Businesses and Organizations in Second Life

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In the virtual world of Second Life, there are a number of in-world business and user-groups founded specifically for the game, some of which have become legal entities in their own right, as well as preexisting companies and organisations that have involved themselves in the world.

Contents 1 Originating from Second Life 1.1 Aimee Weber Studio 1.2 Accident Designs 1.3 Anshe Chung Studios 1.4 Beatenetworks 1.5 Bob Perrys Store 1.6 Catalyst 1.7 combinedstory 1.8 EXAKT – Made in Sweden 1.9 The Electric Sheep Company 1.10 Infinite Vision Media 1.11 Second Life Liberation Army 1.12 Second Life Left Unity 2 Operated inside Second Life 2.1 0-9 2.2 A-F 2.3 G-L 2.4 M-R 2.5 S-Z 3 See also 4 References

[edit] Originating from Second Life

These businesses and organisations are legally registered or recognised entities created specifically for Second Life. Groups affiliated with preexisting organizations are in the Operated inside Second Life section.

[edit] Aimee Weber Studio

Provides virtual content creation and services for companies looking to use the Second Life platform for marketing, education, and other purposes.

Run by Aimee Weber, owner and creator of a wide variety of content in Second Life, including the *PREEN* clothing line and the Midnight City island.

Aimee Weber Studio has worked with The United Nations,^{[1] [2]} American Cancer Society,^[3] American Apparel,^[4] National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,^[5] the Exploratorium^{[6] [7]} and various universities.^[8]

[edit] Accident Designs

Founded in 2006 by Johan Bichel Lindegaard (known in Second Life as Sophie Zhu), Accident Designs offers virtual architecture services, programming, project mannagement and marketing in Second Life. Their customers include both Second Life residents and Real Life companies.

[edit] Anshe Chung Studios

Anshe Chung Studios is a virtual real estate business founded by Ailin Graef and her husband in Second Life. It has now evolved into a real company that is said to employ more than 20 people.^[9]

[edit] Beatenetworks

Beatenetworks is a virtual Marketing and Business Development firm focused on providing guidance and solutions to users and businesses in Second Life. It was founded by Alice Klinger and Allison Selene in Second Life. It specializes in areas such as event management in Second Life, Branding, Avatar Design, and Advertising. It can be found in world by typing the keyword "beatenetworks" in Search.

[edit] Bob Perrys Store

Bob Perry's Store is a company which runs a store and a casino within secondlife, they experienced a high level of growth after floating the company on the WSE in world stock market Bob Perry's Store's prospectus,Bob perrys store.

[edit] Catalyst

Catalyst is a virtual marketing and branding company, founded to help businesses manage their Second Life presence and advertising needs. It provides full-service marketing solutions, including ad booking and campaign management, building, scripting, graphic design as well as product design and content creation. Catalyst is the creator of the AdBoard / AdServer system, a revolutionary networked advertising system released in 2006 to assist advertisers and publishers alike managing their Second Life advertising needs.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] combinedstory

combinedstory Combinedstory is a media firm specializing in representing your business, brand or artwork in the virtual world. Combinedstory leverages over 20 years of experience in the interactive media industry to create compelling campaigns focused on enriching your virtual experience. Combinedstory offers Second Life development, training, and meeting simulations. Founded in October of 2006, combinestory brought Joanne Colan from Rocketboom into Second Life for an episode featuring Battery Recycling Organization, Call2Recycle.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] EXAKT – Made in Sweden

EXAKT - Made in Sweden is run by Tina (PetGirl) Bergman since 2005. Light-setting specialist, with numerous assignments where the ambience is of importance. Specialist in 50-60 style of architecture. Legally registered company, based in Stockholm, Sweden. ^{[10] [11] [12]}

[edit] The Electric Sheep Company

The Electric Sheep Company is a design, building and scripting firm that creates content for three-dimensional online worlds. Originating in Second Life, they have done work on the Virtual Laguna Beach project for MTV,^[13] Reuters,^[14] New Media Consortium,^{[15] [16]} Starwood Hotels/aloft,^[17] and Sony BMG Music^[18].

