Disney to launch £3m online safety campaign

Disney has revealed an online ad safety campaign focused around its popular Club Penguin virtual world game.

The move follows claims by Channel 4 that Sulake’s social network Habbo Hotel was a "paedophile haven", which led to the withdrawl of the company’s larget shareholder.

According to The Guardian, Club Penguin co-founder and Disney executive vice president Lane Merrifield announced the £3m initiative during a keynote at the Children’s Media Conference in Sheffield.

"From the very start, our vision for Club Penguin was to create a safe place for my kids and their friends to play online. The scale may now be bigger than I could ever have imagined but that philosophy has not changed," said Merrifield…

"Education is the final piece of the puzzle in terms of kids’ safety online… As an industry I think we can help teach kids the lessons that they need to become responsible digital citizens."

Club Penguin is the largest virtual world for children, boasting 175 million accounts in 190 countries.

The campaign will target 100 million children and parents in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.