SL Mesh Avatar Brands Maitreya & CATWA Dominate, Survey Suggests

Really interesting survey results from the Mesh Body Addicts blog, which as the name suggests, is for fans of mesh-based avatars in Second Life. Asked to name their favorite brands, 1800 respondents (80% female) replied -- a huge sample. Overwhelmingly, two brands dominate:  Maitreya for mesh bodies, Catwa for mesh heads. And I do mean dominate:

What female mesh bodies are most popular?

• Maitreya Lara (68%)
• Belleza Freya (8%)
• Slink Hourglass (8%)
• eBody (7%)
• Slink Physique & Belleza Isis (tied) (4%)

What female mesh heads are most popular?

• Catwa (bento) (45%)
• Lelutka (bento) (16%)
• Catwa (non-bento) (16%)

Read all the results here. Based on survey results, we're talking about a near oligopoly on what's probably Second Life's most popular and lucrative virtual goods market outside of real estate. (Not necessarily a bad thing.) Notably, the only sub-category where no one brand dominates is male mesh avatars, but that could be because the market leaders aren't competing for that market.

From Maitreya's Flickr

Given that the survey was conducted among hardcore mesh fans, versus a more diverse group of SL users, the results may be skewed. Which makes me think New World Notes should have a survey of its own.

Comments

[Taylor]

"Notably, the only sub-category where no one brand dominates is male mesh avatars"

For bodies yes though for male mesh heads Catwa's even more dominant than they are for females!

If I were Maitreya I'd see a big opening here for that long-rumored male mesh body.

[CG]

I've been wanting Maitreya to make a male mesh body for 2 years now. I've asked a few times and always same answer. No plans for it at the moment.
If they can make a Maitreya Male body as perfect as they have made the female body it will without a doubt dominate the male mesh body market. As it is now there is no male body that can compare to Maitreyas female body in terms of quality. I have the Slink male body and I have spent 2 months demoing bodies and clothing demos and every single one of the has good and bad points. Maitreya female body has 0 bad points in my opinion. We need a male body with 0 bad points. COME ON MAITREYA! I think with slink they focus so much on the female bodies the male body is just a neglected body with a lot of flaws. I had high hopes for Belleza's new male body but after demoing it for a while I wasn't happy with it. I couldnt get my body wide enough, felt like I was as skinny as female even with slider at 100.

[Jacques Mesrine]

@CG
"If they can make a Maitreya Male body as perfect as they have made the female body it will without a doubt dominate the male mesh body market."

Really depends on your personal needs.
I am quite happy with a "downsized" Niramyth Aesthetic as others would prefer the male Slink, TMP, Signature, Adam... or latest Belleza, which resemble more the standard LL-Body in proportions.

I'd reckon it an unhealthy situation if one single creator dominates.

[Madeline blackbart]

Of course maitreya and catwa dominate because they're are so many people making clothing and appliers that only work with maitreya and catwa. As a result people only buy that because it's the only body everything will fit and because people only buy (well mostly) buy that more exclusive stuff is made only for those products. It's a vicious cycle and somewhat consumer unfriendly in the long run especially if your someone who likes the other bodies or head but feel forced to wear what's popular because it's near impossible to clothe anything else. It sucks really. Not that maitreya is bad but choice is better.

[CG]

@Jacques Of course it would be unhealthy for one to dominate the market, but why put out a crap body just to be equally as crappy as the others out there. Maitreya is the most popular for a reason, its not because there is more "Maitreya Only" clothing its because the body and HUD are truly better made than all the others.

@Madeline Slink has been around longer than Maitreya and for a long time there was more "Slink Only" things on the market, especially for feet! I think the only reason why you are starting to see more "Maitreya Only" items popping up is because those creators realize how much better that body is. In terms of quality from a creators stand point and really examining the body and the HUD it is the better made body with probably Belleza in close 2nd. The load times and everything are better with Maitreya. I hear people with female and male slink bodies ALWAYS having issues after TPing a couple times their body disappears for others. You can see the body still on you but others don't see it forcing a relog. Thats a huge issue with Slink. With Belleza its a very well made body but almost too well with so many triangles and verts that the body is always the last one to load across its competitors.

[Richard Romans]

I totally agree with you Madeline blackbart. The creators of clothes are preferring to make clothing for maitreya and applicators only for catwa and that is determining the market. That vicious cycle in the long run can do a lot of damage to the SL economy and that is something that affects us all. If a group of people who, for example, prefer bodies with large curves, do not see their needs fulfilled, they will not invest $ L and that reduces the money circulating in SL, by reducing that money no one will benefit, from which rents land, which Creates houses, shops, furniture, clothes, accessories, etc. I think at this time SL economy feels a slight fall, many lands are being closed, abandoned land, many people are returning their sims to LL. I have seen very famous creators of clothes that NEVER went to events, they did not need to be promoted in them and now I see it in all the great events. As an economist and marketing consultant I am deeply concerned that creators have been biased by certain bodies and certain heads. There can be no healthy economy anywhere in the world if instead of supporting the development of trade we hamper it and create a "passive boycott."

[Nunya]

Im gonna necropost as some of the comments made here are... off. 1) the Maitreya body does not have 0 faults, it is far from perfect. As someone who works with mesh and rigs avatars I can tell you the maitreya has issues. Ever look at your shoulders with arms down? Notice how the mesh bulges from the back giving a "im too fat for my skin" look? Thats poor weight painting/lack of squint-time. Hips bent(sitting pose) poor weighting around the thighs. 2)maitreyas hud is better made, lulz. Its the same hud config that so many other bodies use, scripts are no different. 3)maitreya body is better made than any others, lulz. Its the geometry that causes poor load times with other bodies, light on verts = shorter load times. Triangles... EVERY mesh in sl is triangulated, even maitreya :o. Now on to the juicy stuff... the best part about maitreya is that it is a base mesh from cgtrader.com, available for anyone that would like to buy it and use. Ever wonder why she wont make that maitreya male body, cause shes a hack and cant find a decent male base mesh to rig for sl. And as for catwa heads, you need not look any further than cgtrader for those too. Nothing original or special about catwa or maitreya. Sorry to burst your name brand bubble but youve all been had.