Vivaty Opens to Public Beta; Launches with Target and Coke Zero in Facebook

Vivaty has launched its Scenes application into public beta today. The browser-based virtual scenes are initially available through a recent partnership with AIM and on Facebook. The Facebook launch in particular brings the first brand partnership to Vivaty with the Target and Coke Zero Virtual Dorm Room where users can decorate their virtual dorm rooms in the social network with merchandise available through Target.com. That sort of branded experience may be the biggest moneymaker, but CEO Keith McCurdy told TechCrunch that he views acting as the "cash register" for users to trade virtual goods as well as more limited forms of dynamic advertising as other revenue streams.

The initial public beta is for Internet Explorer on Windows machines only, though Firefox support is planned for the coming weeks with Mac support farther off.