2. Core Proble!
After a 20 year history of commercial virtual
worlds, the only mass market success stories are
a) MMOs
b) the recent success as kids’ entertainment.
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
3. Roadmap Questions
1. What are the differences between what
we have today and mass-market successful
virtual world-based products?
2. How and when can these differences be
overcome?
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
4. Roadmap Goal
Accelerate the mass market use of virtual
world-like technologies by documenting and
publicizing the answers to these questions.
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
5. Roadmap Tasks
Application-centric process
1. Define applications where VWs have value
- describe the unique additive value in detail
2. Detail technical, feature, and business
requirements for each application
3. Describe what barriers impede executing each
requirement
4. Publish a timeline, cost, and method
for overcoming those barriers
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
6. What the Roadmap is NOT
Not: Creating standards
Not: Thinking about interoperability
between virtual worlds unless that is a key
requirement for a specific application
Not: Focusing on any particular existing
VWs platform other than as occasional
examples
Not: Worrying about a specific definition of
“virtual worlds” but rather including any type
of “connected visual computing” that
2 has key value for a given application.
Virtual Worlds Roadmap
7. Step #: Define Applications
Example Applications & Categories
Virtual meetings / presentations Dating
Education / e-learning Retail shopping
Data visualization Community communication
Conferences Social networking
Training / simulation Simulation from real-world sensors
Collaborative & public design Advertising / marketing
Real-world live events Healthcare applications
Virtual-only events Product R&D
Entertainment storytelling Customer service
Casual gaming Machinima production
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
8. Example: RW Live Events
To be sufficiently specific, this
topic should be further divided:
Conferences
Professional presentations
Meetings
Music concerts
Sports
Classes
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
9. Example: Conferences
What is the value added with a visual virtual
space?
Social presence. Useful for networking & sub-
group conversations.
Everything else critical for virtually attending a
real-world conference could be achieved with a
regular Web site - video stream, chat during
presentations, identification of who is present
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
10. Example: Conferences
What are key requirements to achieve this
value that are at least sometimes missing
today?
• General ease of use
• Simplicity for conference organizers
• Navigation focussed on core value
• Networking features: identification of
position, background, interests
• Group conversation features
• Scalability of social features
• Cost of hosting
• Demonstrated incentive for conferences
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
11. Example: Conferences
What effort is needed to overcome these gaps?
• Creating software using today’s technology
• Demonstrating revenue potential for conferences
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
12. Example: Conferences
Conclusions:
• This could be a near-term mass market success
• Investment should be focussed on creating the
successful software product needed
Comparison:
Conferences Sports One-off Consumer Concerts
Events
More Likely Possible Less Likely
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
14. $nd Example: Enterpris%
Virtual Meetings
Conclusions:
For mainstream business meetings, this take 4+ years
to achieve mass adoption, because
• Such meetings require that the environment not
take over essentially all of the computing power of
one’s machine
• Substantial value may not exist until gestures and
expressions are automatically conveyed via webcam
& avatar
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
15. Main Web Site:
www.virtualworldsroadmap.org
Draft Wiki on Applications:
virtualworldsroadmap.wikispaces.com
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Virtual Worlds Roadmap
