Months ago , AJ Macht, and I began discussing Second Life. As we poked around in the virtual world, it occured to us that it would be really cool to make a virtual version of Lucas Oil Stadium so that fans could visit the place (in Second Life) even before it’s built IRL. Once inside, fans could play games, talk to eachother, show off their virtual Colts clothing and accessories.
It seemed to us that this would be the PERFECT way for Mr. Lucas to activate his sponsorship of the Colts’ new stadium, and such an environment would be a natural place for other Colts sponsors to display their brands and interact with Colts fans. After all, we’re all used to seeing sponsorship signage inside stadiums.
Sadly, we could not get much support for this concept. It just seemed too weird, and it came at a bad time. (We had just been approved for budget to build MyColts.Net, which itself was innovative enough to cause some hearthburn for Colts management). Given the fact that we were still building our social net, it seemed unlikely that anyone would be ready to talk about building a virtual stadium. Alas, things move so quickly online that it’s tough to keep up.
Not surprisingly, the NBA was thinking along very similar lines and launched its own area in Second Life this week, complete with lounges, game rooms, sponsors and more. They’ve even got a virtual version of (NBA Commissioner), David Stern. Who wouldn’t want to see that?
Here’s the link to the complete press release describing the project
Blog chatter about this project:
Darell Rovell
Reuters Second Life News
3pointD
Information Week
My thoughts: I think this will be very interesting to watch. Second Life is growing fast, but it’s still nowhere near a mainstream phenomenon. So it will be a long while before the NBA sees mass audience participation here. I’m sure they’re not expecting throngs of avid avatars to flock into the area just yet. Instead, I’m guessing that they’re staking a claim, and looking to learn as much as they can about how this new world is going to work. That’s smart. Why not dip you toe in the water? If nothing else it positions the NBA as cutting edge and gives a small segment of their fans a new way to interact with the brand.
And if they can sell a few digital jerseys in the meantime, and create some cash flow from sponsorships, why the heck not?
Here’s the full release for your convenience:
NBA Headquarters Unveiled in Second Life
New 3D Virtual Destination Developed with The Electric Sheep Company
Features T-Mobile Arena, Video of Classic Games, NBA Store, Toyota Larry O’Brien Trophy Room and Cisco Wireless Press Center
NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The NBA announced the launch of NBA Headquarters, a new virtual destination featuring a variety of innovative and interactive NBA elements in Second Life, the popular 3D online world with nearly six million residents. The announcement was made by NBA Commissioner David Stern during a recent media event conducted in the NBA Headquarters.
The NBA’s 3D virtual destination, developed with The Electric Sheep Company, a leading creator of 3D virtual world content and solutions, will provide basketball fans and Second Life residents with access to comprehensive features including the T-Mobile Arena, broadband video of classic NBA games and highlights, and an opportunity to have their picture taken with the NBA’s championship trophy in the Toyota Larry O’Brien Trophy Room.
Additionally, in Second Life fans will be able to purchase NBA and WNBA jerseys and merchandise for their identity or avatars at the NBA Store, walk along a special path highlighting the 50 Greatest NBA Players and participate in a variety of basketball activities at the NBA Jam Session.
“Bringing the NBA to the virtual world provides us with a new and innovative platform to reach our fans and the millions of residents in Second Life,” said Stern. “The NBA Headquarters creates an interactive worldwide community where fans can come together, engage with our game, and most importantly, share in their passion for the NBA.”
“The NBA is a sports innovator, being the first professional sports league to unveil a comprehensive headquarters in a virtual world,” said Sibley Verbeck, CEO, The Electric Sheep Company. “The NBA is engaging its fan community at a whole new level, and bringing fans together from around the world.”
The NBA Headquarters will feature branding by existing NBA partners T-Mobile, Toyota and Cisco, along with commercials highlighted in the broadband content from television partners ABC, ESPN and TNT.
Overall, the NBA Headquarters in Second Life will include:
T-Mobile Arena – Fans can gather in the T-Mobile Arena, complete with all the features of a real NBA arena, to watch broadband video of classic NBA Playoff and Finals match-ups on the arena JumboTron. During the games fans will have the opportunity to answer trivia questions and at halftime can participate in the T-Mobile Half Court Shot Contest with a chance to win various prizes. Live stat feeds and 3D shot charts of NBA games throughout the postseason will be available to view in the arena.
