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PRESS RELEASE: New Second Life “SLurrency Exchange™” To Offer Best Rates, Preferred Programs

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Written by Strange Ranger   
Monday, 26 November 2007

Evanston, IL – 11/26/2007

       Virtual world developer Simuality.com announced their new venture into the world of Second Life currency exchanges, with the opening of the SLURRENCY EXCHANGE™, whose main office is located on the Simuality island.

       Simuality founder Antony van Zyl (Hendry Goldkey in-world) was quoted: “moving into the exchange of Linden Dollars for other currencies is a natural outgrowth of our efforts to bridge the gap between the real and virtual worlds”.  Initially, all transactions will be PayPal based, allowing for the greatest flexibility in transactions for Second Life users world-wide.

       The SLURRENCY EXCHANGE™ promises to have the best rates, set daily, for both those buying Linden Dollars and those looking to cash out their in-world earnings.  In addition, there are “preferred customer” programs for regular users, with separate structures for frequent buyers and sellers.

       Live avatar attendants are available at Simuality’s SLURRENCY EXCHANGE™ to help with customer transactions during official hours of operation at the island offices.  Eventually these hours will expand to 24/7, and access will be available from kiosks throughout Second Life.

       Located at http://slurl.com/secondlife/Simuality/195/205/28 in the Northeast corner of the Simuality sim, the SLURRENCY EXCHANGE™ is currently open for business from 11am till 3pm SLT seven days a week.  Second Life residents are encouraged to visit and get details about signing up for the Preferred Customer programs. 

--- Editor's Note: The rates for currency exchange offered by SLURRENCY EXCHANGE™ were not verified before posting this press release.

Last Updated ( Monday, 26 November 2007 )
 
PRESS RELEASE: SLC-CCI end of talks (VSTEX)

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Written by SL Reports Contact Us Form   
Wednesday, 14 November 2007

Since Second Life Creations (SLC), the result of a merger between 3 existing companies managed by Bob Perry and Mystik Boucher we've been searching for a way to bring the company back from the grave.

As we did for AVC, CGI, KFM, with the old management gone and denying any liability, we approached the major shareholder, to see if he could come up with some plan to save the company, a plan that had to be voted and approved by SLC shareholders. That's why we started talks with Spontaneous Rich, also President of Spontaneous Rich Investments (WSE:SRI).

After some talks and a good deal of time he came up with a proposal, which he submitted to the shareholders indicated in a list we provided. In short, the proposal was to bring CCI ( Carnage Center Inc) a privately held company to the VSTEX, launching an IPO and converting SLC shares into CCI ones. He asked the SLC shareholders to vote on 2 options:

1) accept the plan as it was sent them
2) do nothing.

Yesterday at late night (Italian time) we casually met inworld and he realized that Investor Merlin's assets in SLC were going to be given to Skip Oceanlane, ex vice president of Merling Investment Bank. This was the natural follow up to our announcement posted on october 22 here: http://www.vstex.net/?p=103&id=33

He told me he didn't like this, he questioned our right to turn over assets from Merlin to Oceanlane and basically it said he didn't want to give the assets to him. In a few minutes, he sent out another voting proposal, adding a third option that was about writing off any shares held by unactive (30 days or more) shareholders, turning them to active ones.

We feel that one shouldn't initiate a new voting procedure under new terms when shareholders are already voting on a proposal. He claims that he could not know about this transfer to Skip Oceanlane and that once we turn over the list of shareholders, it's no longer our business to interphere.

He also claims he lost way too much time on this issue, when he just wanted to help out SLC shareholders, since CCI did not need to have an IPO with the VSTEX or any other exchange (during the talks he said that many times).

Our answer is that he had no obligation to put forward a proposal. He decided to do it and we thank him for that. However, things should be done the proper way. We provided the shareholders list to him for his convenience, so he could contact the shareholders.

It's not up to him to accept or refuse any of the shareholders and asking the SLC shareholders to vote out other people doesn't look as a proper thing to do.

Also, SLC shareholders have still to accept the proposal sent to them. Nor Spontaneous Rich nor anybody else from CCI management can change the status of things. They can't decide which SLC shareholder is good and which one is bad.

In his last email he also stated that we let Mystik Boucher run away with over 300.000L$, have SLC bankrupt and allowed her to sell her sims.

We reject those accusations.

1) Mystik Boucher withdrew that amount of L$ long before SLC was declared bankrupt; the company was being effectively managed by Boucher's partner, Bob Perry. At that time it was an internal SLC affair.

2) Mystik Boucher declared bankruptcy status without a prior consultation with us. She posted an announcement and in a few minutes she was gone

3) We never had control over Mystik Boucher's sims, nor we had any way to prevent her from selling them. We just had no power, there.

We are now forced to end the talks with Spontaneous Rich, here representing CCI. We're willing to reopen them or to accept new proposal from other interested parties.

