AOL Pointe, AOL's installation in Second Life that was intended to be an ongoing experiment to define, measure and test methods of avatar engagement is, today, missing. Recently the island was closed to the public, and now it appears to have gone entirely.
The island which was created to be a living experiment was rather stillborn when (rumor has it) the division responsible for its creation, and to be responsible for its ongoing management were dropped from the AOL corporation right about the time that the site opened.
From that time, virtually nothing was done with the island - other than a changing schedule of videos and some live music events. None of the planned experiment and research ever went ahead.
"We've gained a lot of insight from our participation in Second Life and we're now refocusing our efforts in virtual worlds. While we have closed AOL Pointe, you will soon be seeing more of AOL products and content across the metaverse. So stay tuned to aol.com for more information about when and where!" says the AOL Pointe web-page.
It's hard to see what, exactly, was gained from the site when it was left largely neglected for so long. We certainly had high hopes for the site itself. We've tried contacting a number of the AOL staff for comment but they haven't been able to provide any insights as they all departed AOL about the time AOL Pointe opened.
All in all, it's a terrible, terrible shame. What should have been a great opportunity turned into a great waste.
