Comments on: Virtual World Investment: $148M in the Third Quarter

By: Rob

Rob — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 16:16:51 +0000

There are so many MMO’s out there, it just needs to get the point where there is just one, big unifying (free) MMO that drags the majority of everyone in (sort of the Facebook of MMO’s). I’m betting that something is on the way…

By: Koster’s Metaplace Gets $6.7M in Series B Funding - GigaOM

Koster’s Metaplace Gets $6.7M in Series B Funding - GigaOM — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 13:00:21 +0000

[...] James Au, Wednesday, October 22, 2008 at 6:00 AM PT Comments (0) As we noted last week, virtual world startups seem to be weathering the global financial crisis. There’s more [...]

By: R_U_Confused

R_U_Confused — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 01:31:13 +0000

RE: Curtis

Former exec from gaming biz but you don't seem to know how VC's work at their core? The reason so many VC's demand such a high price on their investments (i.e. taking the lion's share % of a company for a smaller investment) is that they know the risk and demand the same return. It's actually quite a similar analogy to your "hit driven business" comment. VC's are more like shotguns than snipers - pick 10 horses at a 10-to-1 ratio and you hope 1 comes in.

And if you think VC's investing in movies is something new, or by your comment something that's not already going on, you're clearly uninformed.

By: Andreas

Andreas — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 18:50:29 +0000

You can’t compare a traditional game publishing business with a MMO business. The traditional games publishing business is hit driven and I wouldn’t recommend anyone trying to get into that market and compete with the majors. MMO is also high risk, but the potential upsida is also high. And you have direct customer contact, online distribution and you don’t have to deal with shelf time of 3 months. I like the MMO market, its very flexible.

By: RobotGalaxy lets kids tinker with characters — Justin Gibbs

RobotGalaxy lets kids tinker with characters — Justin Gibbs — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 15:06:21 +0000

[...] the next slew of virtual worlds we’ll see are heavily driven by story, mostly story worlds in the form of MMOs. But one investment caught Wagner James Au’s [...]

By: Virtual = Real

Virtual = Real — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 02:04:36 +0000

[...] we’re investing $150 million — this quarter alone — on online role-playing [...]

By: Curtis

Curtis — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 00:56:34 +0000

Why are VC's in the game publishing business? It is a hit driven business, I know as I'm a former executive from one of the major gaming companies, and the high risk investing model doesn't fit the gaming model.

What's next, investing in movies? Trust me, it is the same risk profile.

By: Virtual Worlds Rake Real Cash: $148M in Q3

Virtual Worlds Rake Real Cash: $148M in Q3 — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 23:45:11 +0000

[...] GigaOm Share and Enjoy: [...]