Twinity charges past 50,000 public Beta Users – itsReal

Twinity, the 3D Online world powered by real life, in only a few short weeks since going public beta is charging past 50,000 users – clearly Twinity is gaining momentum and Real People are seeing the opportunities to enchance their real lives and social networking friends & places by joining Twinity.

Click to visit Twinity.com

Keep a watch out for Virtual London & Virtual Singapore both cities soon to join Virtual Berlin in Twinity

Hey wanna help promote Twinity – Vote for twinity here: http://bestuff.com/stuff/twinity you can also join the public beta from this link !

Do you have a killer idea that you think will make you famous, money, happy or a social celebrity in Twinity – we want to know – contact me through comments leaving your email and i will contact you personally – APLINK

Metaversum Awarded Funding in Co-space™ program in Singapore – itsReal

Metaversum, developer and operator of the 3D online world Twinity, has been awarded funding from the multi-agency IDM R&D Programme Office hosted by the Media Development Authority of Singapore to develop geo-tagging and geo-located media streaming in Twinity. In another part of this project Metaversum will also develop advanced virtual city building tools to facilitate the construction of virtual Singapore in Twinity. Metaversum has already begun signing up local media, content, and brand partners in preparation for next year’s launch of virtual Singapore in Twinity.

Singapore, 21 October 2008 – Metaversum today announced that it has been awarded Singapore Government funding by the IDM R&D Programme Office hosted by the Media Development Authority (MDA) of Singapore to integrate a 3D virtual counterpart to Singapore and to develop geo-tagging and geo-located media streaming in Twinity. Geo-tagging is an innovative framework to incorporate real-world information, with limitless potential from historical reference to current events to image and rich media embedding. Members will be able to place and access this information and share it with other members. This system will create an augmented reality layer, making the Twinity experience more informative and beneficial to Twinity members. Following the recent premiere of virtual Berlin, Singapore will be replicated to scale in Twinity and function as a 3D platform for members to interact with local media, content, and brand partners.

Twinity’s realistic replicas of the world’s most vibrant cities in 3D, offer major cities and local businesses an ideal path for entering the 3D web. Twinity is not only an attractive platform for cities to showcase themselves to the world, it also enables business partners to reach out and communicate with the rest of the world, and market themselves as innovative movers in the global economy. Twinity members can similarly connect with friends, family, and business associates around the globe in a fully immersive and emotive environment, taking social and business networking to a whole new dimension.

Two Singapore-based partners are already on board: The Digital Movement, an emerging, not-for-profit organization seeking to build and connect opinion leaders in the digital space globally, and the Geek Terminal, the world’s first truly technology-centric business café in downtown Singapore.

Metaversum will be coordinating the venture from its recently opened offices in Singapore. The company also helps virtual world novices find their feet in the new world by recommending trusted development partners to assist businesses in realizing a 3D presence or their in-world marketing measures.

“We’re very excited about being awarded funding for launching virtual Singapore, geo-tagging and our other Co-space™ projects. We see it as recognition of the strategic importance of a real context for virtual cities for city authorities and local business alike,” commented Jeremy Snyder, Managing Director of Metaversum Asia Pte Ltd. He continued, “We look forward to helping Singapore transform itself into the virtual information and communication hub for Asia.”

Mr Michael Yap, Executive Director, IDMPO commented, “The  Co-SpaceTM (industry) Call for Proposals adds to Singapore’s drive to be a key player in the next generation Internet, where the web will become even more immersive and integrated into our daily lives. Significantly, we hope to attract more global companies to use Singapore as a test-bed for innovative media services.”

The virtual world Twinity is currently in public Beta. You can register for free Twinity membership and explore the world at www.twinity.com.

Information on Metaversum and Twinity:
Metaversum develops and operates the 3D online world Twinity. Twinity’s vision is to link the real with the virtual world by building realistic replicas of the world’s most vibrant cities in 3D. Berlin was the first city to launch with other international cities to follow soon. Twinity members can create a personal avatar, explore the virtual city, move into a 3D home, chat with friends, work, get creative, or just have fun together.

Twinity also offers businesses new ways of engaging with real people in real cities. Through virtual shops and branded presences, inworld ad campaigns, product placements, and sponsored events, Twinity lets you enter into a direct, emotional, digital dialog with your target group. Twinity is currently in public Beta. Founded in July 2006 and financed by leading venture capital firms, Metaversum has offices in Berlin, Kiev, and Singapore. More info at www.metaversum.com and www.twinity.com.