[edit] Infinite Vision Media

Infinited Vision Media is a full-service interactive marketing and new media agency. IVM made headlines in late 2006 when it helped usher Dell Computers into Second Life.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Second Life Liberation Army

Second Life Liberation Army- The world's first movement dedicated to the liberation of avatars, the SLLA campaigns through a combination of political and guerrilla action for the establishment of residents' representaion and ultimately avatar government in Second Life. In 2006 the SLLA was responsible for guerrilla attacks on Reebok^[19]and American Apparel stores in SL^[20][21], and stormed the stage at the January 2007 meeting of the World Economic Forum in Second Life^[22]. They have also place a bounty on a number of high profile commercial contractors within the game ^[23] -

[edit] Second Life Left Unity

Second Life Left Unity (SLLU) is an international socialist and anti-capitalist organisation which operates entirely within Second Life. Originally established by members of the Scottish Socialist Party^[24] and other left activists^[25], it challenged the Front National when it attempted to establish a base within the virtual reality game ^[26], demanding that they were only allowed to operate in adult areas of the game ^[27]

[edit] Operated inside Second Life

These are businesses and organizations originating in real life that have operated in Second Life and were not founded specifically for Second Life, but have involved themselves in the world.

[edit] 0-9

• 20th Century Fox held a premiere for X-Men: The Last Stand in Second Life.^{[28] [29]}

[edit] A-F

• Adidas Reebok will be creating a permanent presence in Second Life with assistance from Rivers Run Red^{[30] [31]}
• American Apparel opened a branch inside the virtual world selling digital renderings of clothings modeled after real-life merchandise.^{[4] [32]}
• American Cancer Society has held a version of its Relay For Life national fundraising event inside Second Life.^{[3] [33]}
• Axel Springer AG together with Bild.T-Online, have produced a tabloid-style newspaper for Second Life, The AvaStar in December 2006.^{[citation needed]} AvaStar Island was built by Aimee Weber.^{[citation needed]}
• BBC Radio 1 recreated the 2006 One Big Weekend event on a 64 acre virtual island in Second Life.^[34]
• Bigpond has created 11 islands called "The Pond" for their Broadband, Cable & ADSL members. Bigpond's Second Life
• Centric, an advertising agency based in Los Angeles, opened its Second Life office in October 2006. Centric has also started a De-advertising campaign by buying adspace in Second Life and turning it into public parks^[35].
• Creative Commons is building a community in Second Life around Creative Commons licenses and standards through events and projects in the virtual world.^[36]
• Dell sells PCs in Second Life. [1]
• Disney employed Second Life Resident Fizik Baskerville (and others in his team) to create content based on production designer's specs for the films The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy,^[37] Pirates of the Caribbean^[38] Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest^[38] & Pirates of the Caribbean 3^[38] and The Chronicles of Narnia^[38]
• Endemol is creating a version of Big Brother in Second Life.^{[39] [40]}
• Eudoxa became the first public policy think tank to host a seminar in Second Life
• Forward Together, the PAC headed by former Virginia Governor Mark Warner, is integrating Second Life into its campaign strategy .^[41]

[edit] G-L

• Harvard Law School and Harvard Extension School offered a course called "CyberOne: Law in the Court of Public Opinion" within Second Life in 2006.^[42][43]
• IBM recently met in Second Life to discuss the effects of Massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs) on business.^[44] Recently other IBM companies joined SL, as for instance IBM Italia, founded by avatar Eadoin Welles.
• Leo Burnett Worldwide has established a creative hub in Second Life for globally dispersed staff to interact within.^[45]
• Lichtenstein Creative Media has set up a 16-acre virtual broadcasting facility in Second Life, from which it has delivered live radio broadcasts.^[46]
• Institute of Rural Health: Rameshsharma Ramloll, faculty at the Instititute of Rural Health at Idaho State University has lead the implementation of *play2train*, a 32 acre virtual environment for emergency preparedness training in Second Life. This project is funded by (Health Resources and Services Administration) HRSA ^[47]

[edit] M-R

• Market Truths Limited provides quantitative and qualitative market research services to both organizations in Second Life and organizations interested in Second Life. Research methods include surveys, focus groups, interviews, and observational and experimental research.^[48] Market Truths won the SL Business Plan competition run by The Electric Sheep Company and Edelman.^[49]
• Max March Industries operates a popular radio station called MaxMarchRadio that plays inside the virtual world, develops high-end virtual estates and high-rise residences, and operates several businesses that operate inside Second Life such as STYLEMAKERS (avatar makeovers including skin, hair, and clothing) and The GIFT, a wildly-successful creator of virtual gift boxes and shopping bags that can package objects purchased elsewhere inside Second Life so they can be given to other users as gifts. Another site is maintained with blogs and news from Max March Industries, that is Max Updates^[50]

