The media loves its darlings, and Second Life is very darling indeed. No surprise, coming as it does in the overlap between three of the hottest topics of the moment — video gaming, now bigger than Hollywood, online communities, now bigger than countries, and e-commerce, now bigger than a jumble sale. In fact, based on the latest figures Second Life has released, the amount of in-game commerce comes a poor second to the turnover of a single department store.

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Diageo is treating the social networking phenomenon as more of an opportunity than a threat as it tries to adapt its advertising model to reach out to the emerging generations of consumers, the company's chief information officer (CIO) and business process director told delegates at Forrester Research's IT Forum EMEA 2007 in Edinburgh today.

But, alongside the benefits on offer, Diageo also recognises that operating in a virtual world can present its own unique challenges too, such as people pretending to be what they're not, specifically when it comes to age and alcohol.

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By Curt Brandao

Hello, my name is the Digital Slob, and I have a gambling problem.

For the most part, mine is a typical story you could hear on any Super Saver bus ride back from Vegas.

At first, I basked in beginner's luck at low-stakes Texas Hold 'Em poker tournaments. I never saw a flop I didn't like. Casino regulars would get up from the table in a huff, cursing my name. Some refused to play with me.

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