Second Life, and Maybe a Third or Fourth

Virtual Building Blocks

Also entering the fray is Denmark's Lego Group, but it's targeting a much-younger demographic with its own massive multiplayer online game (MMOG). While a target launch date hasn't been set, Lego looks to bring social networking to a younger crowd in the best, safest way possible.

"As children around the world continue to spend more time online we are developing new and engaging ways for them to interact with our brand," said Lisbeth Valther Pallesen, executive vice president with the Lego Group, in a statement.

"The Lego brand represents construction, creativity and problem solving -- values that compliment the MMOG market," she continued. "By merging the online world of social interaction with physical play, the Lego brand is providing new experiences for children, as well as fans."

Advantage: Second Life?

Second Life's popularity certainly doesn't look to be waning, though. According to data posted on the virtual world's official Web site, 641 new pieces of Internet property (known as an island) have been sold thus far in March, compared with 574 private islands added during the entire month of February. Additionally, the average price paid per square meter is easing.

Also worth noting is that the supply of the in-world currency, the Linden dollar, sold to residents in March looks to be unchanged from February's levels, based on data found on Second Life's Web site, which suggests a steady virtual economy.