NBA Store – Designed to look like the NBA Store on Fifth Avenue, the NBA Store in Second Life will give fans the ability to style their avatar with the jersey of their favorite NBA or WNBA team. Other NBA merchandise, including headbands, wristbands and the eventual debut of 2007 NBA Draft caps for every team will be available for fans to purchase by using Linden dollars, the form of currency utilized in Second Life.
NBA Jam Session – A unique basketball experience, fans can play a game of HORSE or Toyota Crash the Boards, an animated dunk contest, on one of the many half-courts. Four video lounges will be available for fans to watch broadband video of NBA highlights and classic moments from The Finals.
Toyota Larry O’Brien Trophy Room – Located in the T-Mobile arena, fans can celebrate the NBA Playoffs by having a photo of their avatar taken next to the League’s championship trophy. The Larry O’Brien Trophy will be highlighted by a rotating lighting system and secured at all times.
Cisco Wireless Press Center – The NBA will utilize the Cisco Wireless Press Center located in the T-Mobile arena to conduct various media events in Second Life. A video highlight demonstrating how Cisco Wireless was utilized during NBA All-Star will also be featured.
Path of the 50 Greatest NBA Players – Celebrate the history of the NBA’s greatest players. NBA fans will be able to walk down the Path of the 50 Greatest NBA Players featuring Hall-of-Famers from Bill Russell and Kareem-Abdul Jabbar to Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan.
David Stern Avatar – The Commissioner joins Second Life. An exclusive avatar of NBA Commissioner of David Stern was developed by The Electric Sheep Company. Stern will use his avatar in Second Life for media events and to interact with fans in NBA Headquarters.
NBA Orientation Island – Fans can visit the NBA’s Orientation Island to receive a map of NBA Headquarters and an overview of basic Second Life skills to control and navigate their avatar. The avatars will be able to acquire and wear an NBA toolbar that will provide information on NBA events, games, trivia questions and additional help.
To join Second Life and navigate through the NBA Headquarters fans can sign-up through www.nba.com or www.secondlife.com. For existing Second Life members, they can visit the league’s virtual destination by searching “NBA” in the designated map area toolbar on their screen.
About the NBA
The NBA, founded in 1946, is a global sports and entertainment brand that features 30 teams in the United States and Canada. During the 2005-06 season, the NBA distributed 44,000 hours of programming to 215 countries and territories in 43 languages. The league’s worldwide reach can also be seen with 85 international players on NBA rosters. Domestically, the NBA broadcasted 142 games on national television this past season on ABC, TNT, ESPN and ESPN2, and eclipsed attendance records for the third consecutive season.
As fans witness tremendous performances on the court, some of the NBA’s most significant efforts occur off the court. This past year, the league launched its most ambitious community outreach endeavor, NBA Cares. Over a five-year span, players and teams will raise and contribute $100 million for charity, donate more than one million hours of volunteer service to communities worldwide, and build more than 100 educational and athletic facilities where children can learn and play. For more information on the NBA, visit www.NBA.com.
About Electric Sheep Company
The Electric Sheep Company (ESC) is the leading creator of 3D virtual world content and solutions. The company specializes in providing software products, interactive design, and integration and production solutions. Founded in April 2005 and headquartered in New York City, The Electric Sheep Company is dedicated to the complementary tasks of bringing relevant social and information products to consumers, and helping major organizations find ways to use virtual worlds to realize operational, marketing and educational goals. Customers include AOL/Time Warner, CBS, MLB.com, MTV, NBC, Nissan, Reuters, Sony BMG and Yahoo. The Electric Sheep Company primarily uses Second Life as its virtual world. To learn more about The Electric Sheep Company, visit www.electricsheepcompany.com.
Good idea to have the stadium, but I can’t imagine the costs of setting something like that up.
And of all the things spawned in web 2.0 Second Life reminds me the most of the dotbomb days. Granted it seems SL has an actual way to make money, but I don’t see it going mainstream enough to warrant such an investment.
I might end up eating my words though
I can’t believe that there was still some ‘heartburn’ and resistance amongst ownership to devote time and money to a project like mycolts.net … it seems that there is still a major mental roadblock where a lot of the old school management is still not realizing the full potential of generating more possible revenue and foot traffic through the web and social networking context… when are they going to smarten up?
And while SL may not become a serious ROI or does not pose the potential, I think it is a step in the right direction.
If you have to do it, you might as well do it right
Good idea to have the stadium, but I can’t imagine the costs of setting something like that up.
!!!!
And while SL may not become a serious ROI or does not pose the potential, I think it is a step in the right direction.
Good idea to have the stadium, but I can’t imagine the costs of setting something like that up.