here's something to chew on

[Marc C. <ma...@br...>]

1Up.com - an example of a DLA (digital lifestyle aggregator)
 
The best way to understand a new technology is to have an example of it
- and the new 1Up.com <http://ntnse.com/>  is an great example of a DLA.
 
1Up is a videogame portal (with 26 front doors) combined with a social
network, journaling, gamer and game matching, contests, clubs, an arena
and many other fun filled features.  1Up brings gamers together, which
then leads to gamers forming clubs, participating in conversations,
sharing cheats and wallpaper and 'hooking up' to play together (whether
it be on-line or in front of their game consoles.)   
 
1Up.com has a rich body of reviews, previews, cheats, Top 10 lists,
downloads, news and stories at its basis, as it is published by Ziff
Media - which has 50% of the videogame magazine market.  
 
1Up.com provides every member of the system (gamer) with a rich range of
activities to choose from and their own game collection, which is then
matched to other gamer's collections.  Trade/Wish lists are matched up
as well as gamers' status - for playing games on-line.  Games can be
tracked, reviewed, rated and all sorts of end-user's submissions can be
attached to games as well.  
 
When one gamer lands on another gamer's page - they're immediately told
what matches they have together, what games they should be playing
together and what OTHER games they might like.  The social network is
immediately put into a context.  A PeoplePlace search feature enables
gamers to find other gamers, based upon what games, genres or platforms
they're associated with. 
 
Personal publishing is in it's natural setting as well, as gamers like
to talk about games, their rigs, review games, share images and videos
about games and now with 1Up.com post to their private and club journals
about games (and gamers too!)
 
1Up.com has message boards associated with each game as this is how
gamers have traditionally communicated with each other.  1up.com goes
further with message boards by combining them with the notion of Clubs
(similar to Tribe.net <http://tribe.net/> ) and providing the ability to
subscribe to these boards via RSS feeds.  Each gamer also has their own
private journal and there are also journals for ever club (creating a
sort of 'group voice'.)
 
1Up.com's built-in points mechanism rewards gamers for every action they
partake of in the system, from making friends and joining clubs, to
submitting reviews, posting images and to message boards.  These points
are then used for contests, Easter eggs, karma compiling and eventually
for redeeming products and prizes.
 
1Up.com has an image gallery which is used to manage all of the gamers
images. So if a gamer used an image for a journal post or arena
submission, they wouldn't have to upload it again to use it in as their
avatar face image, in product review or for a club journal posting.
 
1Up.com supports FOAF - so entire networks of gamers can be imported or
exported to other social networks and cell phones can utilized to post
to the system or receive updates, messages or alerts.  
 
1Up.com will eventually offer a wide range of web services available,
such as connecting into on-line gaming systems like Xbox Live and
downloading music and videos.  1Up.com will also become a road show -
which will travel from town to town offering tournaments and prizes to
attendees, which will also enable on-line friends to meet in meatspace.
 
The underlying notion driving the design and architecture of 1Up.com is
that by relying upon built-in constructs; such as points, galleries,
games, friends, reviews and feeds - incredible new kinds of end- user
experiences were possible.  1Up.com integrates many aspects of the
digital lifestyle of the gamer - into one comprehensive environment -
fine tuning certain features and functionality to the unique needs of
the gamer.
 
Not only does 1Up.com create new revenue models and opportunities, but
it also defines the notion of what a DLA can and should be.