Virtual Sex Machine Inspires Real-Life Lawsuit

Source: http://www.whatsnextblog.com/archives/2007/08/well_this_ought_to_do.asp#more

Well this ought to do a lot to encourage corporate types to enter into Second Life marketing campaigns! Lawyers, the scourge of first life, have reared their ugly heads in the metaverse.

The 3D virtual world now has its first real life copyright lawsuit. Kevin Alderman, whose avatar is named Stroker Serpentine, and who is owner of SexGen, is suing the avatar (virtual game character) Volkov Catteneo. He says Catteneo broke his code and sold his intellectual property illegally.

Alderman realized that people who had avatars on the popular site wanted their characters to not only have realistic genitalia, but also to be able to have sex. So he created code that provides avatars with 3D genitalia and allows them to engage in sex.

SexGen Platinum, which he sells for $45 through his company, Eros LLC, is placed in various objects, such as a bed, and when the user clicks on a menu his or her avatar can take part in a choice of sex acts.

Virtual beds with sex animations are a staple of the Second Life economy, and are available with a range of features, reports Second Life Herald.

When confronted, Volkov taunted Alderman saying, "What are you going to do? Sue me?" So Alderman sued him. The case is rooted in basic copyright infringement law, and is drawing attention more because of the sexual nature of the content and the fact the lawsuit started in a virtual world.