High Fidelity Virtual World to Monetize with Names, Content Sales & Ads (Including Virtual Billboards)

Philip Rosedale in High Fidelity via Oculus Rift

High Fidelity, Philip Rosedale's next generation virtual world (all our previous NWN coverage on it here), just got $11 million in new funding from Paul Allen’s Vulcan Capital, TechCrunch just reported. That's noteworthy, because it gives his company more than enough capital to launch High Fidelity and devote a year or two trying to get traction. Also noteworthy in the TechCrunch post are some hints about how High Fidelity will monetize, two which Philip discussed with me off the record awhile ago, another which might shock some:

Rosedale plans to monetize High Fidelity at the points where the community provides value to itself. While you can generate a temporary name to send to friends so they can quickly jump into a world with you, you’ll also be able to pay a fee to keep a distinct name for longer-term use — kind of like reserving a good URL for your site or username on Twitter. Since users can make all kinds of content for their worlds, High Fidelity also wants to host the go-to repository for models and code in a digital store resembling Unity’s Asset Store. Given the product’s open source approach, generous users can give out their offerings for free if they’d like, but if they want to charge money, High Fidelity will take a small cut.

So monetizing with virtual name sales, much like Second Life monetized with virtual land sales, and also taking a cut of virtual content sales, a bit like how the Second Life Marketplace works. That, plus another potentially controversial revenue stream:

As I’ve noted before, advertising is probably going to be common in virtual reality. Some might hear that and groan, but in “contemporary” virtual settings, ads done right can actually contribute to immersion. Rosedale says the startup is looking to make ads not only feel natural in High Fidelity, but helpful: while there might be ads for “real” products on in-game televisions or billboards down the road, in the near-term you’re more likely to see ads for cool objects you can pick up from the asset store.

Hopefully Philip remembers how Linden Lab had to regulate virtual billboards in Second Life because the eye blight got so bad.

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Comments

[Kitty Revolver]

woopie, escaping the web to see more ads in 3d and having to purchase my unique name in-world. Honestly that dings my interest in High Fidelity, if it could run on my computer. From what I hear from older SL people, apparently SL was trying to do the same thing but the social aspects were what really made it go. Given the pressure to make money in a 3d world, everything has to be monetized. I would rather do a premium account than all the crap that would be nickled and dimed from me.

[melponeme_k]

Looks like a gouge fest for the little user no matter how you slice it. The world is geared to advertisers. Plus you have to pay for you own name! All of this so that this "world" can utilize your computer resources to run this world. All I see is taking not giving anything to the little user of value.

Run people, run far away from this thing.

[DrFran]

Please, hold on a bit:

"There is a principle which is a bar against all information,which is proof against all arguments, and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance—that principle is contempt prior to investigation." — Herbert Spencer

I believe Philip wants to make money, of course, but HiFi is his chance to right the unanticipated wrongs of SL. Let's give the HiFi group a chance.

[zz bottom]

Why shall we do that? Does Philip actions on the past are not proof enough that he is someone nobody seriously can trust?

[Adeon Writer]

I just want to know if it is capable of high end graphics that modern gamers have come to expect. It's the "show me the money" of VR.

[Rin]

"(...) As I’ve noted before, advertising is probably going to be common in virtual reality. Some might hear that and groan, but in “contemporary” virtual settings, ads done right can actually contribute to immersion. Rosedale says the startup is looking to make ads not only feel natural in High Fidelity, but helpful (...)"

But will now the HiFi team be the ones who make all ads to make sure that they are up to the idea they have for them or will they allow those who want to place the ad to ceate it? Because the moment everyone can create thier own ads it will turn exactly into what happened in SL before they put some strict regulaiton on it.

Expecting anything else is delusional ... or the design rules are so strict that no one bothers to make ads at all since it would not go well with the messege the advertisers have in mind.

Of course the idea to monaterize things is normal (cut from purchase is something I would always expect and accept) but doing that to names is kind of ... strange ... and since a fee is mentioned. Does it mean he thinks that people pay monthly for their name? And what will those short term names look like? And what happens when someone misses their name-payment?

That is for sure a new way to kill any possibility for a community to form But that is only what my interpretation of what was said in the article and I might be wrong and things might also turn out wrong too. But I still say it is strange and not really gives much hope or good expectations towards Mr. Rosedales new project.

[Maria Korolov]

The name thing is a little weird -- after all, we ALREADY have domain names, and OpenSim grids use them quite successfully to give every grid a unique online address.

For the ad network -- Rosedale is probably going to have quite a bit of competition.

