3D Web

This report explores the technological and economic environment of the 3D Web, from the partial use of 3D to fully three-dimensional universes. It identifies the services that are key to enabling the migration to 3D: e-commerce, mapping, serious gaming… and offers a close-up look at virtual worlds, using original business models for buying virtual goods, and at augmented reality, the next central 3D application on mobile devices.

Report Highlights
Players included in this report

Virtual World
Toys
Buildabearville
Ganz (Webkinz)
Lego Universe
Mattel (Barbie Girls)
RES Intarctive (Tootsville)
Sanrio (Hello Kitty)
Social Networking
Cyworld
Gaia Online
Habbo
IMVU
Kaneva
Meez
Vivaty
VizWoz
WeeWorld
Themes
Disney (Pixie Hollow)
Doppleganger (vSide)
Empire of Sports
Six Degrees Games (Action AllStars)
Stardoll
Vector City Racers (Webcarzz)
Viacom (vMTV)
watAgame (goSupermodel)
Business
Forterra Systems
Qwaq
Unisfair
I-maginer
The under 15 set
Club Penguin
Handipoints
Moshi Monsters
Neopets
Nicktropolis
Papermint
Poptropica
Whyville
Adults
Active Worlds
Avatar Reality (Blue Mars)
HiPiHi
Linden Lab (Second Life)
Makena (There.com)
Metaversum (Twinity)
Simmersion (Mycosm)
Asia
DeNA (Mobile Game Town)
Guodong
HiPiHi
Nurien
SK Communications (Cyworld)
Squere Enix (Nicotto Town)
Tri-D Communications (PuppyRed)
Platforms
iLemon
Linden Lab
Makena Technologies
Multiverse
Simmersion
Forterra Systems
Applications
Limelight Networks
Live Gamer
Offerpal Media
Vivox
Zong (Echovox)
Design
ECMedia
Trilogy Studios
Virtual Greats
Specialised Agencies
Centric
The Electric Sheep Company (ESC)
Metaversatility
Millions of Us
Rivers Run Red
TwoFish
Internet Giants
Google (virtuel Lively)
IBM
Yahoo! (Avatar Towns)

Other fields
Video games
Blizzard (WoW)
Sony (Home)
Serious Games
BreakAway
Daesign
IBM (PowerUp)
Lexis Numérique
L’Oréal
ForgeFX
PIXELearning
3D Web Technologies
Adobe
Dassault Systems
Google
Microsoft
Nova
Papervision
Sony
Wirefusion
Geographical display
AOL (MapQuest)
Google (Google Earth, Google Maps)
IGN (Géoportail)
Microsoft (Bing Maps)
Navteq (Map24)
Ordnance Survey (Get-a-Map)
PagesJaunes (Mappy)
ViaMichelin
Yahoo! Local Maps
e-Commerce
Amazon (Window Shop)
Barnes & Nobles
Casino
Ebay
Expedia
Galeries Lafayette
Lands’End
Lego factory
La Redoute
Sncf-voyages.fr
RueduCommerce, PriceMinister
Tesco
Wall-mart
Virtual shops & malls
Kinset
Le Centre du monde
The Mall TV
Shopping Life
Victoria Couture
The WatchAvenue
Search
IMVU
Search Cube
Weblin
YooWalk
Augmented reality on mobile
ARhrrrr
Kweekies
Layar
Mara
Sekai Camera
Wikitude
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1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

2. TECHNOLOGIES
2.1. Technological value chain
2.2. Formats and standards
2.3. Technological issues
2.4. Types of solution
2.5. Positioning of the key players
2.6. Technical impact on the networks
2.7. Technological roadmaps
2.8. 3D on mobile

3. VIRTUAL WORLDS
3.1. Framework data
3.1.1. An evolving phenomenon
3.1.2. Relative success compared to the core Web 2.0 applications
3.2. Market segmentation
3.2.1. Virtual world demographics
3.2.2. Virtual world positioning
• Club Penguin
• Webkinz World
• Habbo Hotel
• MTV
• Second Life
3.3. Overall value chain of virtual worlds
3.3.1. Value chain
3.3.2. Player profiles
3.3. Overall value chain
3.3.1. Value chain
3.3.3. Influential players
• Mattel gets a makeover with Barbie Girls
• Google pulls the plug on its Lively virtual world
3.4. Development outlook
• Vivaty, an integrated virtual community
• Gaia Online enters MMOG with zOMG!
• Cyworld, a success story… but only in Asia?