I'm available to give more details or information upon simple request.

Samantha Goldflake
Communication and Public Relations Director

Last Updated ( Wednesday, 14 November 2007 )
 
PRESS RELEASE: A Worrying Trend (VSTEX)

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Written by Strange Ranger   
Monday, 12 November 2007

Lately we observed some situations which we want to comment on, for we believe that any company should communicate and share concerns with investors and interested parties.

From what has been reported by the press, Hope Capital Limited did not pay out to Midas Bank the interests due for Hope Capital bonds. Hope Capital even declared bankruptcy status (can that even happen?) for Midas and delisted them from the WSE.

Another exchange, the ACE, wants new companies in IPO with plans to buy sims, to do that through BNT. To us, a sim is a whole region or island, but since they bound new companies to the Ancapistan covenant, we take that at every time ACE/BNT will retain true ownership on the listed company land.

Then the ACE "recommends" to leave the company money deposited into ACE vaults (the listed company doesn't earn any interests on those deposits) and to alert ACE representatives before making large withdrawals.

That's not right in our book. A stock exchange collapsing can do a lot of damage and the more the listed companies, the greater the damage.

VSTEX does not offer loans, bonds, or whatever. We don't need to look for high returns in risky investments in order to pay any interests to you. You deposit your money in order to trade in virtual stocks and you're free to take back all of the L$ you need, anytime.

It's your company, it's your land, it's your money. You're free to dispose of it as you wish. We want to build a safe and sound trading platform by the means of proper regulations, not by extablishing a monopoly over listed companies and traders.

There should be a limit on the amounts of power a stock exchange should have, but we believe that the market will self regulate itself.

Samantha Goldflake
VSTEX Communications and Public Relations Director
http://www.vstex.net

Last Updated ( Monday, 12 November 2007 )
 
VSTEX press release (November 6, 2007)

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Written by Strange Ranger   
Tuesday, 06 November 2007

Today, the ACE (Ancapistan Capital Exchange) company prospectus was brought to our attention. Since the ACE website is still unavailable, we found a copy of the aforementioned prospectus in Google's cache.

http://209.85.129.104/search?q=cache:9QFGSdN0xKQJ:www.ancapex.net/symbol/ACE/profile

From there we read:

[i]"There are now four stock exchanges in SL, WSE, SLCapex, ISE, and VSTEX. However, none of the newcomers have caught on sufficently to raise the bar for exchanges in SL, or done anything to bring new capital into SL."[/i]

We don't know if "we raised the bar" and actually we don't care. To us, securities markets are not a competition between stock exchanges. Our aim is to provide a robust trading platform where businesses and investors can meet. When one of our "competitors" moves in the direction of safe, fair and honest business, we commend it for we do care about the SL financial community as a whole.

As for bringing new capital into SL, we believe that so far our job was pretty good. The VSTEX is now buzzing with activity and our trading room is really growing. Right now we have 6 companies in pending status, waiting for their IPO to start. Not to mention the fact that we're the only ones so far catering directly to the Italian community and day after day new investors enter the financial market.

We also read:

[i]"The other exchanges do not understand why exchanges must exude a sense of stability, security, trustworthiness, to inspire the public to feel confident in the market and their investments there. Nor do they understand or accept the need for a higher authority, albiet a laissez faire one, to be a check on potential excesses, to set standards of behavior, and to enforce contracts."[/i]

We wonder from where they get the idea that other stock exchanges do not want stability, security, trustworthiness. Because they refuse that "higher authority"? We speak for ourselves and we say that an authority is needed when the actors do not want to self regulate themselves. Over at VSTEX we place stability, security, trustworthiness at the very first place. In order to achieve those targets, we do have our own rules and we'll happily adopt any rule from any real virtual or real stock exchange that will help us in that endeavour. Who wants to, can carbon copy our rules.

Then:

[i]"any company needing a full sim of land must buy their sim through the Ancapistan estates, so that ACE can protect the assets of its investors via contract enforcement. If a company goes out of business, their land can be reposessed for disposal to repay investors"[/i]

That may be a viable option to protect investors, however kinda turns the stock exchange in a sort of "land baron" and forces a land monopoly over listed companies. That's not a thing everyone is comfortable with.

The VSTEX is against this kind of documents, where competitors are put down with no good reason and where facts are twisted. We feel that such low marketing tacticts should be left to "Honest John Used Cars" kind of businesses.

Apologies to all of the honest Johns selling used cars...

Samantha Goldflake
Vstex Communication and Public Relations Director
http://www.vstex.net
 

 
SL POLITICS ON F.I.R.E. (Press Realese)

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Written by Strange Ranger   
Wednesday, 31 October 2007

Recent studies conducted by Second Life's first political party - F.I.R.E. - reveal that SL is lacking in the areas of freedom and respect. On the plus side, research also indicates that SL is improving fast enough and that there is a sufficient amount of 'fun' here in the virtual world.

