by Anton Johan
The white label B2B division of the Gibraltar based 888 Holdings, Dragonfish,
has announced that it has entered into a lucrative agreement to provide payment
services to the world leading virtual community, SecondLife.
This realistic, 3D world has millions of 'residents' from all over the world,
who live in virtual societies, governed by virtual laws and even enjoying a
virtual economy that generates tens of millions of transactions each month.
Shortly after the UIGEA was passed in the United States, the FBI entered
SecondLife to investigate gambling activities and, as a result, operators of
the virtual world, Linden Lab, blocked all skill games.
"Second Life residents log into the virtual world from nearly every country
around the globe and participate in a virtual economy that will exceed $500
million this year," said the CEO of Linden Lab, Mark Kingdon.
The new deal will see Dragonfish provide Linden Lab with e-payment processing
services through its industry leading back office platform and advanced cashier
interface.
The new product will allow Linden Lab to handle all epayments, as well as
issues of fraud and customer support, in the most effective way possible.
"Dragonfish has a strong track record in unlocking new markets through its
unique and secure payment processing solutions, and as Second Life continues to
grow internationally, we're pleased to work with them to provide easy and secure
payment options for our users outside the United States," said Kingdon.
Also commenting on the deal was the Managing Director of Dragonfish, Gabi
Campos who said: "Today's agreement extends our offer of Total Gaming Services
into Total Payment Services and highlights the increasingly diverse nature and
strength of Dragonfish's operations."
"We have many gaming partners interested in our e-payment solutions but this
a giant step beyond our core operations into the retail environment," he said.
"It's an excellent complementary business for Dragonfish which will provide
incremental revenue."
