Source: EGS

Summary: 99.9% of the time you should not accept unverified payments. PayPal makes it easy enough for normal citizens to get this verification. This is especially true for Americans and Canadians. So the only legit reason I accept is I just signed up for a PayPal account and getting verification tomorrow in which case I will wait.

eGaming Supply username: michael_ffxi accepted an unverified PayPal payment for $350 CAD. EGS: michael_ffxi expects to be able to recover the... [Read More]

Source: Thaindian News

Summary: Anyone providing information about the case could be rewarded 500 to 5,000 yuan ($75 to $750), either in real money or QQ coin, reported China Daily. QQ coin is the virtual currency used for payment of virtual items and services on China’s popular online instant-messaging network QQ. “We haven’t got any really useful or valuable information so far, but we believe it gives us a broader range of help by counting on netizens, such as QQ users, simpl... [Read More]

Source: Markeedragon YouTube

Summary: Were you aware there were over 30,000 malicious programs targeting virtual game accounts last year? Chinese farms used to farm gold. Then there was a shift. Instead of generating the product, these people went to steal accounts. Programs were written to infect people and steal your account login and password. Accounts have been hacked with authenticators before using a Man in the Middle account. Marcus was hacked and still to this day doesn't kn... [Read More]

Source: Markeedragon Youtube

Summary: Do you realize that the RMT market is a billion industry. Rumors that IGE made $800 million in sales in 1 year. Secondary market consists of goods and services. Marcus estimated the WoW accounts traded on forums in 1 month was $2.5 million. Even in Free to Play games, there is spam for selling gold. Marcus doesn't know whether the RMT industry is growing, but he suspects a shift in the global market to F2P games which makes it difficult for 3rd... [Read More]

Source: Markeedragon Youtube

Summary: Ultima Online wasn't until later that they put in account transfer systems. EA would officiate transfer for $25 to other players. If you put game time on account for 30 days, you can use that gametime to prove you owned the account. Blizzard doesn't want people to transfer accounts. Most game companies have no clue what to do about property theft. WoW has bind on equip to solve problems. When an account gets hacked in WoW, Blizzard will replace... [Read More]

Source: Markeedragon Youtube

Summary: There's been theft everyday selling intangible goods. Yes was a victim. Ultima Online story. Making a living selling items in UO and wasn't against Terms of Service. Marcus's primary account was hacked and valued at $2400. UO policy is they never replace any goods ever. Called Portland police. They weren't sure what they were talking about. Filed a FBI report. Marcus walks in FBI office and wanted to speak to an agent. FBI only investigates los... [Read More]

Source: Markeedragon Youtube

Summary: It was inevitable. Project Entropia was designed for real world value. It's something players wanted. That's why there's so many F2P games. They can weed out competition of gold farmer by turning it into a primary market.

My comments: Quite simple it takes time to get virtual property. Time is money. Therefore people are willing to spend money on virtual property.... [Read More]

Source: Markeedragon Youtube

Summary: Is virtual property a benefit to virtual world? Marcus Eikenberry answers 100% yes! Virtual properties mean ownership in-game and leans to game longevity. In WoW, you get a special sword and that property is worth something, but that value decreases over time.

My comments: Haha one of the top authorities agrees that virtual property is beneficial!! Although it's true that property value decreases over time in some MMOs, that wasn't the case... [Read More]

Source: Press Release

Summary:
Press Release
Goteborg, Sweden - First Planet Company, developer and publisher of Planet Calypso, the oldest planet in the Massively Multiplayer Online Game Entropia Universe, announced today that the largest Asteroid Space Resort property, largely known for housing Club NEVERDIE, has been broken up into smaller portions and sold off to new investors. The total purchase price for the parcels was $635,000.00 USD giving its original owne... [Read More]

Source: MMO Crunch

Summary: Add MMO Crunch to Twitter and stay tuned if you want free membership.

Source: eBay

Summary: These virtual items were given to Blizzcon 2010 attendees. Both items are selling for around $50 total. Not bad for a free gift for all attendees. The entire Blizzcon Goodie bag tops off at $190! http://cgi.ebay.com/2010-Blizzcon-Go...item2c5853e3ed... [Read More]

Source: Youtube

Summary: A $27K spaceship in Eve Online was destroyed by over 300 human controlled ships. Imagine losing that much in a game.... or should I say real life! haha

Source: Virtual Goods News

Summary: The US market for virtual goods will reach $2.1 billion in 2011, according to a new research report issued by Inside Network. This number is up from an estimated $1.6 billion in 2010 and $1.1 billion in 2009.

