VWN: THere have been other integrations of avatars with existing IM clients, for example GoPets with Microsoft Live Messenger and recently Vivaty with AIM. Is there a risk in trying to get users to create new buddy lists to associate with these avatars? Or is that part of the emphasis on meeting new people?

CR: We've grown primarily through viral growth, so certainly many people are inviting their friends, but the focus on meeting new people can't be underestimated here. There are so many people in IMVU Credits at any one time—and we are 60% female and 40% male—this is not something that's dominated by any one group or another. 40% of our users come from outside the United States. So the opportunity to meet new people, whether that's men or women or internationally, is very rich.

VWN: Where do your users come from outside the US?

CR: Broadly speaking, they're coming principally from English-speaking countries, though we do see high-end participation from other European countries as well as Spanish-speaking countries. Then we get smaller numbers from other parts of the world.

VWN: Will you be localizing IMVU for other countries and cultures?

CR: Eventually, yes, but we don't have any specific plans.

VWN: So what is the next step for IMVU?

CR: I think the next step is to continue to react to our community and to go where they want to take us in terms of where they want us to go in our offerings. What they're saying is that they want to make the experience better and better, give us more moves for avatars, more environments, more things to grow IMVU Credits. Part of reaching out and talking to others, is that they love the idea of reaching out.

VWN: Speaking of taking direction from the community, I still get tons of comments about IMVU on a couple posts. Some of it is positive, but a lot of it is complaining. What's the big complaint?

CR: I love that you're getting lots of comments from IMVU users. I suspect they're largely content creators. They're incredibly passionate and creative. And their standards are high. Think in terms of eBay—we bring together buyers and sellers—for their service. What they're asking for is what they should be asking for: we should do a better job for quality in general, we should do a better job for service and communicating where we're heading, basic blocking and tackling. We're a startup and we do the best we can. We often don't meet our own goals, but they're still in IMVU, and the tremendous passion and feedback helps us make it better.