November 7th, 2006
Reality TV enters Second Life
Reuters is reporting that the popular reality TV show Big Brother plans to "expand into virtual reality with a new edition in the online world of Second Life".
Adam Pasick (the Second Life embedded reporter also known as 'Adam Reuters') writes:
Endemol will select 15 international Second Life contestants to spend at least eight hours a day inside a specially constructed glass-walled house for one month. As in the real-world version of "Big Brother," the contestants will be voted off until only one remains.
Now I can't think of anything more boring than watching a bunch of avatars locked up in a virtual house, but then many critics said the same of the real-world version of the show when it was first launched - and I was still watching well into the sixth series of the UK version. So what's in it for the contestants? A well as virtual fame, there's virtual fortune.
The winner will receive a virtual island within Second Life, worth about US$1,675.
Endemol's strategy is more evidence of a Second Life 'land grab', as companies look to exploit the growing virtual world. High profile brands including Toyota and Adidas have recently entered the game, and last May the BBC purchased a Second Life island from which it held a virtual rock concert.
Steve O'Hear is a London-based consultant, educator, and journalist, focussing on the Internet and all aspects of digital technology. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
