Category Archives: Virtual Worlds

Virtual worlds are the massive, multi-user online spaces where people can play, socialize and live a whole new life.

Move Over Sudoku; Studies Show Virtual Worlds Can Be Good for Your Brain

Posted on March 11, 2012 by Justin Kwong

A recent story on Forbes.com reported on a new study about the effects of playing massively-multiplayer online games on one’s cognitive abilities. Conducted on a small sample group of 39 adults between the ages of 60 and 77, the study … Continue reading →

Posted in Rights and Civil Liberties, Virtual Worlds | Tagged burn victims, medical technology, therapy, virtual reality | Leave a comment

UPDATE: Virtual Horse Case, Amaretto Ranch v. Ozimals

Posted on February 11, 2012 by Justin Kwong

When Judge Frank Easterbrook disparaged the emerging field of cyberspace law in 1996 by comparing it to the “law of the horse,” i.e. that there was no such thing, it’s unlikely that he ever imagined that there would one day … Continue reading →

Posted in Intellectual Property, Litigation, Multi-user Online Environments, Virtual Items / Virtual Goods, Virtual Stuff..., Virtual Worlds | Tagged copyright infringement, DMCA, notice and takedown, Second Life, unfair business practices, virtual horses, virtual worlds | Leave a comment

Happy 7th Anniversary to World of Warcraft!

Posted on November 20, 2011 by Justin Kwong

Congratulations are in order. Starting today, Blizzard is marking the seventh year since the renowned virtual world, World of Warcraft, began consuming all the free time of millions of people across the globe. It’s quite an achievement for any service, … Continue reading →

Posted in Virtual Stuff..., Virtual Worlds | Leave a comment

Is your online game gold real?

Posted on October 23, 2011 by Justin Kwong

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know that my law review article about virtual items was published in the William Mitchell Law Review this month. I’m very excited about it, and apparently, I’m not the only … Continue reading →

Posted in Multi-user Online Environments, Social Networks, Virtual Currency, Virtual Items / Virtual Goods, Virtual Land, Virtual Stuff..., Virtual Worlds | Tagged Entropia Universe, Pioneer Press, Second Life, Virtually Blind, William Mitchell College of Law, World of Warcraft | 11 Comments

Ugh, Canada! Our Northern Neighbor Is Aiming to Make Internet Privacy a Lot Less Private

Posted on August 20, 2011 by Justin Kwong

Ars Technica reported on a developing story out of Canada this week that should worry many Internet privacy advocates. The country’s conservative party, which took over control of their parliament this spring, seeks to broadly expand the government’s power. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Virtual Worlds, Privacy, Social Networks, Legislation, International News, Multi-user Online Environments, Legal Developments | Tagged Internet, spying, freedom, text messages, online, Canada, wireless, wiretaps, warrant, surveillance, omnibus bill, Bush, USA PATRIOT Act, 9/11, mobile phones, wireless device | Leave a comment

UPDATE: Missouri’s “Facebook Law” Gets It All Wrong

Posted on August 3, 2011 by Justin Kwong

Original Update (Sept. 5, 2011): Since last month, the Missouri law blocking social networking has come under scrutiny by the Missouri courts as well as the state’s governor. First, a state judge blocked enforcement of the law with an injunction, … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal Developments, Legislation, Rights and Civil Liberties, Social Networks, Virtual Worlds | Tagged education, Facebook, Missouri, school districts, social networks, teachers | 2 Comments

Feeding Virtual Horses Sparks an IP Battle in Second Life

Posted on August 1, 2011 by Justin Kwong

I’m not sure how I missed this story when it first emerged last winter. A company that designs and sells virtual animals in Second Life is suing a competing animal maker over the IP behind the way the companies make … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal Developments, Litigation, Multi-user Online Environments, Virtual Currency, Virtual Items / Virtual Goods, Virtual Stuff..., Virtual Worlds | Tagged Amaretto, Blizzard, CDA § 230, Diablo III, DMCA, economics, Farmville, irreparable harm, Justin Scheck, Ozimals, Second Life, virtual currency, virtual horses, virtual pets, virtual rabbits, virtual worlds, Wall Street Journal, World of Warcraft, Zynga | 2 Comments

A Real “Virtual Currency” Emerges: Could BitCoins Threaten “Real” Currencies?

Posted on June 15, 2011 by Justin Kwong

I’ve talked fairly often on this blog about the trade of virtual goods and virtual currencies in virtual worlds such as Second Life or Facebook. While novel, neither of these elements are legally what they claim to be. With respect to virtual … Continue reading →

Posted in Multi-user Online Environments, Virtual Currency, Virtual Items / Virtual Goods, Virtual Worlds | Tagged Bitcoin, currency, Dollars, economics, electronic, electronic wallet, Facebook Credits, inflation, IRS bank, legal, legitimate, Lindens, macroeconomics, merchants, mining, money, money laundering, Planet Money, Ponzi scheme, privacy, regulation, revenue, sales tax, secrecy, security, tax, tax evasion, virtual currency, WoW gold | 2 Comments

UPDATE: Tools Available to Counter zF Redzone Alt Detection Tool

Posted on April 30, 2011 by Justin Kwong

A few months ago, I wrote about a highly controversial program that was showing up in Sims all over Second Life called zF RedZone. This piece of software was allegedly designed to help sim owners detect alts (secondary characters) for … Continue reading →

Posted in Privacy, Virtual Land, Virtual Worlds | Tagged GreenZone, HUD, identity, Linden $, malicious, prim, privacy, RedZone, Second Life, sim, snooping, update | 1 Comment