I have mixed feelings about this one. I don’t gamble, and find the gambling activities in Second Life to be obnoxious–not because of the usual moralistic concerns, but because of what it does to the landscape. Much of the mainland has been overrun by casinos, and they tend to be flashy, noisy, intrusive (in the sense that objects are scripted to talk or shout as an attention-getting strategy), and lag-inducing (scripts and crowds). From a personal standpoint, I’m glad to see them go. There will be much more land that is attractive for buying, “living” on, etc.
On the other hand, I wonder about the economic impact. Will there now be a mass exodus from SL as people who came there primarily for gambling? Will that leave tons of abandoned land, as casinos shut down and owners no longer want to pay tier? Will that cause a drop in the real estate market? How will the lack of spending/paying/winning/losing affect the exchange of real-world money with Linden dollars?
Also on the other hand, one of the things I appreciate about SL is its “mind your own business” libertarian approach. It seems ridiculous to me that so many governments are attempting to extend their brand of running someone else’s business into virtual space. It makes as much sense as attempting to include the moon in Columbia’s jurisdiction just because it happens to cross over its “airspace” while orbiting the earth. Anything that lends legitimacy to such lunacy should not be encouraged.
In any case, they have announced a new policy, effective immediately, that unambiguously shuts down gambling across Second Life, regardless of local laws and their application. In other words, it’s now a Term of Service. Whether online gambling is legal for you where you live, either as a participant or a casino owner, is immaterial.
Details can be found in a an official Linden blog post.
