Virtual economies mean virtual markets.
This article from The Economist reviews Synthetic Worlds: The Business and Culture of Online Games, and in particular looks at the very real economies developing in these online worlds.
The assets in these worlds are no less real that many of the trillions of dollars and euros of derivative assets traded daily in the world’s financial markets. Who is to say that the exchange rate for Everquest money vs USD or EUR is any less real than the EUR/USD rate? The opportunities to facilitate trading in and management of these assets are significant and will certainly only grow going forward.
Full disclosure: I’ve never played one of these online games (my real life is already virtual enough!) but I fully understand why they might enjoy such popularity and it doesn’t limit my ability to appreciate the realness of these places.
In my view however, the semantic bias and frames of most people do not allow them to make this philosophical leap.
Games are games. Business is business. Etc.
I don’t agree.
