I remember not too long ago the fervor of interactive marketers, both good and bad, when it came to Second Life. It seemed as if you couldn’t plan new strategy without some mention of it. Where’s that discussion today? I believe it waned for marketers because it is hard to pinpoint what Second Life is truly about and why your client should be involved. In saying that, I still feel that the virtual world is here to stay and it’s going to become a better platform for marketers as virtual world segmentation begins.

One such segmentation is coming by way of Sony with the implementation of Playstation Home later this year. Playstation Home will be a 3D social networking service accessible though your PS3. There, gamers from around the world can get together to communicate through video or voice, join in online games, shop or even share content. In Home the question about what this virtual world is about is easily answered – it’s a community of gamers. From this standpoint it makes the pitch to your clients much easier to describe why their brand or service fits. Take a look at some of the early beta features that will be available in Playstation Home.

In game advertising is already at the $400M mark. It will be hard to ignore this presence for too long, and with the addition of Sony’s ambitious effort the virtual world discussion can once again be stoked.