Say, for example, I'm a land owner, and I have a choice of putting up a High Fidelity ad on my land and, say, a Google AdSense ad, where Google has millions of advertisers, and High Fidelity only has a few -- why pick the High Fidelity ad?

Both networks will have the ability to invade users' privacy via their IP addresses. Will High Fidelity be selling MORE user information to make their ad network more attractive to advertisers?

Or will they trade ad space in return for free or discounted land, GeoCities-style? (I can actually see this working, if they can get their land costs down enough.)

[ice petal]

Rather than persisting in the zero sum game, i would love to see an experiment in revenue sharing. Uers of HiFi should be given a cut of the revenues generated from ads and even licensing their name, especially content creators. Not huge amounts, but a percentage on the linden. Just for logging on a user could be paid a few cents *because* they are sought after for views and clicks.

[melponeme_k]

@ice petal

That would be the least the platform could do, considering it is asking the users to support the whole platform in resource sharing.

But ZZ is right about Rosedale. We have a chock full past event list to choose from in regards to making forecasts of how he will behave in the future. And the evidence points to him trying to get something for nothing. That was the main thing he learned from Second life and he has been trying replicate it ever since.

[Iggy]

Newer shinier. The question for me is where the VC will come from after this 11 million gets burned through without a release.

I dunno. In a time when minimum-wage workers pulling down two or three job crowd their extended families of 15 into two-bedroom apartments, Rosedale's VR paradise strikes me as rather surreal and, ultimately, silly.

But I guess someone needs to burn those 11 million dollar bills. Might as well be him.

[BigJohn Jade]

@ zz bottom :Says those who came almost a half decade after alpha/beta? who have opinion based off forum conversations & others experiences.Long after Philip was no longer able to to devote the time inworld as once he had been able that gave residents a better understanding who he was.

[tollzrtrollz]

No. Advertising in virtual worlds? Just no. (shudder)

And I am supposed to pay HiFi for the privilege of a name while they use my computer for free to make their product. No.

[BigJohn Jade]

Everyone is overlooking one big fact!OPEN SOURCE
If you do not like how High Fidelity is run then take the free open+source software and do this..

A business model like Second Life then charges for land or premium membership.
charge a one time fee for names or no fee at all.
Turn it into your own High Fidelity with its own name and business model.Whatever you chose.

Never once has it been said do it our own way! in fact since the beginning its been stated if you do not like our plan then use the code to create your own.

The only lack of choices are those your conveniently ignoring some of you for your own purposes.

[2much]

Either charge me for access or show me ads. To do both is a slap in my face.

[Connie Arida]

Cart before horse. Where's the beef?

[Linden Tree]

Replacing open sim & second life? more like There dot com reloaded!
Will we all get a coca cola cooler boombox as well Philip?

Paying for my name LOL.. I'll pass while taking my name,groups & friends list to SL 2.0 while for shetz & giggles I'll restart my land in open sim for those urges to build big

Philip as your expected to be the expert not the novice when it comes to creating a 'HiFi Universe'

Marketplace like Unity? LOL bwahahaha your killing me! someone tell me this is a NWN prank please!.

[2much]

Advertisers inside HiFi is such a dark idea. Virtual worlds offer us the ONE place where we can escape the datagrabbing giant eyeball of corporations. They are a place where we can just be - and be with each other. And you are inviting the corporations in with a red carpet. Please reconsider, Philip

[irihapeti]

I don't really get the beef in the comments about names and adverts

only have to pay for a name if you want it unique and persistent to you. Is your identity worth something to you? If is not then what does it matter if you login using a temporary random gen name

+

about addys

is client-side rendering. Will only take a few days/weeks for heaps of people to make ad-blockers

+

about the money

the money is in the asset store, and the avatar registry (which unique names is about)

like if you a asset creator then your unique name is your brand. Why you would not want to secure this I dunno

[2much]

No doubt people with money will be able to registered their identities and be able to buy their way out of advertising. "Brands" will have no trouble. They aren't the ones who NEED the experience of freedom. Their money buys them freedom all the time. It's the poor schmo who labors in the corporate mines all day who wants someplace to be a whole free person at night. Instead of freedom, they'll be getting more corporate crap shoved down their throat. It's not the end of the world, but it's a piss poor way to build a "new" world.

I just expected more from Philip, that's all.

[Name]

Guys, please get your info. Philip is not going to sell avatar names. Those "names" you can buy are something like invisible flags you can put on world and enable people to teleport to them.

[jwjaii]

"The dogs bark, but the caravan goes on"...