Comments on: Gambling in Second Life Banned http://forge.ironrealms.com/2007/07/26/gambling-in-second-life-banned/ A blog on virtual worlds, games, and digital content, from Matt Mihaly Thu, 20 Nov 2008 10:54:33 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.3 by: Virtually Blind - Virtual Law | Legal Issues That Impact Virtual Worlds » Blog Archive » The Legality of the (Virtual) World’s Oldest Profession http://forge.ironrealms.com/2007/07/26/gambling-in-second-life-banned/#comment-26993 Thu, 09 Aug 2007 19:12:08 +0000 http://forge.ironrealms.com/2007/07/26/gambling-in-second-life-banned/#comment-26993 [...] The Second Life Herald has an article up that beat me to some analysis I’ve been meaning to run on the intersection of obscenity laws and virtual worlds. It’s been a topic of discussion recently because the recent gambling ban raised questions about Linden Lab’s approach to the seedier side of Second Life. The Herald writer, ‘Jessica Holyoke,’ and I approach the issue differently, but we come to the same conclusion: virtual escorting appears to be 100% legal. [...] […] The Second Life Herald has an article up that beat me to some analysis I’ve been meaning to run on the intersection of obscenity laws and virtual worlds. It’s been a topic of discussion recently because the recent gambling ban raised questions about Linden Lab’s approach to the seedier side of Second Life. The Herald writer, ‘Jessica Holyoke,’ and I approach the issue differently, but we come to the same conclusion: virtual escorting appears to be 100% legal. […]

]]> by: SamySosa http://forge.ironrealms.com/2007/07/26/gambling-in-second-life-banned/#comment-25650 Thu, 02 Aug 2007 10:38:32 +0000 http://forge.ironrealms.com/2007/07/26/gambling-in-second-life-banned/#comment-25650 there was never a pinch of gambling presence on second life, all this noise is another spin of the PR well oiled machine of SL. I saw today an article of who easy it is to become the owner of an online casino and SL banned it because they know they have more to lose then to win. If you want thats the link: <a href="http://www.wwwpd.org/?p=37" rel="nofollow">www.wwwpd.org</a> there was never a pinch of gambling presence on second life, all this noise is another spin of the PR well oiled machine of SL.

I saw today an article of who easy it is to become the owner of an online casino and SL banned it because they know they have more to lose then to win.

If you want thats the link:

www.wwwpd.org

]]> by: Stavros http://forge.ironrealms.com/2007/07/26/gambling-in-second-life-banned/#comment-25482 Wed, 01 Aug 2007 15:32:32 +0000 http://forge.ironrealms.com/2007/07/26/gambling-in-second-life-banned/#comment-25482 It is most funny I think, that people criticize the US puritans or whatever. It is even funnier to try to bring national laws and believes into other countries and do this with the mindset, that the own value system is objectively an inherently superior or better, like the "swastika and freedom of speech" example. As this is too funny, I would rather like to comment on LL and gambling from another perspective: rules of free market. If gambling and prostitution, which in the given argumentation, is likely to be "next", are essential to SL success, then SL and all of us should see the results in the next months in fewer residents or less L-$ turnover. If it is not essential, it will be forgotten soon. The other aspect, which I think could end before the court is "Taking property without paying them back any cash". This was done in the current law suit with Braggs, and it does seem that the PE judge, as far as I understood US law, does not accept the TOS of LL. Either LL hopes, that because of the raunchiness of gambling, courts will support them in the first place, or they did not mention any connection between the cases, or they hope that EU residents will not come over to sue them. The point I want to make is, that SL is no game, but about business. I start to see LL as some sort of ISP, or better VSP (Virtual world Service Provider). ISPs would shut down, or curb the website if legislation changes, but in no case would they just sack everything (web space, quotas, SLA, etc.) without reimbursements. I personally hope, that LL did just forbid them to carry on gambling instead of taking away things. It is most funny I think, that people criticize the US puritans or whatever. It is even funnier to try to bring national laws and believes into other countries and do this with the mindset, that the own value system is objectively an inherently superior or better, like the “swastika and freedom of speech” example.

As this is too funny, I would rather like to comment on LL and gambling from another perspective: rules of free market.
If gambling and prostitution, which in the given argumentation, is likely to be “next”, are essential to SL success, then SL and all of us should see the results in the next months in fewer residents or less L-$ turnover. If it is not essential, it will be forgotten soon.

The other aspect, which I think could end before the court is “Taking property without paying them back any cash”. This was done in the current law suit with Braggs, and it does seem that the PE judge, as far as I understood US law, does not accept the TOS of LL. Either LL hopes, that because of the raunchiness of gambling, courts will support them in the first place, or they did not mention any connection between the cases, or they hope that EU residents will not come over to sue them.

The point I want to make is, that SL is no game, but about business. I start to see LL as some sort of ISP, or better VSP (Virtual world Service Provider). ISPs would shut down, or curb the website if legislation changes, but in no case would they just sack everything (web space, quotas, SLA, etc.) without reimbursements.

I personally hope, that LL did just forbid them to carry on gambling instead of taking away things.

]]> by: Andrew Crystall http://forge.ironrealms.com/2007/07/26/gambling-in-second-life-banned/#comment-24865 Fri, 27 Jul 2007 12:44:48 +0000 http://forge.ironrealms.com/2007/07/26/gambling-in-second-life-banned/#comment-24865 Taking property off someone European for gambling and not paying them back any cash they'd invested in it when it's perfectly legal here... is very likely, under at least British and Spanish law, various forms of theft. Just to add to the legal pot. What struck me was not "in 30 days", it was "as of now". That's a highly unfriendly approach - LL knew the deadline was coming... Taking property off someone European for gambling and not paying them back any cash they’d invested in it when it’s perfectly legal here… is very likely, under at least British and Spanish law, various forms of theft. Just to add to the legal pot.

What struck me was not “in 30 days”, it was “as of now”. That’s a highly unfriendly approach - LL knew the deadline was coming…

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