Merchandising SL

I've been trying to figure out why products such as WoW have so many users.
I'm convinced it is because they have a pretty box that is on the shelf at popular retail outlets.

Why can't we have a pretty box on the shelf at popular retail outlets?
All it would need is a CD and a nice registration key code.
And some pretty art on the box.

Some version stability would be nice.
I'would be silly to have a CD in the box and just have to re-download the app as soon as you try to log on... Maybe there could be a client-side version of Orientation Island on the CD that you could complete before you needed to download the new version.

My question would be why do we want that many more users?

If it was on the shelves in every game store in the world the explosion/implosion of SL due to the flood of new users would be interestng to watch, but I prefer to actually play the game.

Heck it's already growing at a phenomenal rate and the Lindens cant keep up as it is.

And maybe when we go to China, we'll need commercials like this that WoW has:

http://www.tokyo-genki.com/wp-content/images/coke_wow_commercial.mov

1. As a hopefully "permanent" game, it isn't meant to have a shelf life, and regrettably any product put on store shelves is eventually priced to clear once it no longer "performs".
2. Later on, people will ask where the expansion sets are.
3. 17.8MB downloads rather quickly for even DSL users, which is pretty much the minimum connection speed needed to play. It is likely cheaper to have the download available and just advertise in print (or indeed on Fox News) than to make thousands of CDs and an equal number of boxes, and find a distributor to take them.

I think the point I want to make is.....if it aint broke, dont fix it

We don't need a boxed edition of SL that the new user is immediately going to have to update anyway, after he buys the CD of 1.7.0 in February 2006 and we're already up to 1.7.5 or whatever. I have a stack of 1.5 promo CDs on my shelf that are gathering dust.

What we DO need is an attractive brochure that extols the virtues of SL and says, "if your computer meets these requirements and you have a broadband connection, go to www.secondlife.com to sign up for your FREE account!"

Printing a brochure would be much less expensive than CD duplication as well.

In fact, Rose From Ash Publishing, the parent company of the Metaverse Messenger, is already in the process of putting together an 'unofficial' brochure which we hope the Lindens will like enough to adopt.

P2