Virtual goods funding tops $69 million in first quarter

Start-ups peddling virtual goods raised $69 million in funding in the first quarter of 2009, holding at a steady pace from the previous two quarters according to data from Show Initiative LLC.

I've long held the stance that virtual goods and services are an interesting way to make money online. What's not clear is what business models work and what segments of user populations are the best targets.

The amazing thing about the 10 financings listed below is how large they are. This indicates that VCs are betting big, or that the companies are giving away a lot of equity for the dollars. Nonetheless, it's good to see entrepreneurs raising money in a down economy.

First quarter 2009 financings:

• IMVU - $10,000,000
• ngmoco - $10,000,000
• Nurien - $10,000,000
• Offerpal Media - $15,000,000
• Ohai - $6,000,000
• OMGPOP - $5,000,000
• OneSeason.com - $3,500,000
• Scrapblog - $4,000,000
• Viximo - $5,000,000
• Three Melons - $600,000

Somewhere down the line these sites and perhaps more importantly, the platforms they've built for distribution and commerce, will have a great deal of value to larger players. It's still too early to tell what bet to take, but there are dollars out there somewhere.

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[inachu1]

I'd like to see what the current copyright law is and how it would stand up to stolen virtual goods.
Should it be classified as like a physical theft or an IP theft or boh?

[sheeana]

I am most excited about the future possibilities of these worlds, I have been keeping an eye out on many of these startups to see where they go, it appears the virtual arena is growing at a rapid pace, with sites like frenzoo, meez, ourworld, growing strongly in the kids - tweens market, and the sophistication of Second life and all the different scenarios that can be created, this is only the beginning in how consumers will behave online, and how users will adapt to emerging markets,