3pointD.com

Thought it worth noting that the top-selling virtual items to date in CyWorld USA, which launched last summer, are tie-ins from the Bravo TV show Top Design, according to a press release. (Bravo is part of NBC Universal.) CyWorld’s Top Design club was apparently very popular during the show’s first season, and members were able to purchase virtual items that were based on the winning designs from the show. “These Top Design-inspired collectibles became the top-selling digital items to-date for Cyworld USA,” the release says. CyWorld is adding Top Design features during the show’s off season, including “an immersive social network and commerce platform from View22,” which does 3D ecommerce services, and a Top Design 3D Throw-Down. No surprise that networks are moving closer and closer to virtual worlds as the age of New New Media^TM takes hold. CyWorld is pitched at a younger audience than Top Design, but that may be perfect for Bravo: get ‘em hooked early via the virtual world, then gather ‘em up in a medium where advertisers will pay more for their eyeballs.