Sometimes when they get there, they find out it's all due to a big stinky pile of fertilizer.

I really don't think that this will have much impact on Virtual Worlds in whole. I feel badly for the Aussies and their limitations – we had that in the US 10 years ago and that is why we didn't have video and other high bandwidth consuming opportunities.

All my best! Hope your FB attempt to keep unmetered access works!

Sounds like they are looking for a broader audience. Second Life just can't offer the exposure many companies need to justify spending on social media marketing and brand awareness. I think it's pretty much that simple.

When I visited Bigpond a few years ago, to do a story on it, Peta was not allowed to be on my show as CM wouldn't allow her to speak for Bigpond, even though she was the person “on the ground” A suit was offered to me instead and I refused. The only music they had on the sim at the time was Whispering Jack…..over and over and over…When they did have events they didn't even ask Australian Artists in SL to participate! Im here…Jaggpro is here…Oh My Kidd is here and many others…why not? hey we pull a good crowd! the first Artist to play there was Max Kleen god love him, but he ain't Aussie….

Telstra are not a global company they serve (and I use that word loosely) only Australia, the population of Aussie residents is very very small, surprisingly small. But with the state of misinformation that most Australians read in their press about SL being a Sex Den, Dying, or Failing and a place for lonely losers is it any wonder! Its like we are on this isolated island with no communication from the Mainland! there is almost a Sadistic Glee in Australia to put down SL and the people who want to use it, a sort of nasty derision about it. That is a very ignorant and short sighted attitude. And like a lot of things.. by the time Australia catches up with the rest of the world, We Aussies will have missed the boat….

Telstra staying in SL. Is really just not viable until more Aussies use SL. I do think if they are going to support online gaming thru unmetered downloads they could have kept it up for SL, where they know that SL is NOT a game but a community. Full of creativity and enterprise and spirit. The cost to them is a tiny drop in the ocean…Sol took a lot when he left but believe me they have a lot in the coffers! giving (as they said) 2000 users a break on SL with unmetered is really a pathetic amount to withdraw…Come on…Big pond know what SL is! they know its not just about slimy Sex and online Junkies. Bad Bad PR guys…

As to the SMH story and the comments….people always ridicule that which they are afraid of or don't understand, its a way to cope. Just like the flat earth Society sniggered and derided the round earth society , and wow its just like whizzing right back to the 80's when I worked for IBM as a casual, and we were sitting around this huge box talking to some IT guys in Abu Dabi via the first Text internet, just text to text…about the cricket it was incredible! and no one thought it would last….um the internet is for Geeks…It will never work. You can't use it….Can't find anything…I don't have time for the internet…when do you ever have time for that?…wow I'm so busy and you obviously are not…heard all that? yep thats what Im hearing now. People say to me, how do you have time for SL???? wellll its my job….jaw drop…and I ask then..how many hours do you watch Telly? ummmm weel…yep I don't watch more than 4 hours telly a week…soooo I create things in SL,,yep I'm not sitting on my bum for 4 hours a night passively sucking in crap! (says she in the TV business now who has a Real Life and who does not. Read the comments and that article on SMH what a lot of uninformed tripe! from the journalist and the comments. Gawd. What I do know is one day those people will be like oh yeh SL and virtual worlds, I knew it was always going to be big!
yeh right. Sorry that sort of journalism on SMH is just lazy and bad. Regurgitating old news from last year.

And BTW the Bigpond unmetered? I watched my Telstra usage all the time I never went to Big Pond sims, only once every 6 months, and yet I had about half my usage free…..on SL. Get the facts SMH. sorry for the rant. But it makes my blood boil. We need more competition in ISP's My friends and colleagues in the States are paying 49 bucks a month! with no caps…we in Aust cannot even download a TV show or a movie without going over…talk about sooooo behind. Slow speeds and capped we are shafted at every turn.
Over and OUT.
Paisley
The ranter…

Don't be surprised if the ABC makes a similar announcement in the next month or two either.