Philips Design collaborates with Rivers Run Red to enter virtual world of Second Life®

Eindhoven, The Netherlands – Philips Design and Rivers Run Red, the virtual world design agency, have signed a collaboration agreement to establish a Philips Design presence within the imaginary, on-line community known as Second Life. Philips Design intends to use it’s presence in Second Life to gain feedback on innovation concepts, engage residents in co-creation and gain a deeper understanding of potential opportunities in this virtual environment.

Launched in 2003, Second Life is a vast digital continent built and owned by its residents. It has rapidly become a phenomenon, and is currently 'inhabited' by more than 1.5 million people, represented on-line by 3D images called 'avatars'. These avatars are created according to each resident’s personal specifications, and may be as close to or far from reality as required. Second Life also has a thriving economy. Goods and property can be bought or sold by residents, and every month millions of US dollars worth of transactions take place.

Rivers Run Red is the leading development agency for Second Life in Europe, and has considerable experience and expertise in designing and implementing within this emerging medium. Philips Design approached the agency for this reason, and also because it considers Rivers Run Red to be a good cultural fit in terms of the dedication of both organizations to helping enrich people’s lives.

In addition to exploring this virtual world to gain insights into potential opportunities, Philips Design will have a space on Second Life where virtual concepts can be tested and residents can participate in co-design projects. In this way, Second Life users can have a greater say in the kind of colors, ergonomics, functionality and other features of products they may wish to buy in this virtual world. This will allow Philips Design to find new ways of relating to end users. Having such direct feedback can significantly enrich the design process and lead to innovative and surprising end results. This fits with the Philips Design philosophy that design should be based around people and grounded in research. It also corresponds to Philips Design's firm belief that the future of design lies in the co-creation of products.

“This sort of foresighting is extremely powerful," says Stefano Marzano, Chief Executive Officer of Philips Design. "As the only things that actually exist within Second Life are ideas, it provides us with a real opportunity to better understand the dynamics of intangible value. In addition, value created in this virtual world can also be transferred to the real world. ”

“Philips Design provides a missing piece for us in terms of its in-depth understanding of user insights and vast research capabilities," says Justin Bovington, Chief Executive Office, Rivers Run Red. "Its commitment to establishing a presence in this virtual world also helps to legitimize Second Life as a serious space. It shows that Philips is thinking about the virtual world for the longer-term. With more than US$650,000 of business already conducted every day, Second Life is set to become a huge economic power for the future. ”

Under the terms of the agreement, Philips Design and Rivers Run Red will create a collaborative working space for the real and virtual worlds. Specialists from both companies will participate, providing new knowledge, competences and services to clients such as Royal Philips Electronics.