4. WEB 3D MARKETS – beyond virtual worlds
4.1. Prior development of gaming
4.1.1. State of the art
4.1.2. Market data
4.1.3. Major initiatives
• World of Warcraft
• Home de Sony
4.2. Geographical representation
4.2.1. Navigation and driving directions
• Google Earth
4.2.2. Local searches via directories and city guides
• PagesJaunes, pioneer in 3D local searches
4.2.3. Is 3D a real plus?
4.3. Virtual tours
4.3.1. Travel/tourism
4.3.2. Real estate
• Visimmo 3D, interactive 3D virtual property tours
4.4. E-learning and serious gaming
4.4.1. The serious games market
4.4.2. A new generation of educational tools
• Hair-Be12, L’Oréal’s online serious game
4.4.3. Some prospects
4.4. E-commerce
4.5.1 Stimulate sales by enhancing the shopping experience
4.5.2. The different types of services
• Léa, virtual agent on Voyages-sncf.com
• Lands’ End
• Kinset, the virtual shopping mall
4.5.3. Deploying 3D e-commerce services
• Window Shop, Amazon’s rich media storefront
4.5.4. Limitations of 3D
4.5.5. Trends
4.6. A new way to browse the Web
• Yoowalk, a new way to travel the Web

5. 3D WEB BUSINESS MODELS
5.1. General information
5.2. Advertising
5.2.1. Types of advertising
5.2.2. Involvement of brands and media
• American Idol, a media brand into a virtual world
5.2.3. Measurement tools still poorly adapted
• SL Business Directory pays Second Life residents who view ad messages
5.3. Subscriptions
5.4. Virtual goods and micro-transactions
5.4.1. Virtual and dematerialised goods xx
5.4.2. Leading market: Asia shows the way
5.4.3. Virtual currency
5.4.4. Means of payment
5.5. Indirect revenue/bundles

6. OUTLOOK
6.1. Augmented reality
6.1.1. What is augmented reality?
6.1.2. Amazing applications… still a rarity?
• US postal service: the Virtual Box Simulator
6.1.3. Augmented reality on mobile handsets
6.2. Market development
6.2.1. Content creation issues
6.2.2. Interoperability issues
6.2.3. Integration issues
6.2.4. Metrics issues
6.2.5. Elements specific to virtual worlds
6.2.6. Outlook: a partial for fully 3D Web
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Table 1: Examples of virtual worlds aimed at the under 15 set
Table 2: Examples of toy-based virtual worlds
Table 3: Examples of virtual worlds that act as social networks
Table 4: Examples of thematic virtual universes
Table 5: Examples of virtual worlds for adults
Table 6: Examples of virtual world platform providers
Table 7: Examples of providers of applications that can be integrated into virtual worlds
Table 8: Examples of companies that specialise in the creation of content for virtual worlds
Table 9: Examples of agencies that specialise in virtual worlds
Table 10: Asia’s top virtual worlds
Table 11: Examples of players offering collaborative work solutions for business, based on virtual worlds
Table 12: Main online map and driving direction sites
Table 13: A selection of serious games specialists
Table 14: Cost of a serious game depending on technical and educational choices
Table 15: Examples of virtual shops and malls
Table 16: E-commerce leaders’ positioning with respect to 3D
Table 17: Business models of the main virtual worlds and online games
Table 18: Examples of brand integration into virtual worlds
Table 19: Examples of partnerships between media companies and virtual worlds
Table 20: Examples of virtual worlds that offer a premium subscription
Table 21: Types of items sold on 3D sites
Table 22: Revenue generated by a selection of virtual worlds and instant messaging services
Table 23: Examples of virtual currencies
Table 24: Payment methods used by the different sites
Table 25: Examples of augmented reality applications for mobile handsets

