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Over the summer Google released Lively by Google, its version of a virtual or persistent world. Though it got early support by participants and brands such as National Geographic, there was insufficient momentum to sustain the Google Labs venture. This morning the Official Google Blog posted Google Lively will shut down at the end of the year. "Google has always been supportive of this kind of experimentation because we believe it's the best way to create groundbreaking products that make a difference to people's lives. But we've also always accepted that when you take these kinds of risks not every bet is going to pay off," it said on the blog. Additionally the Lively.com Web site urges users to create memories of their virtual experiences by recording videos and screenshots.
Posted by Enid Burns at November 20, 2008 10:15 AM
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Google would not be who they are today if they did not take risks and experiment with different ventures.
Nick Stamoulis November 24, 2008 10:01 AM
The Livelyzens (Lively users) are coming together to appeal to Google to keep Lively alive.
Lively is a great platform for interaction as well as creativity. It is easy to use, browser based, embeddable on webpages to bring a 3D experience right on your website. While Lively has been in beta and has limited capability in terms of the objects and avatars available, the Livelyzens have been able to come up with very creative ways to create art from what is available. All this in a "clean" 3D world thanks to Google's vigilance in getting rid of rooms with inappropriate content. More than anything, Lively has become a place to make friends for life – from all over the world with wonderful people.
Please visit our website http://livelyzens.com and participate in the Lively Machinima contest we are conducting to show the creative potential of Google Lively. Please also sign our online petition http://livelyzens.com/petition.aspx
We kindly request netizens to support us in reviving a wonderful 3D world that is a kid friendly and a creative space for art and interaction amongst adults.
oriste November 27, 2008 12:41 PM