A digital press kit with logos and screenshots can be downloaded here: http://partner.indigopearl.de/Metaversum_Press_Kit.zip
(This link is for editorial department use only)

Caleb Booker Virtual Worlds Reporter Latest Roundup – itsReal

Now this is a cool round-up by Caleb Booker

Subscribe to his blog in Future to get your round-up < APLINK

http://www.calebbooker.com/blog/2008/10/19/business-in-virtual-worlds-news-roundup-oct-13-19-2008/

Business in Virtual Worlds News Roundup – Oct 13-19 2008

<!–

–>Headlines about virtual worlds just from the past week.

This week was about trimming the fat.

I decided to stop posting about the launching of every kid’s world. Frankly, there are so many now, I’ll only really bother with the occasional one that tells a wider story about the industry as a whole (see the Build-A-Bear article).

I’m also completely skipping articles that are misleading or purposefully manipulative (see… uh… the three articles I just deleted…).

Lastly, I’m still ducking rumors, announcements about “upcoming” projects that may or may not have serious funding, or upcoming soon-to-be-released software. If it’s not happening now, it isn’t affecting people, and I’m not worried about it.

This kind of meant I ended up with nothing for Nerds Only or Games. I could have posted the dozen or so articles about Obama in Burnout Paradise and other EA games, but… there’s no room for politics on this blog. We have work to do.

We’re left with some very quality stuff, however. Take some time going through the articles, even in categories you might normally skip. This week some are sleeping, and some are soaring.

Past weeks:

• Oct 6-12 2008
• Sept 29 – Oct 5 2008
• Sept 22-28 2008
• Sept 15-21 2008
• Sept 8-14 2008
• Sept 1-7 2008
• Aug 25-31 2008
• Aug 18-24 2008
• Aug 11-17 2008

Disclaimer: As with everything on my blog, the opinions expressed here are mine and do not reflect on Clever Zebra, the vBusiness Expo, my friends, my family, the People Under the Stairs, Pennywise, etc etc etc… k here we go:

Business

Quarterly virtual-world funding tops $148 million
Here are the raw stats, and their analysis. The above link goes to CNet’s elegant summary. New York Times took it and ran too. Everybody likes numbers!

PC-Based 3D Virtual Worlds to Reach 33 Million Users in 2013
Speaking of numbers… to be honest, I think this number is low but let’s go with it as a conservative estimate. More on this from TMC net.

Wipro’s presence in SL
Well, the actual title was “Virtual world” but that’s a bit generic, don’t you think? Anyhow, great overview of Wipro’s model campus of its offshore software development centre (ODC) for American and European customers.

Stonfield InWorld and Sofinco Announce eCommerce Effort in Second Life
Not to be confused with last week’s story on Boulanger and IBM’s “VirtualEShopping”.

Online Therapy Institute launched
Press Release. Well that’s it then: next week if there are this many medical field related stories again, I’ll have to create a “Medical” category. These guys are on board!

Build-A-Bear Q3 Earnings Call: Virtual World Provides Added Customer Value in Economic Slump
That’s right, virtual worlds fight recessions!

Training and Education

Darwin’s Famous Journey Is Recreated in Second Life
To commemorate the 150th anniversary of Darwin’s On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, the University of Cincinnati has recreated the Galapagos Islands, where Darwin conducted some of his famous research, in Second Life.

First Paramedic Course To Use Second Life
Eek, they said “first”! Anyhow, good stuff from Medical News Today, worth reading!

Government and Military

Are you being serviced?
Uh… I guess “being serviced” means something different around here than it does in Australia. Anyhow. You may find this article confusing at first if you’re not familiar with what they mean by “workflow language”, but this is VERY much worth working through! Lots of large organizations (private, educational and governmental) involved, a seven-year budget of $120 million, and some serious ROI predicted.

Marketing

Virtual world advertising: A wasteful expense, or a bargain for marketers?
The original title was… wildly misleading. Good call guys. Finding ROI on marketing efforts has always been extremely difficult, and truth be told there are very few marketers out there who “get it” yet. It’s understandable that there’s some confusion, and I think Cyndy Aleo-Carreira did a fair job being even-handed here despite the temptation.

James Bond Promo in Twinity
You know, I get these emails from Twinity too but I’ve been remiss about including them. Still, this way I get to link both them and MindBlizzard at the same time! Hi VeeJay!

Gaming

New kids worlds, new features in kids worlds, more worlds based on toys and more toys based on worlds… etc… nothing I didn’t say in August of last year.

Nerds Only

SEGA announced some stuff that will look completely different by the time it gets to North America… slow week I guess.

Newbs Only

Virtual sex in virtual worlds
Mail & Guardian Online discover that people “meet” in “virtual worlds” and… this is so old I’m even getting sick of the “excessive quotes” gag…

Professor wins award for work with Second Life
The first line really cracked me up. I thought the author was referring to the audience.

