I have stated earlier that I don't "get it" -- why are real companies rushing into 2L with real dollars? It's just a game, right?
I think they missed the first Web 2.0 wave -- they arrived late to the MySpace and YouTube party -- and they don't want to miss out on "The Next Big Thing". But look at the numbers, quoting Wired Magazine:
According to Linden Lab, the company behind Second Life, the number of avatars created by distinct individuals was closer to 4 million. Of those, only about 1 million had logged on in the previous 30 days (the standard measure of Internet traffic), and barely a third of that total had bothered to drop by in the previous week. Most of those who did were from Europe or Asia, leaving a little more than 100,000 Americans per week to be targeted by US marketers.
And why do those 100,000 Americans bother to come back to 2L? Again, from the article:
On a random day in June, the most popular location was Money Island (where Linden dollars, the official currency, are given away gratis), with a score of 136,000. Sexy Beach, one of several regions that offer virtual sex shops, dancing, and no-strings hookups, came in at 133,000. The Sears store on IBM's Innovation Island had a traffic score of 281; Coke's Virtual Thirst pavilion, a mere 27.
It wasn't Micro$oft's Encarta that put a CD-ROM in your computer -- it was Virtual Valerie and Penthouse's Photo Shoot, so perhaps 2L will overcome technical issues (it's not scaling well) and become TNBT. It's lonely when you're the first one to the party, and many corporate players are investing heavily to come early. IBM, the NBA, Coca-Cola -- they all want to be there if it happens. But I'm getting one of those Dick Cheney "gut feelings" about this one...
The Leader in Network Knowledge
