Top 8 Corporate Sites in Second Life

Computerworld just published the following list of their top 8 corporate sites in Second Life:

1. IBM
[...] With as many as 230 employees actively involved, and almost two dozen islands (some public, some private), IBM is intent on showcasing more than just its products and services -- it has even invested $100 million in real U.S. dollars for companies to showcase their ideas. For example, there's a Circuit City store on one island where you can "test out" camcorders and HDTV sets.

2. Pontiac
[...] Its red logo is found on carpeted halls and sprawling multilevel glass buildings. There's a dealership where you can take recent models out for a test drive, such as the Pontiac Solstice GXP. A car garage lets you customize vehicles to your liking, including the paint job and styling.

3. Sun Microsystems
[...] The Second Life teleport blurb for Sun Microsystems says the company has a "100% focus on network computing." When I visited, this popular destination was brimming with client/server-related chat sessions: two jet-pack-wearing visitors were talking about cell phones and Java, and several people gathered around a product demo that shows the cooling effects of Sun servers in a data center.

4. Dell
[...] Dell Island is mostly a portal for advancing the company brand, although there are a few sights worth seeing: a re-creation of one of the company's commercials (the one with the giant purple gorilla), a factory modeled after a real Dell facility, a PC museum and Michael Dell's college dorm room.

5. Reuters
[...] Reuters' concrete-and-sidewalk location in Second Life has a decidedly business feel, with tall downtown skyscrapers and lush fountains. Yet, it does attract curious Second Lifers who want to discuss the hot topics of the day. [...] A Reuters News Center device, available for free, feeds you the news of the day on a handheld reader.

6. Cisco Systems
[...] IT pros definitely fawn all over Cisco Systems. This well-populated island showcases its products in a cleanly designed "connected home" of the future -- although it's a little heavy on marketing. There are routers, streaming media devices and VoIP phones scattered all about the two-level dwelling.

7. H&R Block
[...] Despite the stuffy decor, there is an interesting point-of-sale angle. For $100 Linden (the currency in Second Life, which is about $70 in U.S. currency), you can buy the new Tango online tax preparation software. No discount, though -- that was the same price offered on the H&R Block site until a "limited-time offer" was instituted.

8. Best Buy Geek Squad
[...] Real-world employees keep regular hours from 6 p.m. to 3 a.m. and will chat about any topic. I asked about video card support for DX10 games and which USB keydrives work for ReadyBoost, and an agent knew the answers immediately. According to Diana Garrett, a Geek Squad spokeswoman (and my tour guide), employees will consult for free until a customer needs to buy a product -- for that, they have to call or e-mail.

Source: Computerworld