The New York Times is bringing light to Second Life Fashion once again. I love that Angie (Mornington), Grazia (Horwitz), and Shiryu (Musashi), three very upstanding Second Life folks, are given a spotlight for a few moments.
From the article:
It also provides entertainment. Style-struck cybervixens can shop at virtual stores on Xstreet, Second Life’s e-commerce platform, leaf through fashion magazines, check out blogs or grab a front row seat at online runway shows. There is even a weekly talk program, “Fabulous Fashion With Angie Mornington,†broadcast on Treet TV, Second Life’s television network, which draws nearly 15,000 viewers an episode, said Ludele Tompkins, Ms. Mornington’s creator.
Ms. Tompkins, who works for a media company in New York, does not stint on dresses for Ms. Mornington to wear “on the air.†Online, “the first thing you want to do is dress your avatar,†Ms. Tompkins said. “Just like in a video game, it helps create your character.â€
I especially loved this line:
Their indulgence in small-ticket purchases or micro-transactions have made Second Life “a recession-tolerant economy,†he said.
Recession tolerant? Hardly. We’re feeling the pain too. Anyway, the article goes on to claim that fashion makes up 40% of the SL marketplace, and 20% of overall transactions in-world, which seem plausible to me.
Visiting and building an identity on social networks like Second Life is “kind of like when people in the last recession used to watch ‘Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous’ on television,†said Eric Spangenberg, a consumer psychologist and the dean of the business school at Washington State University. “It’s the newest manifestation of how people live vicariously: if I can’t afford a Bentley, my avatar can.â€
Dead on, Mr. Spangenberg. SCD would like to thank the article’s author, Ruth La Ferla, for throwing Second Life into a temporary positive spotlight that has nothing to do with rape unicorns or giant freenises.
Read the rest of the article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/22/fashion/22Avatar.html?pagewanted=1&_r=4
It is really nice to see positive attention paid to Second Life. It's also good to see it heralded as a social network instead of a game. While it is much more than a social network, it is not a game.
Thanks for covering the article!
I am so proud right now! I bought out the newstand at Penn Station! Thanks to all the fashionistas who represented, and Ruth LaFerla is fabulous. This is a big deal, the NY Times Style section is as good as it gets!
This is a pretty good promotion and I hope it gives a boost to the virtual economy.
Yay!! good for you Angie. I don't feel so bad now for having a 30K inventory. hehe
I'd actually agree that the economy is "recession-tolerant" because while a lot of content creators have been feeling the pinch lately, SL's in world transaction numbers are still strong. I believe the pinch we feel is from having a greater number of competitors and more sophisticated consumers. In other words, the pie isn't getting smaller, it's just getting more difficult to hold on to the size of your slice. Anyway, it is good to see SL being covered in a positive light and I look forward to reading the rest.
this is great, but what do they mean exactly by "no budget"
it is to do with lower new sign-ups and people getting bored of SL and leaving, the whole 'increased number of competitors' is just a myth.
This morning I sent this article to several friends of mine who don't get SL or have expressed concern about the mental health and (lack of) social skills of anyone who could get involved in it. It was nice to have the New York Times explain it for a change instead of me.