Get your spin on! On Tuesday, May 13, at 3 PM for Metanomics Rewind, join host Robert Bloomfield to discuss his past interview of some of the real world press who cover our virtual worlds. Bloomfield explored the attraction virtual worlds have for Reuters, CNN and CMP, with commentary from Second Life blogger Prokofy Neva. Eric Krangel represented Reuters, Rhonda Lowry represented CNN/Turner Broadcasting, and John Jainschigg represented CMP.

Click here to find an event partner location!

On Monday, May 12 at 11 AM SLT, join Robert Bloomfield to discuss his past interview with Raven Pennyfeather, who quit her job as a mortgage compliance officer to create a very successful line of Goth and Victorian clothing in Second Life, and Nyla Cheeky, a real-life designer who is extending her brand by developing copies in Second Life. Jack Myers, a media analyst, weighs in on the challenges and opportunities of Raven and Nyla’s efforts.

Click here to find an event partner location!

We closed out our first season of Metanomics this Monday. After 35 shows in 35 weeks, we are going to take a short break to prepare for Season Two. In the meantime, we will be running "best of" shows on Mondays and Tuesdays, drawing the most interesting clips from more than 50 fascinating guests.

In addition to our main event location on Muse Isle , the Metanomics broadcast will stream live to our event partners. Click Read More below for event partner locations.

On Monday, April 28th, 2008, at 11:00AM SLT, Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics hosted Susan Tenby, Senior Manager of the nonprofit TechSoup, and American Cancer Society's Randal Moss for a discussion of the challenges and opportunities facing nonprofit organizations in virtual worlds.



See or download the video. (Quicktime)
Listen or download the audio. (MP3)
Read the transcript.
Read the backchat & local chat. Part 1
Read the backchat & local chat. Part 2
Metanomics video archive on SLCN.
Subscribe to the Metanomics '08 Feed.

READ MORE for the full story and lots more links!

Download the video (Quicktime)
Download the audio (MP3)
Transcript available soon.
Backchat & local chat available soon.
Metanomics video archive on SLCN
Subscribe to the Metanomics '08 feed

Last Friday, April 25th, 2008, Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics hosted a special event as part of Clever Zebra's vBusiness Expo. Rob will interview Dr. Larry Johnson, CEO of the New Media Consortium, which, according to its website, is “a community of hundreds of leading universities, colleges, museums, and research centers. The NMC stimulates and furthers the exploration and use of new media and technologies for learning and creative expression,” and is the largest educational project of any kind in virtual worlds.

Dr. Johnson recently testified to the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet of the US Congress. In addition to discussing his recent testimony and government policy to develop virtual worlds, the event focused on issues surrounding education activity. In particular, this event included suggestions to overcome the "game taint" of academic activity in virtual worlds and the new liabilities universities face, such as online harassment of students.

On a personal note, this will be my last official post for Metanomics. It has been an honor and a pleasure to gain exposure to the business and policy issues of Second Life and other virtual worlds. I would like to thank Rob for this great opportunity and hope to stay engaged with the Metanomics community, informally, while I gear up to begin a doctoral program in marketing at Columbia University in the Fall. I will be continuing to research on topics related to marketing, experiments and behavior in virtual worlds, and continue to welcome anyone interested in these subjects to contact me at Curric Vita in-world.

Starting next week, Bjorlyn Loon will be responsible for the weekly pre- and post- event blogs as well as the Metanomics group announcements. I am pleased that Metanomics will continue with an exceptional team of individuals who will make great contributions to the study of virtual worlds.

Farewell and best wishes,

Steve Atlas

One day before Linden Lab announced that Mark Kingdon is Linden Lab's new CEO, Mitch Wagner of Information Week had the following to say on Metanomics:

ROBERT BLOOMFIELD: Mitch...You had indicated that you see Second Life as being in not such a great place right now and that their future rests on the choice of the CEO, which we are all waiting to hear, and that Linden Lab needs to,your term was, to “reinvent itself.” Can you elaborate a little on why you’re concerned about Second Life and Linden Lab?

