Paul Hemp at Harvard Business Review finished his article on avatar-based marketing (they do have long lead times at HBR). Here's a corresponding podcast and Paul's interview with Ad Age. The core idea: "Companies spend large sums trying to segment, reach, and influence potential customers. They should think about targeting those customers’ online alter egos, as well."
Tony Walsh from Clickable Culture commented, and so did Garrett French at Search Engine Lowdown.