Sociological Oddities

Monogram Virtua Convention Center Hosts Second Bi-Annual Erotica Expo in the Virtual World
Press Release. I’ve placed this under “Sociological Oddities” purely because of North America’s peculiar squeamishness with regards to sex, but truth be told this is a business reference. Here we learn A) how virtual spaces can enhance, and are becoming essential for, any expo, and B) one of the world’s biggest industries is taking it seriously.

Police protect students from inside ‘virtual world’
Another bit about West Yorkshire Police’s virtual world safety campaign.

Alum’s film brings real camera to virtual world
Documentary follows three people inside and out of Second Life. Entitled “Life 2.0″ it shouldn’t be confused with the Dobb’s events.

Second Life Dropouts Return To Real World
We dig up people who weren’t happy with Second Life. The piece kind of reeks of fail – Linden Lab’s seeming hatred of those stupid users who want things to “work”, and users who can’t get a foothold in an environment that’s constantly disintegrating under their feet. It takes a lot of time and patience to work out ROI in this kind of space, and if this article illustrates anything, it’s that LL sure don’t make that easy.

Amazing Source: http://www.calebbooker.com/blog/2008/10/19/business-in-virtual-worlds-news-roundup-oct-13-19-2008/

Twinity embraces Quantum of Solace in a BIG way – itsReal

Quantum of Solace in Twinity

The wait is almost over: Quantum of Solace will be exploding across a cinema screen near you from 6 November. Twinizens can already get a taste of this hotly anticipated movie in Twinity from 16 October.

New Movie, New Location

The newly opened Sony Center on Potsdamer Platz and the CineStar CUBIX on Alexanderplatz in virtual Berlin are teaming up to feature Quantum of Solace movie highlights, merchandising, and much more.

• Watch the action-packed trailer and interviews with the cast
• Play Quantum of Solace arcade games
• Pit your wits against fellow Twinizens in the official James Bond quiz
• Snap up a Quantum of Solace poster or standee for your virtual apartment
• Or dress your avatar Bond-style in tuxedo and bowtie and become the ultimate face of espionage in Twinity

Come to the Quantum of Solace launch party at the all-new Sony Center on Thursday, 16 October at 7pm!

Sensational Prizes

From 16 October, you have the chance of winning sensational Quantum of Solace prizes in Twinity. Three prizes are up for grabs each week:

• 1st prize: Quantum of Solace the Game for PS2 from Activision.
  See more at www.007thevideogame.com.
• 2nd prize: Quantum of Solace soundtrack.
  Hear more at www.aliciakeys.de.
• 3rd prize: Quantum of Solace fan package, including 007 mug, pen and poster.

To take part in the competition, all you have to do is:

• Hunt down 5 Quantum of Solace posters at 5 places in Twinity
• Send the names of the places together with your Twinity name to quantum@twinity.com
• Competition runs from 16 October to 5 November

The lucky winners will be announced each week at a party in the Sony Center or CUBIX cinema in Twinity. Check out Twinity’s Event Calendar for the exact weekly location!

Shaken, not stirred – enjoy Twinity!

Quantum of Solace © 2008 Danjaq, LLC, United Artists Corporation, Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. 007 Gun Logo and related James Bond Trademarks © 1962-2008 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. Quantum of Solace, 007 and related James Bond Trademarks are trademarks of Danjaq, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Magic, Mirrors and the Slump: Where is the SL Economy? | Rezzable

Thought provoking article definitely worth the time to read…..

Excerpt below

So it really could be that harder economic times might mean more interest in virtual world–or more escapism in general. Virtual worlds are still very cost-effective for the user. But SL in particular has built itself around the economy and the hope of making money is this brave new virtual online world. Let’s take a more serious look at the Second Life economy in sec, but the other issue is the idea of the mirror-world that newcomers like Twinity are offering up. While SL has become rich and sluggish, Twinity is targeting the mainstream people that want to extend their real life experience into the virtual world. But then there is the risk of adding real world constraints up top of the many inworld constraints. Twinity for example doesn’t allow flying (i like to fly). But the battle is not about realistic or creative–it is for the mainstream audiences that are curious about the virtual world, but not interested in Second LIfe.

via Magic, Mirrors and the Slump: Where is the SL Economy? | Rezzable

BBC NEWS | Technology | Virtual worlds carve out new path

VISIT LINK below for Twinity Video

Twinity is a virtual world from Metaversum with avatars that walk around real cities. Metaversum chief executive Jochen Hummel says people can feel as though they have been to a city.

