In the virtual worlds sector, undeniably, 2007 was the year of Second Life. And here’s just a few of the companies that set-up the shops (in some cases literally) in 2007.
What about 2008? Well, we’re more or less half way through and it’s fair to say 2008 is the year of the younger world – broken out by Kids, Tweens and Teens. So far this year the emphasis in these worlds has been casual gaming and socialising.
But what about 2009? The great thing about virtual worlds is that it’s so hard to figure out what’s going to happen next. So what will 2009 be the year of? Here’s a few ideas on where the VC funding will be directed.
1. Children’s Education worlds. A lot of people say that kids don’t want to learn stuff out of school. My view on this is that no-one has really figured out yet how to create compelling Learning 2.0 virtual environments. But they will.
2. Mirror worlds. Rapid advances in 3D capabilities, coupled with the introduction of brand new business models will drive the take up and development of virtual versions of real world places. Second Life has actually been the testing ground for mirror world venues and there’s already several stealth companies working hard in this sector.
3. Enterprise/B2B worlds. Some companies have already figured out how best to integrate virtual world concepts into their businesses. Channel/third-party management andcommunicationis one key area.Collaborationand NPD is another. Virtual intranets is one more.
These are the three areas I think will gain a lot of traction next year. What do you think?