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The Virtual Whirl: A brief history of Second Life, the middle years
This week, we cover the second installment of our summarized history of Second Life and Linden Lab (or check out part one, if you missed it). From 2005, there's an impossible amount of material to cover, but there are some interesting stories lurking among it all. Join us as we work our way through some of the interesting highlights from 2005, 2006 and 2007.
GDC09: How to avoid new legal pitfalls in virtual world design and policy
At last week's Game Developers Conference 2009, we got the chance to sit in on Mark Methenitis' talk on How to avoid new legal pitfalls in virtual world design and policy. You may have noticed the sheer quantity of legal cases, rulings and issues surrounding virtual environments and MMOGs that have direct impacts on users and players lately. We found the talk to be an engaging and interesting one, which certainly went a long way towards clarifying some of the past, present and future problems and we've got a tasty summary of the highlights for you.
Bill seeks to legalize video game betting
A new bill to be proposed by Florida Rep. Robert Wexler (D) would seek to exempt "games of skill" from the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). While the obvious goal is to protect poker from the UIGEA, the bill would presumably allow for the establishment of online betting networks for most video games. While casinos in Second Life (featuring games of chance, like slots, roulette, etc.) would remain illegal, theoretically, a company could establish a site that took round by round bets on Halo 3 matches, inviting leet slayers to put they monies where they mouths at.Of course, the UIGEA was established in part to quell the enormous debt that online poker players have amassed, so don't expect this bill to float on by Congress. Still, just imagine the hustler-like subculture that would grow from out of the basements of red-eyed gaming junkies if the bill did pass. Sorta terrifying. Sorta tempting.[Thanks, dark54555]
