Hi-end Second Life profit growth stalls
By Adam Reuters
SECOND LIFE, Feb 8 (Reuters) - Growth in the number of Second Life residents making more than US$5,000 a month slowed to a crawl in January after the record pace set in the previous month, according to newly released Linden Lab data.
The total number of residents with positive cash flow for the month showed continued growth, up 24.8 percent to 21,627, compared with growth of 25.6 percent in December. But the number of residents with positive cash flow of more than US$5,000 was up only 7.8 percent to 97, compared with 55 percent growth in the previous month.
The total number of registered avatars surpassed 3 million in January, although regular users are estimated to be only about a tenth of that figure. The cash-flow statistic consolidates multiple avatar names that are used by a single user, and excludes businesses that operate currency exchanges as well as those that operate via third-party services such as credit cards, and PayPal.
Similar to previous months, more than half of positive cash-flow residents earned less than US$10 a month, and more than 90 percent earned less than US$200.
The decline in high-end profits, which also excludes the buying and selling of land, came amid a sharp drop in the price of virtual real estate. After two months of steep increases, prices plummeted in late January when Linden Lab abruptly added 40 new sims to the market. Average prices per square meter had risen from L$6.67 in November to L$9.74 in December to L$12.30 in January.
Seeking to meet surging demand for land, due in part to the use of automated “landbots” which help to drive up prices, Linden Lab created 779 islands in January, compared with 546 in December.
