IBM Virtual Universe Community
| Company type | In-house community |
|---|---|
| Industry | Virtual worlds, innovation |
| Founded | September 12, 2006 |
Area served | IBM personnel worldwide |
| Products | Virtual World Cell Based Mainframes (Gameframes), Virtual Service Desks |
| Parent | IBM |
The Virtual Universe Community (VUC) represents IBM’s in-house group dedicated to interests in Virtual Worlds.
All IBM personnel participating in Virtual Worlds are required to follow the IBM Virtual World Guidelines.
VUC significantly contributed to IBM's expansion into new markets by pioneering Virtual World Cell Based Mainframes—referred to as Gameframes—and establishing round-the-clock Virtual Service Desks operated by avatars located globally. Its members engaged in initiatives that fostered virtual worlds within domains such as art, intercultural cooperation, social entrepreneurship, sustainable development, service innovation, and education, utilizing both IBM’s private grids and public environments like Second Life and Open Sim grids.
History
Inaugurated on September 12, 2006, concurrently with the IBM Innovation Jam, the VUC originated as a self-directed 3D ideation event where 130 IBM employees collaborated inside the New Media Consortium’s virtual campus.
By November 14 of the same year, membership had expanded to 400 individuals, with the community’s Innovation Jam concept earning the top position among 50,000 submissions. The outcomes were presented by IBM CEO Sam Palmisano and Irving Wladalsky-Berger during the inaugural virtual town hall meeting.
The community experienced rapid expansion, reaching nearly 1,000 members and necessitating organizational changes. By its first anniversary on September 12, 2007, VUC had grown to encompass 5,000 participants involved in education, training, accessibility initiatives, research activities, and client-focused serious gaming projects. Social and HR training sessions took place within IBM’s Second Life Almaden island.
As industry attention shifted away from virtual worlds, engagement within the community diminished. VUC also investigated augmented reality and virtual reality technologies with the goal of integrating various emerging platforms under guidance from VUC Emeritus Guildmasters.
The VUC framework and its innovation jams have been extensively analyzed by scholars such as Steve Diasio from the University of South Florida and Anne Elerud-Tryde of Chalmers University of Technology.
Notes
†Diasio, S. (2022) A techno-social perspective of innovation jams: defining and characterising, Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, 34:1, 30–46, DOI: 10.1080/09537325.2021.1884674 ‡Elerud-Tryde, A. (2016). Innovation jams as vehicles for innovation: An extended perspective on internal innovation jams.