I saw this post about Virtual Goods and the 7 Deadly Sins on the Bizspark website and it got me curious. What kind of virtual goods can be out there for various websites. I have posted most of the article here because I want it quickly accessible to me as I do some strategic planning, but please go check it out at its source for the parts that I did not include here. The original author “Yi-Jian Ngo” and the original document.
Virtual goods represent another avenue for making money with consumer web services. They’re not a new concept – Chinese and Korean websites have been selling them for years. For most Americans though, they comes across as a trite silly – why on earth would anyone pay real money for something intangible?
Perhaps I can sum it up with some of the 7 Deadly Sins:
Pride. I’m fashionable and discerning, and see no reason why my on-screen avatar shouldn’t sport Gucci sunglasses, a Benetton jacket, a Prada handbag, Jimmy Choo shoes, an Akin Konizi haircut…
Gluttony. No, it is not enough that I have the Grand Obsidian Battleaxe of Turin. I too must have the Mystical Plate Armor of Elements, the Orthogonal Bow of Devastation, the Annihilator Amulet of the Convoker, the Bucolic Trousers of Nassau, the Preened Spatula of Valor…
Envy. Why should I settle for a lame screen name like michaeldn08 when all my friends have those cool premium handles like BoneCrusher and SkyWave?
Greed. Come let me show you my rare items collection – you see that complete set of limited edition icons? And those special Christmas angels – I got a different one for each of the last 4 years. And my turquoise crystal plant – you know you can only get that if you have at least 1 million karma points…
Wrath. So you think you’ve won, have you? Well, I’m going to hurl feral abuse at you, vandalize your profile and buy upgrades for my spaceship all the way to Allusion class. You just WATCH OUT… I’m so going to CRUSH YOU…
Sloth. I am way too busy watching television, besides, leveling up my character sounds too much like work. How much did you say a Level 60 Necromancer is again? Oh, and did you know I can issue game play instructions through my mobile phone for a small fee?
Whatever the motive, the fact remains that somewhere around $1.5B to $2.1B worth of virtual goods are sold each year. Virtual goods evangelist Susan Wu asserts that 70% of China-based Tencent’s $1B revenue derives from virtual goods. That’s a big pot of gold, which certainly should not be ignored by struggling consumer websites trying to stay afloat on online advertising fumes.
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