Virtual worlds could soon be new businesss environments
BUSINESS leaders could soon be using game consoles to host meetings in an effort to beat the credit crunch.
British academics are about to start a research project that will explore how PlayStation 3’s new virtual world ‘Home” can be used as a business environment.
The project aims to explore how large companies using virtual worlds as a business tool can reduce office space and travel costs as well as diminish the carbon footprint of corporate executives.
Gaming expert Dr Nipan Maniar will lead the project alongside fellow Portsmouth University senior lecturer Manish Malik who is an expert in collaborative technologies.
He said: “There is no doubt that business life of the future will include a greater use of virtual world technologies.
“In the current economic climate where renting office space is often the second biggest overhead, it makes good business sense for companies to explore the opportunities and benefits of workforce mobility and using virtual worlds as places to get business done more effectively and at a lesser cost than in the physical world.”
Leading workplace transition consultants Advanced Workplace Associates has commissioned the research.
Its managing director Andrew Mawson believes that society is increasingly living in a world without borders where workers need to collaborate on a global scale.
“There are human resources and economic tensions in trying to get so many people in the one place at the one time,” he added.
“Yes, audio and video-conferencing solutions have emerged but the use of virtual worlds may offer the next evolution in overcoming the tyranny of distance – a more realistic and learning-enhanced environment where managers can brainstorm, give presentations, express behaviour and network at a more human level while being continents apart.”
A number of large corporates have already set up residency in virtual environments such as Second Life. Marketing campaigns have also been launched although with mixed results.
