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GigaOM Lists 10 Most Popular "MMOs"

By GigaOM’s reckoning, World of Warcraft is the most popular MMO around, despite the one big qualification. The order of the rest of the list may come as a surprise, though: Habbo Hotel comes in as number two, with RuneScape clocking in at three. Where’s Second Life, you ask? Down at number 10, with 500,000 […]

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By GigaOM's reckoning, World of Warcraft is the most popular MMO around, despite the one big qualification. The order of the rest of the list may come as a surprise, though: Habbo Hotel comes in as number two, with RuneScape clocking in at three. Where's Second Life, you ask? Down at number 10, with 500,000 active users, by GigaOM's estimation.

The article ends with an interesting observation:

Interestingly, however, it’s apparent that no single business model is winning out. Subscriptions work well for MMORPG games like WoW that are more akin to crack cocaine than mere entertainment. But what about other non-game MMOs? How will companies bank on consumer attention in those areas?

I suspect that the answer may lie in Virtual Laguna Beach. I'm only half kidding.

GigaOM Top 10 Most Popular MMOs [GigaOM]