the ever-popular Hasbro toy characters; Parents' Choice and Mom's Choice Award winners "Spot the Dot," by pop-up legend David A. Carter, and "Chuck & Friends: Friends for the Long Haul"; About.com Readers' Choice Award winner and Best App Award finalist "A Present for Milo," written and illustrated by Mike Austin; "The Velveteen Rabbit: Told by Meryl Streep" and other read-play-and-record-along classic animated storybook apps.

For a full listing of titles and additional information, see the Ruckus Reader website www.RuckusReader.com and the Ruckus Media Group iTunes page and follow Ruckus on Facebook and Twitter.

About Big Idea Entertainment
Big Idea Entertainment is a leading studio and producer of children's and family programming, characters and brands. Big Idea's best-selling series VeggieTales® is a leading animated home video series in the US with moms of pre-schoolers*. Since 1993, VeggieTales® has sold 60+ million videos, 13 million books and more than 7 million CDs. VeggieTales® and Big Idea's property, 3-2-1 Penguins!®, enjoyed four seasons as top-rated series on NBC Saturday mornings, Telemundo and ION TV via the qubo® children's programming block. The studio's two theatrical releases, Jonah-A VeggieTales Movie® (2002), and Universal Pictures' and Big Idea's The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything®-A VeggieTales Movie® (2008), are distinguished among the most successful faith-based films of all time. Big Idea also maintains an extensive presence in publishing, licensing and live entertainment arenas. For more information on Big Idea, visit: www.VeggieTales.com.
*Spring 2011 Q-Score