Figure 1: Types of 3D Web offering: virtual world, 3D Web browsing, objects and avatars
Figure 2: 3D Web technological value chain
Figure 3: 3D Web Solutions
Figure 4: The Onlive offer
Figure 5: Mobile 3D software architecture
Figure 1: Growth of the number of virtual worlds on the Internet
Figure 2: Growth of the total number of registered and active users worldwide (Million)
Figure 3: Growth of the number of unique visitors from the United States on a selection of virtual world sites, July 2006-July 2008
Figure 4: Increase in time spent on Second Life, 2006-2009
Figure 5: Main reasons why people go on Second Life
Figure 6: Comparison of the number of unique visitors on social networking sites, video sites and virtual worlds in 2008
Figure 7: Comparison of the increase in the time spend on Web 2.0 sites and virtual worlds in the UK, between May 2007 and May 2008
Figure 8: Breakdown of the average age of virtual world users
Figure 9: Male/female breakdown of virtual world users
Figure 10: Virtual world segmentation by average user age and number of active visitors
Figure 11: The virtual universe of Club Penguin
Figure 12: Webkinz stuffed animals, from real to virtual
Figure 13: The Habbo virtual universe
Figure 14: World of Cars, the virtual universe according to Disney
Figure 15: MTV, vMTV and VLES virtual worlds
Figure 16: Screen captures of Mycosm and Blue Mars
Figure 17: The virtual universe of Second Life
Figure 18: Technological value chain of virtual worlds
Figure 19: Value chain for virtual worlds sustained by advertising
Figure 20: Value chain for virtual worlds designed to be a source of revenue
Figure 21: Examples of virtual worlds created with the Multiverse platform
Figure 22: Examples of Justin Timberlake-branded virtual goods created by Virtual Greats
Figure 23: Orange Island in Second Life
Figure 24: Mattel’s Barbie Girls
Figure 25: Yahoo!’s Avatar Towns
Figure 26: Google Lively, the virtual world according to Google
Figure 27: Integration of a YouTube video in Small Worlds
Figure 28: Integration of Vivaty in Facebook and AIM
Figure 29: zOMG!, the MMORPG integrated into Gaia Online
Figure 30: Mini Life: Cyworld’s 3D universe
Figure 31: Second Life used by IBM as a collaborative work platform
Figure 32: Integration of a 3D environment in IBM’s Lotus Sametime
Figure 33: Market share of the main online map sites in the United States, in September 2008
Figure 34: New York in 3D on Bing Maps via Virtual Earth
Figure 35: Use of Google Earth in the USA and the UK
Figure 36: New York City in 3D in Google Earth
Figure 37: PagesJaunes "Ville in 3D" application
Figure 38: Difference between a 90° overhead and a bird’s-eye view
Figure 39: Integration of Street View in Google Maps
Figure 40: Representation of the Coliseum in Rome in Google Earth
Figure 41: Virtual tour of a hotel on Expedia.com via a 360° panoramic photo
Figure 42: 3D modelling of the city of Cannes
Figure 43: Virtual property tours
Figure 44: Areas of application for serious games
Figure 45: Pulse!, a serious game for training medical interns
Figure 46: Réseaux, a 3D serious game for construction workers and students
Figure 47: Hair-Be12, L’Oréal’s online serious game
Figure 48: Entre2, serious game developed by Daesign to train managers in job interviewing
Figure 49: America’s Army, the first MMO serious game in 3D
Figure 50: PowerUp, an educational MMO serious game from IBM
Figure 51: Example of a virtual agent designed by Virtuoz for an e-commerce site
Figure 52: Virtual models on Lands’ End
Figure 53: Comparison between the real model and the standard virtual model
Figure 54: Ability to view a pair of glasses in 3D
Figure 55: Design of a customised product in 3D on Lego Factory
Figure 56: Virtual bookshop on Kinset
Figure 57: The Kinset universe
Figure 58: 3D features installed by e-commerce sites
Figure 59: Assessment of the effectiveness of the feature
Figure 60: Amazon Window Shop
Figure 61: Search-cube: 3D search engine
Figure 62: IMUV and communication in 3D
Figure 63: Web browsing according to Yoowalk
Figure 64: Integration of avatars into Web pages according to Weblin and RocketOn
Figure 65: Breakdown of virtual worlds’ revenue sources in 2008
Figure 66: Evolution of virtual worlds’ revenue sources, 2008-2009
Figure 67: Integration of advertising in Second Life
Figure 68: Showing the trailer for the film 300
Figure 69: Examples of brands integrated into There.com
Figure 70: Partnership between NBC and Habbo for the TV series, Heroes
Figure 71: Integration of American Idol into Habbo
Figure 72: SL Business Directory’s Guaranteed Visitors programme
Figure 73: Growth of the number of virtual world users who pay for a subscription
Figure 74: Paid subscription formulas for Club Penguin in the US
Figure 75: MMO Ragnarök Online shifts to Free2Play
Figure 76: Example of meditation-related virtual goods that can be bought on IMUV
Figure 77: NBA branded jerseys
Figure 78: LG electronics shop in Cyworld
Figure 79: Virtual goods in 2D and 3D
Figure 80: Gateway on Webkinz between the site for kids and the e-store for parents
Figure 81: Examples of prepaid cards
Figure 82: Payment methods offered by Habbo
Figure 83: From the physical to the virtual on Webkinz
Figure 84: Licensed products on the Club Penguin site
Figure 85: Nike’s 3D customisation portal
Figure 86: Barbie Girl website
Figure 87: Examples of Spore creatures
Figure 88: Image processing based on markers for augmented reality applications
Figure 89: Topps 3D collector cards and the Eye of Judgement game on PS3
Figure 90: Use of augmented reality for marketing purposes
Figure 91: The USPS Virtual Box simulator
Figure 92: ARhrrrr, prototype of a mobile game based on augmented reality
Figure 93: Layar application based on augmented reality for mobiles operating on Android
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