This Friday, April 25th, 2008, at 11:00AM-12:00PM SLT (2:00-3:00PM EST), Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics will host a special event as part of Clever Zebra's vBusiness Expo. Rob will interview Dr. Larry Johnson, CEO of New Media Consortium, who recently testified to the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet of the US Congress.

Here is some recommended reading for this week:

1. Read about NMC's three core initiatives.

2. Read about Johnson's testimony, or watch the webcast.

3. Learn more about Clever Zebra's 4-day vBusiness Expo, which will hold events on virtual workplace, virtual education, virtual marketing, and virtual commerce. Register here.

The exact location of Friday's special event will be announced shortly, and vBusiness Expo registration may be required to attend the live event. However, as usual, the Metanomics broadcast will stream live to our event partners, which are listed after the jump.

Download the video (Quicktime)
Download the audio (MP3)
Read the transcript
Read the backchat & local chat.
Metanomics video archive on SLCN
Subscribe to the Metanomics '08 feed

On Monday, April 21th, 2008, Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics hosted Mitch Wagner of InformationWeek and Gartner Fellow Steve Prentice, who expressed concerns about Linden Lab's strategic position. At the end of the show, Linden Lab CFO John Zdanowski (aka Zee Linden) made a surprise visit to address the analysts concerns and discuss the thinking behind the land price changes.

The event occurred at CMP's 4-Sim Amphitheatre on CMP Island.

Transcripts are now available from the interview and backchat. Additionally, the video and audio are available, courtesy of SLCN.tv.

Today, April 21th, 2008, Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics hosted Mitch Wagner of InformationWeek and Gartner Fellow Steve Prentice. It was held at CMP's 4-Sim Amphitheatre on CMP Island.

The speakers didn't pull any punches. Wagner referred to the position of Linden Lab as "dire," while Prentice wouldn't recommend that enterprises use SL for anything more than 'pilot' projects, because it is too unreliable.

Minutes later, Linden Lab CFO John Zdanowski (aka Zee Linden) made a surprise visit to Metanomics to address the analysts' concerns, providing some fascinating insights into both the financial status of Linden Lab and the importance of the SL economy to Linden Lab's strategy. Zee also comments on the motivation for the recent price changes in land.

You can see or hear the show here:

audio: http://www.slcn.tv/media/mv_metanomics_21apr08.mp3
video: http://www.slcn.tv/media/mv_metanomics_21apr08.mp4

No transcript or backchet yet. (The backchat is definitely worth a look.) In the mean time, feel free to browse the background reading from the pre-event post.

If you are interested in discussing this week's exciting show further, missed the event, or hope to network with others in the virtual business community, join "Metanomics Rewind" on Muse Isle. This week's episode of Metanomics will be rebroadcast on Tuesday at 3:00PM SLT. Contact Bevan Whitfield or JenzZa Misfit in SL for more details.

This Monday, April 21st, 2008, at 11:00AM-12:00PM SLT (2:00-3:00PM EST), Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics will host Mitch Wagner of InformationWeek and Gartner Fellow Steve Prentice. They will discuss prospects for corporate investment in virtual worlds, the state of the competitive landscape among developers and worlds, and the future of Second Life.

Here is some recommended reading for this week:

1. Read Mitch Wagner's commentary about Qwaq, the virtual world tailored to business collaboration.

2. Explore Mitch Wagner's blog.

3. Read a summary of Gartner's five laws for companies looking to conduct business in the metaverse.

4. Read Gartner's concerns over issues associated with security and risk management in virtual worlds.

5. Last summer, when Metanomics was Metaversed, Steve Prentice and Rob Bloomfield were on a panel moderated by 57 Miles and discussed Gartner's predictions for the growth of virtual worlds. SL Insider carried some analysis of these events: Links here and here.

