Pre-fetching virtual content in a virtual universe

A computer system for pre-fetching virtual content in a virtual universe, comprising:

• at least one processing unit;
• memory operably associated with the at least one processing unit;
• and
• a pre-fetching tool storable in memory and executable by the at least one processing unit, the pre-fetching tool comprising:
• a ranking component configured to rank each of a plurality of members belonging to a social network of an avatar according to predefined ranking criteria;
• and
• a pre-fetching component configured to pre-fetch a virtual content within a proximity of each of the plurality of members belonging to the social network of the avatar based on the ranking.

A method for deploying a pre-fetching tool for use in a computer system that provides pre-fetching of virtual content in a virtual universe, the method comprising:

• providing a computer infrastructure operable to:
• rank each of a plurality of members belonging to a social network of an avatar according to predefined ranking criteria;
• and
• pre-fetch a virtual content within a proximity of each of the plurality of members of the social network of the avatar based on the ranking.