Production company to cover news of the virtual world: media brands will serve players of '...

Traditional media may be shrinking, but there's good news for information junkies who participate in virtual, or simulated, online communities: they now have their first official news outlets.

LivePlanet Inc. has created Virtual World Productions Inc., a company focused on developing

Virtual World Productions' first two media brands, Grid World News and Azeroth World News will report on issues relevant to the "Second Life" and "World of Warcraft" virtual communities, respectively, by gathering and reporting news within those worlds.

"The vision of Virtual World Productions is similar to what Rupert Murdoch, William Randolph Hearst or Ted Turner had for our own world in the last century," said Keith Quinn, senior vice president of LivePlanet and co-creator of the concept. "We will report the goings on of the millions of inhabitants of these worlds, so that the entire community can be informed. We are recording history in these worlds, and now, when a proverbial tree falls in the forest, people will know it happened."

The media organization will cover a broad range of daily news items from the virtual world including first person adventures of a reporter to fashion-forward trends in World of Warcraft. All coverage will reflect only the concepts, ideas and events depicted in the world of play. The media brands won't offer how-to-play or game-focused commentary. Virtual World expects to unveil news services for other games in the coming months.

Santa Monica-based LivePlanet also creates and develops traditional media properties such as feature films and television, as well as entertainment properties that integrate traditional media and new media. Founded in 2000 by actors Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and others. the company has a three-year production deal with Walt Disney Co.