Second Life Q3 User-To-User Transactions Up 54%

Today Linden Lab issued its Q3 economic report, announcing that user-to-user transactions were up 54% year-over-year. A total of $150 million changed hands during user-to-user transactions in the quarter. Quarter-over-quarter, Second Life's Q3 performance indicated 4% growth. Activity on the LindeX, which converts real currency into Linden Dollars, amounted to roughly $29 million. This is a rate that is flat compared to the previous quarter and up 3% year-over-year. 

This quarter Linden Lab opted to release "spotlight" data breaking down the influence various nations had on the Second Life economy. Users from the United States accounted for 37% of the economy, followed by Germany and Italy at 8% each, France at 7%, and the UK at 5%. Similarly, users from the United States accounted for 41% of all Second Life user hours, followed by Germany at 9%, the UK at 7%, France at 5%, and Brazil at 4%.

Gross sales through Xstreet SL, the Web marketplace for Second Life virtual goods, were 420 million Linden Dollars or about $1.6 million. This represents 13% growth quarter-over-quarter and 72% growth year-over-year. Linden Lab notes that Xstreet SL transactions represent roughly 1% of the total value of the Second Life economy, represented by the $150 million that changed hands between users in Q3. 

Total user hours were down 6% quarter-over-quarter and up only 13% year-over-year. Peak concurrency declined to 77,367 from around 88,000 users the previous quarter. Linden Lab attributes this to a new policy that bans bots, which would mean that user hour and peak concurrency totals in previous quarters may have been inflated by bot activity. Monthly repeat logins for September 2009 peaked at 750,446. This is a slight decrease from May of 2009, the last month before the new anti-bot policies went into effect, but still a 23% increase year-over-year. 

Resident-owned land expanded to reach 1.8 billion square meters, up 3% from the previous quarter but down 6% year-over-year. Residents also owned 23,566 Islands (private regions), up 3% from the previous quarter. Of the three types of Islands, ownership of Open Spaces declined 6%, ownership of Homesteads increased 6%, and ownership of Full Regions increased 1% (all over the previous quarter). 

Synopses of the Q1 and Q2 Second Life virtual economy reports can be found here and here. Linden Lab has predicted that the 2009 total value of the Second Life economy will be $450 million, a figure the company is currently on track to meet or exceed. Total value of the 2009 Second Life economy through Q3 is already $414 million. 

[This story first appeared on virtualgoodsnews.com]

This quarter Linden Lab opted to release "spotlight" data breaking down the influence various nations had on the Second Life economy. Users from the United States accounted for 37% of the economy, followed by Germany and Italy at 8% each, France at 7%, and the UK at 5%. Similarly, users from the United States accounted for 41% of all Second Life user hours, followed by Germany at 9%, the UK at 7%, France at 5%, and Brazil at 4%.

Gross sales through Xstreet SL, the Web marketplace for Second Life virtual goods, were 420 million Linden Dollars or about $1.6 million. This represents 13% growth quarter-over-quarter and 72% growth year-over-year. Linden Lab notes that Xstreet SL transactions represent roughly 1% of the total value of the Second Life economy, represented by the $150 million that changed hands between users in Q3. 

Total user hours were down 6% quarter-over-quarter and up only 13% year-over-year. Peak concurrency declined to 77,367 from around 88,000 users the previous quarter. Linden Lab attributes this to a new policy that bans bots, which would mean that user hour and peak concurrency totals in previous quarters may have been inflated by bot activity. Monthly repeat logins for September 2009 peaked at 750,446. This is a slight decrease from May of 2009, the last month before the new anti-bot policies went into effect, but still a 23% increase year-over-year. 

Resident-owned land expanded to reach 1.8 billion square meters, up 3% from the previous quarter but down 6% year-over-year. Residents also owned 23,566 Islands (private regions), up 3% from the previous quarter. Of the three types of Islands, ownership of Open Spaces declined 6%, ownership of Homesteads increased 6%, and ownership of Full Regions increased 1% (all over the previous quarter). 

Synopses of the Q1 and Q2 Second Life virtual economy reports can be found here and here. Linden Lab has predicted that the 2009 total value of the Second Life economy will be $450 million, a figure the company is currently on track to meet or exceed. Total value of the 2009 Second Life economy through Q3 is already $414 million. 

[This story first appeared on virtualgoodsnews.com]