My comments: So keep buying virtual goods everyone! And don't let anyone tell you that you're wasting money on something you can't touch!... [Read More]

Source: Media Post

tl;dr: Americans will soon be spending more money on imaginary objects than the news. According to various estimates and forecasts, Americans spent $500 million on virtual goods in 2008, rising to $1 billion in 2009 and $1.6 billion this year. Fueled by the rise of social games like Farmville and Mafia Wars (and virtual worlds like Second Life, where sales continue to grow) U.S. spending on virtual goods may jump to $5 billion by 2014. In 2014 Americans will... [Read More]

Source: Kotaku

tl;dr: Amazon's Xbox Live Store, which had allowed customers to buy Xbox Live Arcade games for their retail price instead of Microsoft Points, is no more. A notice posted on the Amazon site says it's no longer selling the games.

My comments: This is a real shame since this was the only method to send someone a Xbox 360 arcade game as a gift. Buy it and Amazon electronically delivers the code as a gift.... [Read More]

Source: Markeedragon Youtube

tl;dr: Rixty is a prepaid card used to buy in-game items. You can upload coins at Coinstar kiosk or Rixty locations nationwide. Rixty supports thousands of online games. Prepaid card distributed in convenience stores. Around 20,000 locations in US to pay.

My comments: Basically someone it trying to make a universal card so people who can't get a credit card or debit card have a way to pay for online games. Coinstar takes around 15% of all your chang... [Read More]

Source: First Meta Exchange

tl;dr: It's like Virtual Forex with 6 currencies- IMVU credits, Frenzoo Gold Coins, FriendsHangout Tokens, Lindens, Toricredits. All 6 currencies are allowed to be exchanged under the ToS.

My comments: So I guess it's one big buy and sell between users. You pay a fee and this company takes care of all the Middleman fees. Interesting concept.

Source: MMO Crunch

tl;dr: In a public post to all Xfire members, Chris Kirmse, founder and lead engineer behind the website, announced that it Xfire has been acquired by another company. The message was later replaced by the announcement of the site’s new owners, Titan Gaming, who will of course rename themselves Xfire. Titan Gaming includes former IGE execs John Maffei, Dave Christensen and Brock Pierce (IGE founder).... [Read More]

Source: Entre Card

tl;dr: Official launch of aTokens.com If you missed it read here. aTokens Article or sign up here.
Old news, but...

Can I sell Entrecard credits for tokens?
Okay…you’ve twisted our arms. For the next 3 months, we will do an open market between aTokens and Entrecard. So, the answer is yes! You can sell or buy Entrecard credits from other users using Atokens.com currency. After 3 months, depending on the outcome, we may or may not continue with the ope... [Read More]

Source: Virtual Goods News
Source: Wall Street Journal

The data comes from credit card processor CyberSource Corporation, which reported a 1.1% fraud rate for physical goods merchants and a 1.9% fraud rate for virtual goods merchants. While that 0.8% jump for virtual goods fraud may appear insignificant, PayPal processed $2 billion in transactions involving digital and virtual goods in 2009. The problem is serious enough that PayPal is working on new fraud prevention meas... [Read More]

Source: Worlds in Motion
Source: Massively

tl;dr: Worlds in Motion is reporting on a new survey that takes a look at purchases of virtual goods and money. PlaySpan and VGMarket surveyed just over 2,200 people between the ages of 13 and 64 regarding their purchases of virtual goods and currency. Women are the big spenders here, particularly when it comes to in-game money. They spend an average of $50 per year as opposed to the $25 a year that men spend. Women... [Read More]

Source: Gold Farming
via Source: Kotaku

tl;dr: Gold farmers have a lot in common as drug dealers. Aside from being very shady, they're very selective with who they do business with, will often do business with other like-minded individuals, and rely on middle-men to conduct their more far-ranging activities. Research was conducted on Everquest 2. It also breaks down the typical behaviour patterns of a farmer and provides a brief history on the practice, so if you've ever wondere... [Read More]

Source: Virtual Goods News

tl;dr: PlaySpan and VGMarket issued the 2010 Digital Goods Report that tracks consumer spending on virtual goods and microtransactions. The market tracks consumer behavior in virtual goods in specific game genres, from first-party game publishers, and from third-party item marketplaces. Social game consumers spend $50/year, MMO players spending $40 per year, online PC game players $37, and online console game players $20. Paypal was the preferred m... [Read More]

Source: Atokens

tl;dr: aTokens.com is a “social currency” site. Instead of using cash (real money), users
can send and accept payment using our virtual currency (appreciation tokens). Our platform opens up new opportunities for our users because now, they can earn and spend on the web. There are no transactions or services fee. Our services are completely free. You can get tokens by doing ads or just buying them. When you get bored, you can cash out.

Get 40 T... [Read More]

Source: Virtual Whirl on Massively.com

tl;dr: Virtual environments have a generally poor reputation in many quarters, particularly in the mass-media. Sex is a large part of Second Life's economy, because sex is a large part of every economy. Another area where virtual environments are criticized is their intangibility. That people pay for outfits, houses and expensive sparkle ponies that serve little in the way of practical purposes and have no tangible existence.... [Read More]