^[51]

• Mazda is giving away their concept car Hakaze on Nagare Island and is presenting kite surfing.^{[citation needed]}
• MLB.com broadcast the Home Run Derby and a Red Sox-Yankees game into SL, with the help of the Electric Sheep Company.
• MTV held a fashion show which was later broadcasted on G-Hole, a show on MTV's IPTV channel, Overdrive.^[52]
• The New Media Consortium, led by CEO Dr. Laurence F. Johnson, built a virtual campus in the spring of 2006 that includes a library, museum, planetarium, auditorium, classrooms, and a welcome center. In the fall of 2006, the communtiy affilitated with the campus had grown to nearly 1000 educators, and the NMC Campus expanded from 1 sim to 7. Plans included a machinma school and a life sciences center. The NMC has hosted several events on the virtual campus including IBM's Global Innovation jam,^[53] a Howard Rheingold keynote speech,^[54] and an Second Life artists event^[55]
• PA Consulting Group have established a presence in Second Life.^[56] The firm uses Second Life to host virtual conferences, recruitment events and as a tool for its clients to simulate new product and service offerings.
• Reef Ball Foundation has a site in Second Life, trying to create more online awareness for their ecological preservation activities.^{[verification needed]}
• Reperes market research institute, launches Reperes Second Life, virtual platform of watch and research thanks to the creation of a community: a panel of avatars which may be called upon to address issues faced by brands seeking to establish themselves or develop their offer on Second Life.^[57]
• Reuters has a news bureau which reports news in the virtual universe.^{[14] [58]}

[edit] S-Z

• Slacker Astronomy planetarium in the Carmine region displays audio and video shows about astronomical topics and hosts chats with professional astronomers.
• Social Media is a consulting company founded by Gunnar Langemark (Second Life: Gunnar Langset) and is physically located in Denmark. Social Media is in Second Life to do research and to consult with clients who want to know about virtual realities like Second Life. Gunnar Langemark has 20 years experience with next generation computer media. You can find Social Media in Second Life by doing a search for "Social Media".
• Starwood Hotels in conjunction with The Electric Sheep Company and marketing firm Electric Artists is premiering their new hotel brand, aloft, in Second Life via a virtual construction of the hotel before the actual hotels are built.^[17] The building process was documented on virtualaloft.com.
• Sun Microsystems
  • Sun held a metaverse press conference at the launch of their Second Life region Sun Pavilion in October 2006.^{[citation needed]}
  • Sun participated in a press briefing at the CNET headquarters in Second Life in October 2006.^{[citation needed]}
• TELUS Mobility (TELUS) opened a Second Life retail outlet offering replica mobile phones with Second Life specific features. In the near future the store may be offering its real lineup of mobile phones with a twist, to Canadian avatars.^{[citation needed]}
• Text 100, a leading global technology PR firm opened its virtual office in Second Life in August 2006.^{[verification needed]}
• Toyota (via Millions of Us) have offered a virtual replica of the Scion xB^[30]
• Universal Motown Records Group created a presence within Second Life.^{[59] [60]} The Universal SoundScape Music venue was created by InWorld Studios to promote the rock band Hinder and the hip-hop sensation Chamillionaire.
• The University of Southern California's Center on Public Diplomacy owns its own Second Life island. The island is used by the Center's Public Diplomacy and Virtual Worlds Project to host events and displays on the role of MMOGs, in public diplomacy.^{[61] [62]}
• Wells Fargo has created a game called Stagecoach Island within Second Life, in which young players earn virtual money by answering financial questions, thereby teaching them the basics of managing their money.^[63]
• The World Transhumanist Association has used Second Life to recruit and organise a transhumanist following within the virtual world and established a large island and conference centre called "Uvvy Island" to disseminate transhumanist ideas and provide unrestricted access to useful materials (including, among other things, videos and webcasts from WTA) to interested but geographically unrelated parties. Uvvy Island is organised like a regional Chapter, and even holds Chapter status within the WTA, holding weekly meetings, talks, and debates on various subjects.^{[64] [65]}

[edit] See also

• Second Life
• Resident (Second Life)
• Economy of Second Life

[edit] References