Linden Lab Announces $10,000 Linden Prize for Achievement in Second Life

Annual Prize Will Honor a Second Life Resident Whose Inspiring Work in the Virtual World Achieves Compelling Results in the Real World.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — November 10, 2008 — Linden Lab®, creator of the 3D virtual world Second Life®, today announced details for a new, annual award called the Linden Prize. The Linden Prize will award one Second Life Resident or team $10,000 USD for an innovative inworld project that improves the way people work, learn and communicate in their daily lives outside of the virtual world. The award is intended to align with Linden Lab's company mission, which is to connect all people to an online world that advances the human condition. Many projects inside of Second Life have already enhanced and changed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people around the world, and the company wants to recognize the users' accomplishments. The Linden Prize will be the largest vendor-sponsored award in the virtual world industry.

"From its inception, Second Life has invited and attracted some of the most creative, inspired and dedicated people in the world. In the last few years, we've seen use of our platform mature to the point that the impact stretches beyond Second Life's borders," said Mark Kingdon, Chief Executive Officer, Linden Lab. "The Linden Prize gives us the chance to recognize the distinctive work of Residents fundamentally motivated by improving the world in tangible ways. Second Life is dramatically changing the way people communicate, work and learn, and this award is our commitment to the people driving that change."

Open to all Residents in good standing, the Linden Prize will consider a wide range of projects that have achieved tangible, compelling results outside of Second Life, demonstrated high quality of execution, aesthetics or technical sophistication; and are capable of inspiring and influencing future development, knowledge, creativity and collaboration across the virtual world and the real world. Other details and dates include:

  • Applications are due by January 15, 2009. Finalists and the winner will be announced in April 2009.
  • Judges will be kept anonymous, but will include Linden Lab employees, Residents and outside thought leaders.
  • Linden Lab has created a microsite to provide more information and answer any additional questions. To find the application form or learn more about requirements and guidelines please visit www.lindenlab.com/lindenprize

"Since the very beginning, communities within Second Life have recognized the potential for their work in the virtual world to have significant value that extends into the real world. From virtual philanthropists and medical researchers bettering the human condition to entrepreneurs exploring and innovating new business opportunities to educators using the virtual world to create experiences that teach complex topics with revolutionary simulations, the list of virtual projects that have had an impact on the real world is practically endless," said Robin Harper, VP Marketing and Community Development, Linden Lab. "The Linden Prize is an exciting opportunity to showcase the ingenuity and impact that a Second Life project can have on the rest of the world."

About The Second Life Grid and Linden Lab
The Second Life Grid is a technology platform that enables organizations to build custom virtual world environments and applications. Offering the industry's most advanced content creation, land management and transaction tools, the Second Life Grid enables individuals, educators, researchers and organizations to increase productivity and cut travel costs by moving meetings, prototyping, training and other efforts to a virtual environment. In 2003, Linden Lab launched Second Life, an acclaimed 3D online world built on the Second Life Grid. Inhabited by hundreds of thousands of Residents across the globe, the Second Life virtual world has a fully functioning economy and empowers its users to create content, interact with others, launch businesses, collaborate and educate.

Linden Lab was founded in 1999 by Chairman of the Board Philip Rosedale and is headquartered in San Francisco. The company is led by CEO Mark Kingdon, the former CEO of Organic, Inc., and counts noted software pioneer Mitch Kapor, founder of Lotus Development Corporation, among its board members.

Linden Lab Press Office
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Tel: (415) 992-4434
secondlife@lewspr.com