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  3. Remember Second Life, the virtual world that was supposed to become almost as important as the first one? Now populated by no mo

Remember Second Life, the virtual world that was supposed to become almost as important as the first one? Now populated by no mo

admin2011-03-11  69
问题     Remember Second Life, the virtual world that was supposed to become almost as important as the first one? Now populated by no more than 84,000 avatars at a time, it has turned out to be a prime example of how short-lived Internet fads can be. Yet if many adults seem to have given up on virtual worlds, those that cater to children and teenagers are thriving. Several have even found a way to make money.  
    In America, nearly 10 million children and teenagers visit virtual worlds regularly, estimates eMarketer, a market researcher-a number the firm expects to increase to 15 million by 2013．As in January, there were 112 virtual worlds designed for under-18s with another 81 in development, according to Engage Digital Media, a market research firm.  
    All cater to different age groups and tastes. In Club Penguin, the market leader, which was bought by Disney in 2007 for a whopping $ 700 million, primary-school children can take on a penguin persona, fit out their own igloo and play games. Habbo Hotel, a service run from Finland, is a global hangout for teenagers who want to customise their own rooms and meet in public places to attend events. Gala Online, based in Silicon Valley, offers similar activities, but is visited mostly by older teens who are into Manga comics.  
    Not a hit with advertisers, these online worlds earn most of their money from the sale of virtual goods, such as items to spruce up an avatar or a private room. They are paid for in a private currency, which members earn by participating in various activities, trading items or buying them with real dollars.  
    This sort of stealth tax seems to work. At Gala Online, users spend more than $1 million per month on virtual items, says Craig Sherman, the firm’s chief executive. Running such a virtual economy is not easy, which is why Gaia has hired a full-time economist to grapple with problems that are well known in the real world, such as inflation and an unequal distribution of wealth.  
    There are other barriers that could limit the growth of virtual worlds for the young, but the main one is parents. Many do not want their offspring roaming virtual worlds, either because they are too commercial or are thought to be too dangerous. Keeping them safe is one of the biggest running costs, because their sponsors have to employ real people to police their realms.  
    Youngsters are also a fickle bunch, says Simon Levene of Accel Partners, a venture- capital firm. Just as children move from one toy to another, they readily switch worlds or social networks, often without saying goodbye.  
    Even so, Debra Aho Williamson, an analyst at eMarketer, believes "these worlds are a training ground for the three-dimensional web". If virtual worlds for adults, which so far have been able to retain only hardcore users, manage to hang on for a few years, they may yet have a second life.
Why do online games not mean "a hit with advertisers"?
选项 A、The advertisers do not have appropriate ways to advertise in the online world.
B、Online game companies do not want to cooperate with the advertisers.
C、The profit pattern of online games does not leave much space for them.
D、The advertisers deem that online games will not be a rising industry.
答案C
解析 本题的答案同样在第四段，because后面给出了原因，说主要利润来源是游戏里的虚拟物品的销售，这种盈利模式之下广告商很难从中获取分成，因为这是以虚拟货币完成的，虚拟货币的获得只有一部分通过实际货币获得，因此降低了广告商的盈利空间，因此C项符合文意。A项说没有合适的方式进行广告，大体上也是正确，但是和C项相比，C项更为具体。B项说有些公司并不愿意和广告商合作，这按常理判断应该不会，因为与广告商合作对于公司来说基本上是利大于弊。D项说广告商不认为网络游戏有前途，这无法从文中得到，因此综合来看C项最符合文意。   
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