the play girlz gaming blog

Do You Buy or Sell Virtual Goods?

by Ingrid on January 3rd, 2007

I came across this article in Sign On San Diego today which was all about virtual economies in MMOs. We’ve talked about this before, but I thought I’d talk abot it again, since back then I really didn’t pay much attention to the world of ‘gold farming.’

If you read this blog with any amount of frequency (and why wouldn’t you?), you’ll know I’m an avid WoW addict (first step is admitting the problem). While some people are addicted to raiding and such things, I find that most of my pleasure derives from trying to make as much gold as possible. You can check out my little guide for making gold in WoW, if you’re so inclined.

Sometimes, in the process of making my virtual riches I entertain thoughts of turning my virtual goods into real time $$. These fantasies are short-lived, of course, for I have many things to buy (and save up for - flying mount, anyone?), and then it’s against WoW policies anyway (I’m a good girl I am). But what about those people who don’t just fantasize but actually do make their living from selling virtual products?

From the Sign On San Diego article:

• A 29-year-old construction worker who spent six months building a virtual tower, and the 43-year-old bread deliveryman who paid $760 for the piece of make-believe real estate.
• A former chemist who now makes more money as an online retailer selling virtual items from “Ultima Online.”
• A man who claims he makes $4,000 a week farming for virtual gold on “Ultima Online.”

Makes you wonder: where is all this going? Already, the I.R.S. is starting to panic about these things.

Yesterday, I read a (whiny) tale by a guy whose 286-day-played level 60 WoW character got poofed into oblivion by a gold farmer who stole all his gold. He claims he wants to sue the culprit and send him to prison. Many claim this story is false and while it might be, it’s bound to give some very real people ideas about about how to deal with their virtual losses.

Is sueing over virtual goods next?

In a paper published in 2001, Castronova calculated that “EverQuest” players were generating $2,266 a year per capita in the game. If Norrath had been real, and not fictional, its gross national product would have made it the 77th-richest country in the world at that time.

But those figures were for the virtual economy.

Dibbell estimates that the real-life sale of virtual goods generates $880 million annually.

The market for virtual goods isn’t limited to sales on eBay. It has spawned online stores and even, reportedly, sweatshops in Asia, where workers play nonstop to amass virtual treasures that are then sold in real life.

Some players say it’s cheating to buy virtual goods. Yet, Dibbell estimates that as many as half have done so.

“It’s funny, because if you take polls, 60 percent of players say they’re against this happening at all, and then 50 percent of the people say they do it,” he said.

So I have to ask, you buy or sell virtual goods? Is this something that you see spiraling out of control in the upcoming years? Are you for it, against it? Leave your 2g in the comments.

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POSTED IN: Culture, MMORPG, Musings