Virtual world as a new media for business and marketing

Virtual Worlds (VW) is a highly interactive virtual environment which is evolving into ever closer representations of the real world – with all the opportunities and consequences of the real world. VWs represent a media of social computing which has real implications for business, for communications, and for education. Business and marketing in VWs requires new ways of thinking through marketing practices. This very different environment differs from the real world because it is instantly global. This paper highlights the importance of VWs for business and marketing. It clarifies some aspects needed for the business success in VWs (based on case studies). Lastly it summarizes common corporate and business activities in VWs by analyzing some major corporates active in second life (SL)