Abstract
Today, millions of people from around the globe play online role playing games (MMORPG), in which a large number of players interact with one another in a virtual world, either using their existing identities in the physical world, or more often than not, through new virtual identities that might not even be remotely linked to the identities of the players in the physical world. The number of users is growing at an exponential rate and we are probably on the verge of a new development that is going to be as significant as the Internet itself. This positioning paper will discuss the business opportunities and challenges of such a virtual world, that of Second Life, and will examine the resultant corporate social responsibility implications focusing on the ethical and policy-related ones. This will help to identify important research questions that need to be systematically addressed.
Highlights
The rapid development of massively multiplayer online role play games, know as Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPG), has resulted in the re-creation of many real world activities in the virtual environment
The economic, social and policy implications for both the real physical world and the virtual world are likely to be very significant, as will be illustrated by many emerging examples later in the paper. In this positioning paper we will focus on the business activities and commercial applications that virtual worlds can host, and examine the wider implications of these virtual environments, often referred to as „metaverses‟
In Second Life, where user creation is a major component of the world and game play, a fundamental tension exists between asking the players to create the world and having the world operators take ownership of everything they make.”(Ondrejka, 2004b) the copyright on any objects belongs to their creators, who have the right to exploit them commercially, allowing for a plethora of commercial opportunities
Summary
The rapid development of massively multiplayer online role play games, know as MMORPGs (pronounced more-peg), has resulted in the re-creation of many real world activities in the virtual environment. In Second Life, where user creation is a major component of the world and game play, a fundamental tension exists between asking the players to create the world and having the world operators take ownership of everything they make.”(Ondrejka, 2004b) the copyright on any objects belongs to their creators, who have the right to exploit them commercially, allowing for a plethora of commercial opportunities This raises critical issues about intellectual property management and how such rights are maintained and enforced. Even though receiving micro-payments for in-world exchanges perhaps may not sum up to a significant income stream for those living in developed countries (with the exception of some in-world entrepreneurs (for example see Bridge, 2006), and this number is likely to grow rapidly), a few US dollars could potentially make an enormous difference for those in developing countries whose annual income is low As a result, such opportunities leading to entrepreneurial activities and employment opportunities need to be considered in depth. The section deals with these implications, focusing on the ethical and regulatory - policy ones brought under the corporate social responsibility umbrella
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