Second Life Ponzi Scheme v2

Wager James Au takes a look at some recent analysis of the Second Life economy.

From the post:

“Is Second Life’s internal economy a pyramid/Ponzi scheme?”— launched by analyst Randolph Harrison here, Slashdotted here, with my take here— and finally, Indiana University professor Edward Castronova has weighed in on Terra Nova, here.

So Castronova’s take on the SL economy is decidedly different:

Imagine Mayberry, in isolation, with the occasional Don Knotts figure setting up a bank… It’s not a con game. It’s a village-sized market. In fact it’s a tourist attraction-type village: the big numbers of the people you see are one-time visitors. Newcomers are arriving in droves. Land speculation is rampant. But it’s not thick; it’s tiny. Not a ponzi scheme: a little mini gold rush."