Welcome kayjay123

[TRO Admin]

A Big welcome to our new member..... thoroughly enjoyed reading all your posts tonight and look forward to your continued membership and contributions here!

[kaylathehedgehog]

What he said.

Welcome aboard, and we're glad to have you!

[kayjay123]

Thanks Josh and Kayla! That's very kind of you . I'm super excited to have found a Teddy Ruxpin site that's still up and running.

[TRO Admin]

Yes, I'm afraid this is the last place really that is active as far as ongoing discussion. There are still two active websites- Mine and Mathue's TRFAQ- although once mine is as complete with our style of content as Mathue's is with his, there won't be much to add except our nostalgic discussions unless we keep fighting to keep Teddy out there and in the marketplace. I'm very happy each and everytime a new member emerges to help us in that quest.

[kayjay123]

I hope Teddy hangs in there. From what I've heard, BackPack has discontinued (or is still in the process of discontinuing) their Teddy.

[TRO Admin]

Yes, unfortunately that's the case. There is still a lot in store for Teddy though. I think 2010/2011 will have some major developments. It may have been his swan song, however, as a talking plush toy.

[kayjay123]

I still hold out hope that they'll put out another plush bear, but you may be right . You'd certainly think that someone would do something special for his 25th anniversary. Someone other than us, I mean.

[TRO Admin]

There was something planned by BackPack, but little doubt now that has gone the way of the buffalo right along with this new version of Teddy. Unfortunately in this tough economy and with three versions that didn't set the world on fire compared to one that did (the fact that there was very little attempt to market/advertise correctly in any of these versions will unfortunately not matter in the least to the guys who sign the checks) It would probably take some new technology to bring Teddy the talker back to a manufacturer near the great wall again. I hate being pessimistic on that front, unfortunately the realist in me wins out. Teddy is much more than the mechanics, though and the storyline is arguably (but don't argue it with me.. hehe) on the same playing field with Disney and Henson properties. There are lots of ways to keep the story going. We can feel fortunate we're able to do a small part here.

[kayjay123]

Very true. I never once saw a commercial for BackPack's Teddy, or Yes!'s Teddy for that matter. I find it odd that a company would buy the rights to him but not attemt to market him in any way.
I know absolutely nothing about what makes a Teddy Ruxpin work, but, if it were at all possible I think it'd be great if someone could design a Teddy that is actually an mp3 player of sorts, with an online store similar to iTunes. You'd plug your Teddy into your computer, download the story you wanted, stick it on his hard drive and go.
A pipe dream, I know. But I just had to share it .

[TRO Admin]

A wonderful idea. I shared a similar suggestion with some people awhile back. Hopefully those even more versed in the techie side of things than us will put two and two together one day. And when they do... we can take credit for it!

[kayjay123]

Really? Cool! Great minds think alike .

[Deleted]

That actually sounds like a really cool idea. The only thing that would be problematic, logistically, is the idea of having a "book" with each story. It would be easy enough to sync some sort of PowerPoint-esque storybook with an MP3, or perhaps even a PDF file, but it doesn't quite replace the idea of having that book in your hands and turning the page. That is something I think helped young readers to follow along with Teddy (and most subsequent iterations of similar products). Perhaps something like an e-Book reader would work (Amazon's Kindle for example). It is an interesting idea, although I really believe that Teddy's failure here has more to do with a lack of proper marketing moreso than shotty mechanics. He's an incredibly durable product, and the idea of using MP3 cartridges helped maintain the integrity and longevity of the product. I blame whoever works in Public Relations...lol...

[Deleted]

lol...where are my cyber-manners?

Welcome to the boards! I have also enjoyed the renewed activity here thanks to your fresh input. It's always a pleasure to meet a Teddy fan. I hope you'll stick around here with us.

[kaylathehedgehog]

I really believe that Teddy's failure here has more to do with a lack of proper marketing moreso than shotty mechanics. He's an incredibly durable product, and the idea of using MP3 cartridges helped maintain the integrity and longevity of the product. I blame whoever works in Public Relations...lol...

I'm inclined to agree.

He has an average of four and a half out of five stars on Amazon, so it's not like people dislike Teddy himself. From what I've seen, BackPack has done almost nothing to raise awareness of Teddy's return.

They should have marketed the heck out of Teddy. I'm talking clothing, school supplies, home furnishings, the works. Teddy had all this stuff in the 80s, so why couldn't he have the same now?

I suppose we should be thankful that he stay popular long enough for us to get the entire series on DVD. That's more than other 80's cartoons can claim.

[Deleted]

I would like to point out that BackPack Toys DID in fact have a commercial for Teddy. You can find it on their website. However, I never saw this actually aired, so unless you were specifically looking for it, I doubt many have seen it.

Also, there was a commercial for the DVD releases, which can also be found on the Mill Creek website, I believe. However, like the BackPack Toys Teddy Ruxpin commercial, I never saw it aired.

I assume this had to do with not having enough funds to purchase a timeslot on television, which is probably the same reason many other marketing tactics were ignored. The internet community seemed well aware of Teddy's return, however, the general public seemed oblivious.