No casino’s in SL? Is real-world legislation impinging on virtual life?
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News from the Linden blog recently that casinos will not be allowed to advertise in SL.
Linden Lab has decided that we will not accept any classified ads, place listings, or event listings that appear to relate to simulated casino activity.
Linden Lab is committed to keeping Second Life a place of openness and opportunity. We plan to implement features that will enable Residents to optionally confirm aspects of each other’s identity, including age and jurisdictions. Hopefully, these features will help Residents as they conform to their own local laws. For our part, we will continue to evaluate these issues, including where appropriate by reaching out to law enforcement, and by working toward solutions that keep our Residents’ experiences safe and legal.
Whilst there has been considerable discussion about this ‘around the traps’, because the servers and the HQ (Linden Lab) are on US soil, they are legislatively bound to comply with the ‘Internet Gambling Prohibition and Enforcement Act’.
But it is yet another example of where the Utopian dreams of a fair, just and butterfly-filled wonderscape come up hard against the real world of crime, money laundering and human weakness.
As one commenter to the blogpost said, with all of the press coverage about how much money flows through SL on any given day, is it any wonder that law enforcement agencies are starting to want to pay attention. After all, if the ’sport of kings’ can be corrupted (surely not? - holy gasp, Batman!) why can’t a virtual world be equally used as a tool?
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