I noticed a thread on the official forum: Banner ads on SecondLife.com. I hadn’t noticed the banner ads, so I went back to some of the main pages such as the destination guide and then logged out and in and observed that there are indeed banner ads, I tried to grab a screenshot but it’s hard to make out:
Now these adverts look like Google Adsense to me, indeed I saw one down the side for Linden Lab’s Patterns. I think a move such as this is long overdue to be honest, Linden Lab should be looking to monetise their website and as it stands it’s not too intrusive, but have they actually thought this through and blocked some advertisers? Otherwise some of us will see IMVU adverts there!
Personally I think Linden Lab should have been using advertising on their website long ago, they’re late to the party. I also think they should have been looking to link with some strategic partners to engage with advertising opportunities, such as Adobe. However this may just be the start of some new ideas on creating alternative revenue streams.
The adverts aren’t too intrusive, although I’m sure some people will find them annoying. I have adverts here that some people find annoying. A lot of websites have advertising these days, a lot of people find it annoying but people find ways of living with the adverts or blocking the adverts. I obviously don’t think advertising on webstes is a bad concept, otherwise I wouldn’t have it here. However if advertising becomes too intrusive, then it will turn people away and everyone has their own bar regarding when it’s too annoying.
The adverts aren’t all over the Second Life community site, they’re not in the forums, the marketplace or the wiki. There may also be people wondering why they can’t pay to place banner adverts on the Second Life website for their inworld brand, Linden Lab have dabbled with this idea before but pulled back before getting too far into it.
Personally I’m pleased to see Linden Lab trying something new, it will be interesting to see how long it lasts for and whether any comedy adverts along the lines of IMVU do appear.
Yeah, it’s a good idea to block your competition from showing up in your ad banners.
I remember a “Because TV Sucks… Broadcast.com” ad on top of the TV station website I was setting up back in 1997 and thought “Hrm… the advertising contractor needs to add that blocking feature.”
-ls/cm
SL is my home page so my dashboard comes up as soon as I open the broswer. It had a different appearance this morning, a space at the top. “Looks like they’re going to put ads there,” I thought. I agree with you, it’s about time. They won’t bother me, I never notice ads on webpages. I don’t notice yours. I know they are there but they don’t get in my way. Couple weeks ago I was looking into changing my blog to allow ads so I looked at your page to see exactly how you did it…because, as I say, I know they are there but I don’t really notice them. Probably not what the advertisers want to hear so I’ll shut up about that. But I’m glad LL is looking at this possible source of income.
Yes people often don’t look at adverts, advertisers know this but they hope one will catch your eye at some point, they do work, I notice Second Life adverts when they appear but I’m not actively looking for them when I notice them.
It’s an awful idea.
I already pay LL thousands of dollars a year. I know some people who pay LL thousands of dollars a MONTH. Why should we have to pay for the privilege of being advertised to? In addition to this, given that some of us not only pay in but cash out, the potential security and privacy issues are troubling.
At the very least, advertising of this sort should be limited to non-premium or non-concierge level accounts.
Well there’s a case for not seeing the adverts if you’re a premium member and there’s a case for them not showing on the dashboard for anyone.
At this stage we don’t actually know what LL are planning, they haven’t commented, they may be testing with Google Adsense to see what they can do before rolling out their own advertising package or they may think Google Adsense is a good fit.
I shot the video for Russian users of Second Life, and it is clearly seen the banner advertising on the official site. If you want – I can show video.
I can see them consistently on the destination guide, they’re defintely there, it’s just that the width of this blog doesn’t allow me to post clear pictures.
I’d like to see the Russian video though!
I was scared when I saw those google ads embracing SL website content. Thought I’ve caught a virus. Happy to know everything is ok.
So: the best we can do is make a click or two on those ads to let Linden get their cents and help them run their grid.
A few people commented that they thought they’d picked up malware when they saw the adverts, a bit more communication from LL would have been welcome there.