Monday's event will take place on CMP's 4-Sim Amphitheatre on CMP Island as well as through our event partners, and filmed and streamed live on SLCN.tv.

Afterward, if you wish to discuss the topic further, miss the live event, or hope to network with others in the virtual business community, attend "Metanomics Rewind" on Muse Isle. This week's episode of Metanomics will be rebroadcast on Tuesday at 3:00PM SLT. Contact Bevan Whitfield or JenzZa Misfit in SL for more details.

Our event partner locations are listed after the jump.

After her testimony to the US Congress, Susan Tenby, Senior Manager of the non-profit TechSoup was the object of the Daily Show's Jon Stewart, who said "Damn you Susan Tenby" because she took the SL name he wanted, Glitteractica Cookie.

Hear Susan talk about TechSoup and the NonProfit Commons.

We will be joined by American Cancer Society's Randal Moss, Director of the Future and Innovation Center, who will talk about the tremendous success Relay For Life has had in Second Life.

Maybe I will wear a giant snail avatar!

We have a special Metanomics event this Friday, as part of Clever Zebra's vBusiness Expo. I am interviewing Larry Johnson, CEO of New Media Consortium, fresh on the heels of his testimony to the US Congress.

You may need to register for the vBusiness Expo to join us at the live venue, but of course our event partners will have a place for you too.

Mitch Wagner of Information Week and Steve Prentice of Gartner, Inc., have both expressed some fairly serious concerns about the future of Second Life and Linden lab. Hear what they have to say!

Download the video (Quicktime)
Download the audio (MP3)
Read the transcript
Read the backchat & local chat transcripts.
Metanomics video archive on SLCN
Subscribe to the Metanomics '08 feed

Last Monday, April 14th, 2008, Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics hosted Cory Ondrejka, who recently stepped down as CTO of Linden Lab, and W. James Au, author of "The Making of Second Life."

The event occurred at CMP's 4-Sim Amphitheatre on CMP Island.

The interview and backchat transcripts are now available. Additionally, the video and audio are available, courtesy of SLCN.tv.

This Monday, April 7th, 2008, at 11:00AM-12:00PM SLT (2:00-3:00PM EST), Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics will host Cory Ondrejka, who recently stepped down as CTO of Linden Lab, and W. James Au, author of "The Making of Second Life."

As these two guests have been closely involved with Linden Lab from the beginning, this week's event will focus on the past, present and future of the organization responsible for developing Second Life. In particular, we will discuss the development of a world filled with user-generated IP as well as more recent controversial policies such as restrictions on residents' use of the Second Life name and recent promises for the supply of cheap and abundant land. Naturally our guests will also discuss the recent managerial changes at Linden Lab as well as the future of Second Life.

Monday's event will take place on CMP's 4-Sim Amphitheatre on CMP Island as well as through our event partners, and filmed and streamed live on SLCN.tv.

Afterward, if you wish to discuss the topic further, miss the live event, or hope to network with others in the virtual business community, attend "Metanomics Rewind" on Muse Isle. This week's episode of Metanomics will be rebroadcast on Tuesday at 3:00PM SLT. Contact Bevan Whitfield or JenzZa Misfit in SL for more details.

Our event partner locations are listed after the jump.

Download the video (Quicktime)
Download the audio (MP3)
Read the transcript
Read the backchat & local chat
Metaversed video archive at SLCN
Subscribe to the Metanomics '08 feed

Last Monday, April 7th, 2008, Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics hosted a panel to discuss the challenges and opportunities of conducting economic experiments in virtual worlds. Our guests included:

- Tom Chesney, Lecturer in Information Systems at Nottingham University Business School
- John Duffy, Professor of Economics at the University of Pittsburgh
- Steve Atlas, economics graduate student at Tufts University

The event occurred at Muse Arena on Muse Isle, which also held the first "Metanomics Rewind" on Tuesday to rebroadcast and discuss the prior day's event as well as provide an opportunity to network with others in the business community. Further background information on the subject of experimental metanomics is also available via the event announcement here.

