Virtual World SIG

The Virtual World SIG will stream the SDForum Emerging Tech SIG 5/13:

Virtual Worlds and Real Metrics: Tangible Statistics about Imaginary Goods
Abstract: In recent years, virtual currencies, virtual economies, and virtual goods have become a common part of the internet landscape. However, while there is now widespread consensus that virtual economies are an increasingly valid and fruitful monetization strategy for internet applications, there are very few management tools for virtual economies, and, aside from a few obvious bromides (”Avoid hyperinflation!”), no agreed-upon consensus as to the key metrics to use in doing so.

This talk will begin with some history (covering some early ideas in measuring virtual economies) and then explore some of the metrics that make sense for a virtual economy. We will cover both how to increase profit in a virtual world and how to detect interesting user behaviors and profiles through economic measures. Throughout the talk, screenshots of Twofish’s analytics platform will be used to illustrate key points.

Speaker Bio:

Bill Grosso
CTO & VP of Engineering, Twofish.com

Bill leads the Twofish Elements product roadmap, platform development and engineering organizations. Bill’s love of economics started as an undergrad, where he taught econometrics and was the recipient of a URECA grant in economic modeling and continued throughout his grad school career in mathematics. An active and vocal participant in the software development community, Bill has published 2 books and more than 20 journal articles, and is a long-time board member of SDForum. Bill has held various chief architect and executive engineering roles at companies including Engage (acquired by Spark Networks), Echopass, and Hipbone (acquired by Kana).

Location
Pillsbury Winthrop
2475 Hanover St.
Palo Alto, CA 94304
Directions

Agenda
6:30 - 7:00 p.m. Registration / Networking / Refreshments / Pizza
7:00 - 9:00 p.m. Presentation

Price
$15 at the door for non-SDForum members
No charge for SDForum members
No registration required