SL, Open Source and A Connected Metaverse

In the wake of Linden Labs’ widely-blogged decision to open source the code for the Second Life client (desktop) software, Steve O’Hear at ZDNet looks at a more intriguing possibility: opening the code for the Second Life server grid and allowing virtual worlds to interoperate. The concept isn’t novel, as there have been Terra Nova discussions on the subject dating back to the 2004 Game Developer’s Conference, including the possibility of portable profiles and the exchange of meta-data (Peter Molyneux of Black & White fame put this forward). Ted Castronova discussed these possibilities at length in his excellent book, Synthetic Worlds.

What might this mean for virtual economies? The notion of an interconnected marketplace for virtual currency and assets has been part of the discussion for years. The Gaming Open Market created a marketplace where players in one virtual world could exchange their currency for the coinage of another world. The GOM later closed when Linden Labs opened its own official currency exchange for Second Life. Maybe they’ll open source some client code. But history suggests that Linden Labs isn’t likely to open source its currency market, having been there once already.