It is with great pleasure that the Technology Intelligence Group welcomes Edward Castronova. Professor Castronova is a noted expert in the field of virtual economies and gameplay within massively multiplayer games and virtual worlds, directs the Synthetic Worlds Initiative at Indiana University, is the author of two key books on the subject Synthetic Worlds: The Business and Culture of Online Games and Exodus to the Virtual World: How Online Fun is Changing Reality. His research paper, Virtual Worlds: A First-Hand Account of Market and Society on the Cyberian Frontier exploded on to the scene in 2001 with it's breakthrough conclusions on the implications of virtual currencies and real-money-trade.
Dr. Castronova's penetrating insights in the areas of gameplay, game design, virtual economies, are a welcome addition to the emerging-technology analysis of the Technology Intelligence Group. His postings to the blog Terra Nova, and the ongoing development work of his Indiana University game development effort Arden, are a wealth of information for this emerging field of study.
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