Second Life Mints First Millionaire

The first in-world millionaire has emerged in Second Life, but not without criticism from residents that some business owners have been given an unfair advantage.

Second Life, the massive multiplayer online world, allows users to log on through the Internet and create 3-D computer-generated identities. Anshe Chung, the in-world identity of Ailin Graef, has become the first avatar to earn $1 million from profits entirely earned inside the world that San Francisco-based Linden Lab has synthetically created.

Virtual property is controlled solely by Linden Lab and is sold through the company's land store, through online auctions, or for a set price between users. While businesses, such as Reebok (RBK), Dell (DELL) and Toyota (TM), are earning revenue by selling fabricated goods or advertising in the virtual world, business people like Chung have become virtual landlords.

The Anshe Chung avatar was created in Second Life during March 2004, shortly after Linden Lab introduced the virtual world. Graef, who prefers to have her accomplishments attributed to her avatar's name, began purchasing virtual real-estate from Linden Lab and other users, and then developed it for resale to other in-world residents. (The transactions were made in Linden, the accepted currency in the Second Life world, which can be exchanged for U.S. dollars.)

However, there have been virtual speed bumps that Graef and her company, Anshe Chung Studios, have faced.