Virtual World, Real Money

BusinessWeek's cover story for May 1st has to do with a little place called Second Life. BusinessWeek Online has several stories related to their exploration on online living. My Virtual Life is a first-time exploration of Second Life, with some examination of the property and financial aspects of the gameworld. It's Not All Fun and Games explores the serious side of virtual businesses, as they interview Ashne Chung (notable real estate baron) in a piece called Virtual Land, Real Money. Ed Castronova has his say in a more general article on virtual economies. Finally, for an outside perspective, the obligatory Terra Nova discussion is always useful.

Comments

I hereby

[UniXY]

stake this first post as virtual property... get with me after this and we can negotiate a pice.

Re:I hereby

[nelsonal]

I'll give you two future second posts and a funny sig.

Since I can't afford to live in meatspace...

[Anonymous Coward]

...what's the price of a condo in a decent online community? I'm considering emigrating; looking for a good neighbourhood, easy commute and reasonable taxes.

I found a better online game

[coldtone]

I have found a way better game to play online. It's a lot more challenging and fun then Wow, Second life, or Ever quest combined! This online game also allows you to earn real money!

It's called running an online business. You can pick from a range of class types, (blogger, storekeeper, programmer) or create your own!

The game content is simply amazing! It is virtually infinite, and changes daily!

You can play as much or as little as you want. Spend an hour, a day or an hour a week, it's up to you!

I've been playing for a few months now and its a blast! Check out my avatar cl1p!

It's like this:

[Anonymous Coward]

In real life I'm a shy, fat, ugly loser. Online I'm a hyper-successful 21 Y/O stud who get's all the attention. I'm living the dream baby!

Maybe they are trapped by...

[gatkinso]

... the inability to take a shower, hit the gym, and subsequently get laid.

Re:No, not really

[soupforare]

It's not populated by the technological elite, it's populated by some businessmen and some people with more money than sense.

hah! They should just call it furrylife. businessmen... lawl.

Re:And yet, oddly enough

[patio11]

Second Life may not end up taking the world by storm, but it raises some interesting issues. What happens if the total value of goods and services in an online world- its gross domestic product (GDP)- starts exceeding that of, say, small African nations?

Dear Sir or Madam,

My name is Humbert Rumpledunk and I am a successful Real Estate Baron on Second (2nd) Life. Recently I sold property worth One Hundred Million Linden Dollars (L$100,000,000,000.00). However, because of a computer error, I am unable to withdraw the funds properly. If you ingame message me your user name, password, and bank information, I will send your account the money, withdraw it, and electronically transfer 90% to me, leaving you 10% (Ten Million Linden Dollars) as a fee for service. Your discretion is requested.