San Francisco - Linden Lab's online virtual world "Second Life" announced that it has banned its residents from participating in any forms of online gambling, several months after saying it would no longer accept any classified ads or event listings related to "simulated casino" activity. The ban covers both wagers in real and "Linden dollars," the virtual currency in Second Life. "Because there are a variety of conflicting gambling regulations around the world we have chosen to restrict gambling in Second Life," reads a post on the Second Life blog. Linden Lab said in April that it had invited FBI investigators to tour the popular virtual casinos within Second Life, "and raise any concerns they like," former Linden Lab general counsel Ginsu Yoon told Reuters at the time, adding that the company had not received clear rules from U.S. authorities.

Related Links:

http://blog.secondlife.com/2007/07/25/wagering-in-second-life-new-policy

http://tinyurl.com/yugl6s (Reuters)