How Lively ! Google goes Web3D in person

Lively by Google is a new product available in Google Labs. Create an avatar and chat with your friends in rooms you design.
With Lively you can:
  • Create your own virtual space
  • Express yourself
  • Add your room to your site
Mel Guymon, the head of 3d operations for Google, and former There.com and the fifth co-founder of IMVU stated that:
"We’re going to launch with 8 completely different avatars. We’ve got 2 or 3 times that that we’re going to launch over time. The investment and polish to make that content, I just haven’t seen elsewhere. I’m very pleased they allowed us to do that. Third, the implementation of it takes the best of the space, rich avatars and a large catalog of virtual goods, which by the way is free, and have it be a part of your existing social network, which is the big wave right now. That’s really the silver bullet." How Lively !

Here's my two cents about Google Lively I shared with my friends on the Association of Virtual Worlds Advisory Board:
I think Google Lively represent an important landmark in the shift towards the next gen of the Internet, the Web3D, where social networks, virtual worlds and videogames merge. The entrance of a very strong player, maybe the strongest player to the arena will force Google's major business rivals, to rethink their position and investment in Web3D. Will Google Lively merge with other Google apps such as Google Earth, Google SketchUp, Google Maps, Google Street View and Google Switch, for the creation of a cross platform / cross scale immersive experience? I really do not know, but I can not wait to see and explore !-)
Visit Website: www.lively.com