Telstra has revealed the addition of almost one million new mobile services in the six months to December 2011, but Sensis revenues plummeted 24 percent in 12 months.
Gold farming
in order to buy virtual currency in the real world and then use it to
purchase weapons and status within online role-playing games is either
a Godsend or a curse, depending upon your view - the Chinese government
appears to have taken the latter opinion.
Gold farming is where virtual money is earned by playing a game, but is
then sold off for real money (to other players of the game) in the real
world. Virtual currency exchanges have been established, and a whole
economy built around the process.
Having already declared war on Internet porn and decided to install Internet censoring software called Green Dam on every new computer being sold, the Chinese authorities are now looking to control the virtual world.
A joint statement
from the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Commerce has
determined that virtual currencies cannot be traded in the real world.
The Chinese authorities have stated that "The virtual currency, which
is converted into real money at a certain exchange rate, will only be
allowed to trade in virtual goods and services provided by its issuer,
not real goods and services."
According to reports emerging from China, it appears that trading
virtual items within the boundaries of a virtual environment will
remain within the law. So those people who have established
businesses which create and sell virtual goods within games can sleep
soundly.
Some gamers are already rejoicing at the notion of so-called gold
farmers being removed from the game playing equation and a return to
the concept of how good you are at the game determining how far you
advance.
A few are dismayed at having the only option which allows them
to compete with the unemployed and professional gamers who spend their
entire lives immersed in a single virtual reality fantasy. However, the majority seem to be siding with this Chinese Internet ban for a change.
Whatever your opinion, with around 80 percent of gold farmers currently based in China, the days of this business model would appear to
be over. Which is not going to go down too well with those who have
been involved the farming business which the Chinese government estimates
is worth around USD $146 million per year.
David Bass
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