The 21^st and 22^nd of June saw a unique event in the ‘palacio de congresos’ in Santa Eulalia: the first Congress of Virtual Worlds.  Even though to many of us it may sound more like a Warchovski brothers movie, the truth is that more than 150 million people in the world take an active part in these online universes.

One of the virtual worlds of reference is, without a doubt, Second Life.  Luis Sotillo, the main promoter of this project in Spain, expressed his joy at the success of this international fair and highlighted the importance of his product, which exists “thanks to the collaboration of millions of people in the whole world”.

And the similarities between Second Life and reality go much further than mere appearances.  On top of the fact that our world is recreated with a realism that is even sometimes scary, the inhabitants are the same as in the real world, as are their activities.  In this parallel universe there are also economic transactions, for which reason companies such as Kukuxumusu have recognised it as an excellent market place for their products.

According to the organisers of this congress, attended by more than two hundred people between those physically present and those who connected via the Internet, Spain is still “almost third world” in so far as virtual worlds are concerned, in spite of the growing demand for them by users.  They also assure us that not many decades from now these worlds will be so realistic and so integrated into all our daily lives that it will be difficult to differentiate our real universe from its virtual equivalent.

By Javier Riera

 

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