F.I.R.E. believes that sacraficing "freedom & respect" in favor of "improvement & enjoyment" will not benefit SL and needs to be halted immediately.

F.I.R.E. represents virtual interests. F.I.R.E. is an independent SL-based political party for the promotion and protection of Freedom, Improvement, Respect & Enjoyment.
Since early May 2007 F.I.R.E. has been getting organized. We are currently developing the party platform. On the agenda for the coming months are issues such as "cyberwar draft", "powershifts", "100 dollar laptops" and "squating rights in SL".

More on the research F.I.R.E. conducted:
The Board asked the members of F.I.R.E. about their thoughts pertaining to the four basic areas of Freedom, Improvement, Respect and Enjoyment in SL. Here are the results:
49% of the members of FIRE say that there is enough Freedom in SL.*
67% of the members of FIRE say that there is enough Improvement in SL.**
41% of the members of FIRE say that there is enough Respect in SL.***
84% of the members of FIRE say that there is enough Enjoyment in SL.****
* Note on Freedom:
High costs of SLiving and the prohibition of gambling are seen as the main problems with freedom.
** Note on Improvement:
Most people named themselves and others as the main providers of improvement.  Linden Lab came in at second.
*** Note on Respect:
Almost everyone named 'griefing' as the sign of disrespect. 'Rascism/fascism' was the second most mentioned. Some stated that "There is as much respect in SL as in RL."
**** Note on Enjoyment:
To reiterate; most people named themselves and those around them as the main providers.
Cost were mentioned as a problem: "How could I ever afford to play on a descent 18-holes golf course?."

This survey will be repeated in 2008.

Past statements of F.I.R.E.:
* GAMBLING:
Gambling should not have been banned. If things were really getting out of hand, then gambling should have been brought under control and not simply banned. Banning is a sign of weakness and benefits nobody. Under certain improved conditions gambling should once again be enjoyed legally.
* VAT:
The communication concerning the VAT for EU citizens has been handled poorly to say the least. The information provided is lacking in both quality and quantity. The tone in which this message is delivered is horrible. The short notice before the implementation of this measure is ridiculous.
Most importantly, it is unjust to spring this VAT measure on EU citizens and it will simply amount to a substantial increase in SL prices.  LL knew or should have known VAT was and is to be paid.  EU citizens have rightfully trusted LL to take care of their legal obligations surrounding VAT from the start and they should pay this tax out of money that they have already acquired.

More information:
IM: Datus Clary if you wish to stay informed, or if you wish to join or become actively involved.
IM: Brains Writer if you have a group that wishes to be heard first on issues by becoming a Preferred Knowledge Supplier (PKS).
IM: Creating Infinity if you wish to make a donation.

GET ORGANIZED! GET F.I.R.E.-ED UP! 

 
Social Club brings soldiers closer to home

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Written by Strange Ranger   
Wednesday, 31 October 2007
by StarDeAzul Starostin
 
On Books for Soldiers Island (SLURL), a man and woman avatar embrace each other and begin to dance; they are among the many people using Second Life as a means of communication.  One may never realize these two are separated by an ocean with one sitting in a combat zone.
 
Bringing soldiers and their families together is just one of the many goals avatar StormBear Hitchcock, founder of Books for Soldiers, has on his mind.  His latest event, a Halloween party, recently created for those interested in the military life and members to celebrate the ghoulish holiday.  “BFS Social Club is meant to allow deployed soldiers a dance with their spouses, and have a more meaningful experience than just email,” stated StormBear Hitchcock.  He also hopes that troops will be able to meet the volunteers of booksforsoldiers.com
 
StormBear Hitchcock first began collecting sci-fi and fantasy books for a friend, stationed in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to hand out during the first Gulf War; StormBear’s friends from college were looking at extended stays in Saudi Arabia after the war.  He stated during 2003, at the beginning of the second invasion in to Iraq, he began the website.  Knowing the project was going to be “too big” he enlisted volunteers; one may now request books on the front page of Books for Soldiers.
 
Visiting avatar, Promise Raymond, came after seeing the event listed.  She had a father and grandfather in the military, and is on a path of healing after her boyfriend died in Iraq.  “I just came across (Halloween party) and thought I had to be there,” said Promise Raymond. “He died at the beginning of this year.  (I’ve) healed but this could help,” she continued.  She states she and the fallen solder were together 5 years and were to be wed upon his return.
 
Book for Soldiers was first begun for 6 weeks in 2003, but upon realizing the latest war and conflicts were not ending any time soon, StormBear Hitchcock has continued his misson; his own brother recently returning from Iraq with continued service.  Beginning with just a few books sent to a friend has grown this project into a collaboration of many to support the entire US military.
 
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