Cityscape

Hoping to change that is Twinity, one of a growing number of games determined to make a link between the virtual world and the real.

Capturing the twin trends of social networking and fascination with 3D worlds, the Berlin-based firm is creating a backdrop that allows users to hang out in some of the world’s most famous cities.

So far it has launched virtual Berlin – a faithful replica of the real thing – to public trial.

Next year a virtual London will be available with online models of Singapore and New York joining at some point after that.

People can explore their city of choice, visit shops, art galleries and museums and build apartments.

“Fantasy worlds give you freedom and allow you to fly but the fantasy element limits them for the real world,” said Jochen Hummel, the chief executive of Metaversum, the company behind Twinity.

“Teenage boys are the biggest users but for adults there is a need to improve their real lives rather than escape from them,” he said.

BBC NEWS | Technology | Virtual worlds carve out new path.

MMPOW – Podcast: Norbert Meinike at Twinity

Podcast: Norbert Meinike at Twinity

Avatar Posted by Mmonica 1 hour 37 minutes ago (http://virtualeconomicforum.com) View profile

Category: Others | Tags: metaversum twinity podcast

Image: Launch of Virtual Berlin with the Mayor – Real & Virtual

In this podcast I’m joined by Norbert Meinike, Chief Marketing Officer of Twinity. Twinity is a mirror virtual world, which has initially created a virtual replica of Berlin and is soon expanding to London and Singapore. We’ve covered Twinity extensively here on the Virtual Worlds Forum blog, partly because of the fascinating potential I believe a mirror world has to really shake up the virtual worlds space, bringing both new users and advertisers to the market. Twinity on Friday announced a partnership with UK media company Twofour as part of their move into the UK with the creation of the virtual London.

A few of the topics covered in the interview:

* The potential of mirror worlds to make the virtual world concept more easily comprehensive to users

* Twinity’s business model, and how they are going about attracting new brands to virtual world advertising

* The major disadvantage – the need to develop a 3D replica of a city rather than simply let users create the content themselves

Download

via MMPOW – Podcast: Norbert Meinike at Twinity.

Avatars Help Disabled Users in Virtual Worlds – itsReal

As myself a child who grew up most of his life with a disabled parent, I undertand fully how Virtual Worlds have and are an opportunity for disabled people to become part of a community where their disabilities are of NO consequence.

I applaud and support any virtual world initiatives to assist bring those that are confined in one way or another the opportunity to contribute and share experiences unimaginable without the use of Virtual Worlds technology.

If there are programs which anyome is developing or in play already and would like my assistance to publicize contact me – APLINK

From Dusan Writer’s Blog….

“Here in this life I’m pretty much confined to my home and this room. I don’t see adults. It’s difficult to go out and talk with people. It’s really nice to be able to go out and dance. I love to dance.”

via Dusan Writer’s Metaverse » Avatars Help Disabled Users in SL.

sered: Twinity: in world jobs -itsReal

On Sered’s blog he lets us know how to build your finance in Twinity – make your spare time into learning about 3D Virtual Worlds and get paid – jump in now before it’s too crowded…

Sered wrote “If I would need more Globals, I could do two things: buy them directly from Twinity, or apply for a job. Twinity has a collection of jobs on offer: DJ, waiter, usher, photographer, stuff like that. Spend 10 hours online doing one of these, and you earn 500 Globals! To be honest, I have no idea how much that is, but it amounts to 50 Globals per hour, so that thing better be worth something”

sered second life: Twinity: in world jobs

Mirko Caspar to Speak at Virtual Worlds Forum London – itsReal

Metaversum’s Mirko Caspar CMO for Twinity will be speaking at the Second VWF, if in London between 6 & 7 October 08 – drop by and catch up with him, he knows all the stuff u want to know about twinity (wink) – his panel are speaking on….

Web 2.0 strategy and virtual worlds

Integrating virtual worlds into your web 2.0 strategy – harnessing social networks, virtual worlds and MMOs to create community

• Playing to the strengths of social networks and virtual worlds – what are they each good at?
• How can they be mixed and for what? What role might casual gaming play in their integration?
• What should a mass market casual virtual world look like?
• How interested are social network players in adding virtual worlds to their offerings? How is partnering developing?
• Will virtual worlds grow into social networks themselves? How good are they at supporting them?
• Looking at the collision of mobile social networks and virtual worlds – where will people consume?

Raph Koster, President, Metaplace
Marco Behrmann, CIO & Entropia Universe Community Director, MindArk PE AB
Mirko Caspar, CMO & Co-founder, Metaversum
Burckhardt Bonello, Founder & CEO, sMeet
Stuart Dredge, Freelance journalist and blogger, covering games, music and technology