Hello all, I thought you would enjoy this read. It is an article posted on CNN about owning virtual property. I originally posted a bit about this on our devteam forums. I hope you enjoy it. Can people actually 'own' virtual land? By John D. Sutter, CNN May 10, 2010 10:45 a.m. EDT (CNN) -- Zed Drebin has a pretty fantastical life. He owns a house on the beach, which he's styled to be part Barbie castle and part medieval lair. In addition, he is the landlord of two island colonies, both of which feature spaceships, amusement parks and all kinds of futuristic buildings. About 80 renters pay to live in themed condos at his getaway resorts. For all of this, Drebin pays only $390 a month, he said. But there's one big flaw in this space-themed paradise: None of it is real. Zed Drebin is an avatar in the virtual world of Second Life. He's controlled by Arthur, a 44-year-old who lives in New York City, and who didn't want his full name used for fear it would hurt his business. Despite the fact that Arthur pays U.S. dollars to "own" virtual land in Second Life, and that his renters also pay him in real money, it's unclear whether he, or any of Second Life's "residents," have lasting rights to these virtual tracts. That worries him. Read the full article Source: CNN Tech: Can people actually 'own' virtual land? - CNN.com
didn't read all of it (am at work) but I did read the bid about Linden Labs changing the EULA from owning property to using property (like MA did). Wonder how the law suit went (might be in the article, will read it tonight).
MA's license agreement has always said MA owns everything. They simply changed the text on the deeds in-world to reflect this. - Deathifier
