Is a new business model emerging in Web 2.0?

A new business model is emerging on the Web. This one I have written about in the past. It involves virtual 3D worlds and merging of virtual and real world products. Webkinz is now a well-established company that produces real world toys that children can play with in a virtual world. Lego’s is another example of real world taken into the virtual.

Second Life showed that under the right virtual environment markets do exist for virtual products. Second Life also shown that semiskilled users to create these virtual products can use tools. Swedish avatar dress-up site Stardoll and German t-shirt commerce site Spreadshirt may soon be allowing users to take virtual clothes they create or see online and get them made in the real world. Most items will be in the line of emblazoned items at this time. Virtual world Gaia has also begun selling real-world fashion on its site. Following in the footsteps of Build-A-Bear workshops, Fashionology LA is a brand-new Beverly Hills store that lets young fashionistas design and make their own clothes. You can now customize you Nike items using a simple selection menu that displays the results as a 3D image. Now EA games release SPORE creature creator. This editor allows anyone to quickly and simply create creatures. These creatures then can be shared and rated by other users who have SPORE creature creator. The release of the game also came with the release of the official SPORE store. The store allows someone to have their favorite creatures printed on a number of items from tee-shirts to coffee cups.

A system seems to exist to create real life 3D creatures from creatures created by the SPORE creature creator editor. Samples have been created for press releases using color 3D printers.

 

So what is the new business model that is emerging? It is the mixing of user created products and virtual worlds. The editor technology is reaching the point where anyone with a little talent can now design products and items in a virtual world. The world of imagination has now been released. Instead of creating everything in a virtual world the model is now to create the tools which allow users to create virtual content. Not only is the virtual world marketing the virtual content created, it is also marketing the virtual creations as real world products based on the content created in the virtual world. Overall costs of creating virtual worlds is greatly reduced if the focus can be on creating the environment and editor tools that are used to create things within the world. SPORE will have millions of creatures created and rated by users before the SPORE game is ever released. The official SPORE store started selling user created items the first day the SPORE creature creator was released. By producing and releasing the editors before the game Maxis, Spore’s creator, is generating revenue long before it would have if it waited to release a complete game.

 

Creating the ability to create virtual items and interact with others seems to be the key to this new business model. Another important aspect is taking virtual products into the real world. For now it is just designs and images. In the future it is expected that the number and quality of 3D editors will increase in both number and quality. It is just a matter of time before the average person will be using 3D editors to design custom virtual products that can then be used to produce real world products such as clothing, jewelry, furniture, etc. Will everyone afford custom products, probably not. However, it will be the custom products that reach critical mass in regards to proven sales that will be the new products we will find on our retail shelves in the future.