I’m still enamored with the idea of a metaverse of simulators owned by many different and unrelated businesses or individuals. This concept enables a metaverse where no single controlling interest can define what our “world” becomes. Currently, our activities are curtailed by the business interests of a handful.

According to this entry on 3pointD.com, Anshe Chung Studios is opening an inter-virtual-world currency exchange. This should enable conversion of Linden Dollars to Kaneva Dollars, for example. One less form of lock-in. Presently I would need to cash out of Linden to US Dollars, then from US Dollars to Kaneva, taking a hit on both ends. I expect I’d only need to take one hit on conversion with Anshe’s service.

This is one of a few services that would be required to enable a federalized metaverse. The idea of federalizing simulators enables virtual travelers to move from one environment to another with an expectation of consistency of law and order (and by order, I mean simulator behavior as well as the expectations of its citizens.)

The other services include (but aren’t exclusive, and I’m only on my second cup of coffee here,) code signing/authentication of virtual “objects,” simulator/client ‘standards’ body, virtual asset storage services, some sort of always-online presence management to handle your communications and stateful information while you’re logged off…

It is inevitable that we will see interlocking virtual spaces owned by many different concerns, but with all engineering efforts – it would be nice to bring a comprehensive vision to the effort to address security, stability, and ethics issues closer to the inception than later. This is my motivation for beating the “federalization” drum.