The Pond is a series of islands with names like Ponderosa and Ponderama with themes and recreations of iconic Australian landmarks like the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Opera House, the outback and Uluru.
On the islands avatars can go scuba diving, car racing and ice skating among other things. They can also socialise, join communities with shared interest or go shopping. They can climb the harbour bridge.
Big Pond managing director Justin Milne said BigPond subscribers would get “special benefits” at The Pond – specifically they can join VIP clubs that will give them access to special events and other benefits.
“If they find something they like, they'll be able to click through to the BigPond website to purchase, or they can visit the in-world BigPond shop,” Mr Milne said.
He said Telstra was “unmetering” the online time Big Pond users spend at The Pond.
The Big Pond presence in Second Life is a toe-in-the-water for Telstra in the emerging but fast growing market for user-generated content.
“We've already seen how rapidly user-generated content has gained popularity online, in particular through our interactive BigBlogs and Australia's biggest online games community, BigPond Game Arena,” Mr Milne said.
“Now we're taking a glimpse of what the internet of the future could be like - driven by user-determined experience”
“There's so much going on in Second Life, both at The Pond and in the wider virtual world - it's entertainment, a way of interacting socially, even a medium for corporations to set up meetings. Excitingly the direction it takes will be determined by the public,” he said.
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