inKLine Media

Originally conceived as a space for RL businesses, many SL entrepreneurs settled there. (Photo: Governess)

By: Bill Kaye

After an impressive four year run, The Ginny Business Center, a hub of Second Life (R) business activity, has announced it will close at the end of this month.

The office complex and meeting space occupied two sims and hosted a large concentration of SL entrepreneurs.  Its closing disappoints The GBC’s founder and owner linkin Slate, but lagging business activity ultimately forced the decision.

“We have tried may ways to make this work,”  linkin wrote in a somber message to his tenants. “Business centers just dont work with the low percent of clients.”

With relatively few business centers of its nature, The GBC’s closing delivers more disappointing news to SL business owners.  But many of the tenant’s ultimately empathized with linkin’s decision.

His work has afforded linkin a bird’s eye view of business activity in SL.  From that view, linkin has witnessed what he describes as “a lot of turn over.”    But unlike the doomsayers who forecast the demise of SL, he tends to believe that it has wethered those rumors fairly well.  “It’s still here,” he said bluntly.

And as far as the potential for new business on SL, linkin remains optimistic.

“People still want to see businesses in SL in some form,” he said.