A Virtual Popularity Contest

"The fact is more and more children at a younger and younger age are on the computer and using the computer for its play value," said Isaac Larian, chief executive of MGA Entertainment.

The need to close the gap between the physical and online playroom has not been lost on Mattel executives, who have taken to referring to Barbie and her various accoutrements -- the car, the clothes and Ken -- as "the reality side of the Barbie business."

The giant toymaker has reached out to girls online with the free Web site BarbieGirls.com, which launched in April. Bratz followed in her high-heeled footsteps. In August, MGA came out with social networking site Be-Bratz.com. Not to be outdone by Webkinz either, MGA Entertainment also sells Rescue Pets, plush toys that come with access to an online world. Hasbro has Littlest Pet Shop VIPs, a virtual world it launched in October, to accompany -- what else? -- a line of stuffed animals.

And there's more to come, said NPD Group analyst Anita Frazier.

"I think we're going to see an explosion of toys that marry the physical with the digital when we go to Toy Fair," Frazier said, referring to the industry gathering that hit New York on Sunday.

Mattel executives are more pleased with the performance of BarbieGirls.com than analysts have been.

The site has more than 10 million registered users worldwide. To access more content, parents can plunk down $60 for a doll-shaped MP3 player. The player comes with a code that lets users go online to adopt a pet puppy, bunny or monkey, enter exclusive hangout spots, drop virtual "B bucks" on a tiara or cowboy hat, and decorate their rooms in the style of a tiki hut.

Despite being free, several analysts said the site hasn't generated Webkinz-grade frenzy. "BarbieGirls.com hasn't established itself," said independent toy analyst Chris Byrne.

Mattel chief executive Robert A. Eckert told analysts last month that the MP3 player may have been too pricey and that this year would see products that let girls get deeper into the virtual Barbie world while going softer on parents' wallets.

One example that has already hit store shelves and doesn't require a high-speed connection is Barbie iDesign Ultimate Stylist, a CD-ROM-based computer game that lets users play virtual fashion stylist. It comes with cards, similar to baseball trading cards, that allow girls to upload looks that can be displayed in their own virtual fashion show set to a soundtrack of their choice.

"We're taking the experience of the fashion doll and putting it into a game," said Mattel spokeswoman Sara Rosales, adding that sales of the game have been strong.

Positioning Barbie in the world of digital play carries potential pitfalls. Just as Barbie's unrealistic measurements have attracted criticism for being a bad influence on young girls, the proliferation of products emphasizing screen time has its detractors.

Sites such as BarbieGirls and Webkinz are what Susan Linn, director of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, describes as part of "a commercial push to get very young children online . . . that takes kids away from hands-on creative play that is the foundation of critical thinking and creativity."

"It's about training children to shop online," said Linn, a child-development expert.

Rosales said nothing about BarbieGirls.com has to do with online shopping. "It's a massively multiplayer online game for girls," she said.

Industry watchers say virtual dolls aren't likely to replace toys you touch. NPD's Frazier notes that playing with toys still takes up the second-biggest chunk of time of any children's leisure activity, just behind that other kid pastime: watching television.