Technology-focused research organization Yankee Group has released a report titled "Wither Second Life?" Examining the impact of the slowing rate of growth for Linden Labs' virtual world, which has waned since its peak in October 2006. The report also found that user engagement with Second Life has "leveled off" at 12 minutes per month, contrasting those figures with the steady increases seen by sites like MySpace and Facebook. As to the latter, Yankee Group pegs the average time spent per user at 186 minutes per month, a 24 percent increase over the last six months.

"The hype surrounding Second Life doesn’t match its actual marketplace impact," says the report, attributing the stagnation to Second Life's "PC-centric approach in an increasingly mobile world."

“All is not lost with virtual worlds,” said Christopher Collins, senior analyst in Yankee Group’s Consumer Research group. “However, for virtual worlds and metaverses to achieve greater potential in the marketplace and grow beyond early adopters, the experience must be untethered to meet the needs of the 'Anywhere Consumer.' Companies that provide remote access—through mobile devices or other means—to their web experience will have a greater impact than PC-centric companies.”