Virtual Worlds Go Celebrity

Tyra Banks Virtual StudioIn the future, everyone famous will have their own world for 15 minutes. Not exactly a favorite of gamers or geeks, supermodel Tyra Banks has nonetheless joined the metaverse business via a virtual studio linked to her Warner Brothers TV show. If you had been lucky enough to download the client last weekend, you could have hung out with Tyra’s avatar, while she dished pop stars and their clothes at her virtual world Grammy party. (Or at least a lowly production assistant controlling her avatar.) Television programs are already experimenting with online games as a way to boost ratings and build their brands; online worlds could become the next synergistic tool.

This might actually be a good idea. In my reporting on Second Life, I’ve noticed that most of SL’s many corporate-funded sites are sparsely visited. One of the few exceptions is L Word island, devoted to the Showtime TV series of the same name, accessible directly on Showtime’s site. Fans of the show can hang out, visit 3D recreations of the program’s locations, and watch episodes together, via Quicktime video streamed directly into SL. Since its debut a few weeks ago, it’s been quite popular. (Scroll down to Mixed Reality Traffic.) But the key is not just brand recognition or celebrity per se, but creating an ongoing community presence, and reasons to return. In Tyra’s case, maybe the key is scheduling her avatar to have regular beauty freak-out sessions.

(Hat tip: Mark Wallace of 3pointD, who has some worthwhile observations of his own.)

loading

Comments have been disabled for this post