The full transcripts are now available from the interview and backchat. Additionally, the video and audio are available, courtesy of SLCN.tv.

This Monday, April 7th, 2008, at 11:00AM-12:00PM SLT (2:00-3:00PM EST), Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics will host a panel on the challenges and opportunities of conducting economic experiments in virtual worlds. Our guests include:

- Tom Chesney, Lecturer in Information Systems at Nottingham University Business School
- John Duffy, Professor of Economics at the University of Pittsburgh
- Steve Atlas, economics graduate student at Tufts University

Monday's show will include:

- Introduction to the field of experimental economics
- Explanation of motivation of and results from recent experiments conducted by Chesney and myself in Second Life
- Discussion of challenges and opportunities of experimental research in virtual worlds.
- Possibilities for macroeconomic research leveraging virtual worlds.

To fully participate in Monday's event, we recommend the following background reading:

1. John Duffy's recent working paper critiques my virtual lab and questions the validity of demographic information collected online. Last month, Tom Chesney started a discussion about Duffy's article on Terra Nova, which has become Google's top hit for the phrase "Lying Online."

2. Tom Chesney's working paper, Virtual World Experimentation: An Exploratory Study replicates several well-known economic experiments in Second Life.

3. My master's thesis on this topic is nearing completion, but it is not quite ready for public scrutiny yet. It will be made available by the end of the week.

4. Another recent working paper by John Duffy surveys macroeconomic laboratory research on the microfoundations of macroeconomic models.

Monday's event will take place on CMP's 4-Sim Amphitheatre on CMP Island as well as through our event partners, and filmed and streamed live on SLCN.tv.

Afterward, if you wish to discuss the topic further, miss the live event, or hope to network with others in the virtual business community, attend "Metanomics Rewind" on Muse Isle. This week's episode of Metanomics will be rebroadcast on Tuesday at 3:00PM SLT. Contact Bevan Whitfield or JenzZa Misfit in SL for more details.

Our event partner locations are listed after the jump.

Download the video (Quicktime)
Download the audio (MP3)
Read the transcript
Read the backchat & local chat
Metaversed video archive at SLCN
Subscribe to the Metanomics '08 feed

Last Friday, March 28rd, 2008, Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics interviewed Mitch Kapor, outgoing Chairman of the Linden Lab Board. They discussed:

- Kapor's vision for virtual worlds technology and business strategy
- The future of Linden Lab and Second Life

The full transcripts are now available from the interview and backchat. Additionally, the video and audio are available, courtesy of SLCN.tv.

Download the video (Quicktime)
Download the audio (MP3)
Read the transcript
Read the backchat & local chat
Metaversed video archive at SLCN
Subscribe to the Metanomics '08 feed

Last Monday, March 31st, 2008, Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics hosted a panel to discuss accounting issues in Second Life. We were joined by Texas Tech Law Professor Bryan Camp, KAWG&F COO Arline Ciroula, and Tom Hood, founder of the Business Learning Institute. They discussed the economy of SL, the differences in accounting for virtual and RL businesses, and the tax implications for conducting business in SL.

The full transcripts are now available from the interview and backchat. Additionally, the video and audio are available, courtesy of SLCN.tv.

This Monday, March 31th, 2008, at 11:00AM SLT (2:00 PM EST), Robert Bloomfield and Metanomics will host a panel to discuss accounting issues in Second Life. We will be joined by Texas Tech Law Professor Bryan Camp, KAWG&F COO Arline Ciroula, and Tom Hood, founder of the Business Learning Institute. They will discuss the economy of SL, the differences in accounting for virtual and RL businesses, and the tax implications for conducting business in SL.

The event will be held on CMP's 4-sim Amphitheatre as well as by our event partners, and filmed and streamed live on SLCN.tv.

Bios of our guests and event partner locations after the break.