Second Life users log 15B VoIP minutes

Linden Lab's virtual reality game Second Life doesn't appear to have anything to do with VoIP, but the company reported yesterday that users have talked for more than 15 billion minutes through a VoIP calling feature in the game that launched 18 months ago. While the company hasn't made a dime from the voice traffic to date, it said it's experimenting with ways to monetize the 1 billion minutes per month it said it processes.

Linden CEO Mark Kingdon said the company is planning a premium voice offering that would allow players to make and receive calls from landline and mobile numbers inside the Second Life virtual world. The service, dubbed "Dial an Avatar," launched in a beta test yesterday and will be available to all users by the end of the quarter, according to the company. The company didn't offer a price for the new premium voice service.

Whether Second Life will generate any real revenue from voice calls made in a virtual land remains to be seen. However, Second Life users have made $120 million (real money) worth of transactions for goods inside the virtual world, so it's certainly a possibility. 

For more:
- see the VentureBeat article here 

Related article
CSI Creator dished on Second Life at MetaSwitch forum