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Hospitals will use robot ducks to comfort kids with cancer
Aflac's robotic therapy ducks have started waddling their way to children's cancer hospitals nationwide after making their debut at CES earlier this year. The company is distributing the robotic waterfowl through a series of events as part of its activities for National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. It started with the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, where kids were sent on a scavenger hunt to find their very own high-tech chubby companion. Later this month, Aflac will distribute the second batch of therapy ducks at the Palmetto Health Children's Hospital in Columbia, South Carolina.
This robot therapy duck comforts kids with cancer
CES is flush with giant TVs, smart fridges and plenty of other superfluous nonsense. So it was a breath of fresh air when insurance company Aflac and a company called Sproutel showed up with a robot duck designed to comfort children with cancer. The My Special Aflac duck is, in many ways, not terribly different from other toy pets like Furby or an Aibo. It's cute, cuddly and packed with sensors that allow it to interact with you. Scratch under its chin and the duck will lift its head and let out an appreciative little quack. Find its ticklish spot under the wing and it'll shake about and erupt in laughter.
Jellyvision suing Aflac over 'You Don't Know Jack' parody
Now, see, we were pretty certain that nobody was still working for Jellyvision -- however, we wouldn't be willing to risk a pricey copyright infringement suit over that assertion. According to the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, Aflac recently drew the ire of the developer by designing a new web-based promotion titled You Don't Know Quack. Jellyvision now seeks a court order to prevent Aflac from trademarking the title, as well as monetary damages. Hopefully, if the studio wins, they'll spend said damages on developing a new You Don't Know Jack, and not, you know, yachts. However, we really don't see the similarities between the two games. One is a hilarious and entertaining series of trivia games, and one is an interactive commercial featuring that talking duck which has never, ever, ever been funny. [Via Gamasutra]
