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MMOG coins were first introduced from the popular game EverQuest (EQ) with its “platinum” currency, also known as “plat”. Since the early pioneers of selling plates on Ebay, many have discussed and disapproved of those who once bought plates online. I remember many gamers harassing others with obnoxious names like “newbie” and “ebayer”. It’s been over 5 years that everyone has been discussing whether the MMOG money trading secondary market would ever be accepted.
Since the introduction of EverQuest Platinum, there were probably over 70% of players who didn’t even consider buying plates and discriminated against those who did. To this day, the numbers have been extraordinarily reduced. Around 40% of players now buy currencies, 30% still don’t like the idea and 30% of other players probably don’t care too much and may buy some in the near future.
Although online gaming currency is still a new trend for the online gaming community, it is becoming popular at a fast pace. By the end of 2010, I think even the publishers themselves will support the founding of the secondary market. Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) has now started their own EverQuest 2 gold auction system and plans to start a new MMORPG where they intend to sell coins and items themselves. With your support, I am confident that the secondary market will be accepted for a period of time.
The secondary market is just as successful as the primary. With the launch of World of Warcraft (WoW), there are now over 4.5 million subscribers. The vast majority of those players are probably new to the world of MMORPGs. A large increase in subscribers means much more potential for the secondary market. So far, WoW gold has been the best-selling product of the year and maybe for a few years to come.
With the high demand, many players have even started a career where they collect money, items, and other virtual assets and sell them to players or stores that can buy them at wholesale price and resell them to individuals.
The secondary market one day may even be bigger than the primary. Many players today probably spend more on purchasing currency, items, and equipment than their subscription fee. The publishers themselves cannot even deny the fact that there is a lot of money to be made on the secondary market and I am sure that over a long period of time they will sell their virtual assets themselves. As for whether players will support it or not, I think it’s only a matter of time before it’s accepted, of course there will always be some who don’t like the idea.