Virtual Worlds, also referred to as metaverses, are not created equal. The choices of offerings and the level of constraints vary significantly from one platform to the other. Each one also has its own advantages and disadvantages. At present, Avatrian focuses its primary efforts on three leading metaverse platforms...Second Life, Entropia Universe, and Active Worlds. This decision was influenced by the relative richness of these on-line communities, the stability of its in-world economy, and the progressiveness of its intellectual property regime.
| Second Life | Entropia Universe | Active Worlds | HiPiHi | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Creator | Linden Labs | MindArk | Activeworlds, Inc. | HiPiHi Co. Ltd |
| Inception | 2003 | 2002 | 1996 | 2005 |
| Location | San Francisco, CA | Goteborg, Sweden | Newburyport, MA | Beijing, China |
| Number of Users | 13,118,466 | 574,298 | > 2,000,000 | > 30,000 |
| Growth Rate | 20% per month | |||
| In-world Currency | Linden $ | PED | ||
| Size of Economy | $US 1,908,742/day | |||
| Companies with Presence | American Apparel, Reuters, Toyota | Vexed Generation Clothing, 21st Century Fine Art | MTV, Wells Fargo |
If you would like to immerse yourself more in the topic of Virtual Worlds, these four books can serve as excellent primers:



