Speculation, Scarcity, and Social Media: Pricing Mechanisms in the CSGO Skin Economy

Mingzhe Zhang ()
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Mingzhe Zhang: Shanghai Starriver Bilingual School

A chapter in Proceedings of the 2026 11th International Conference on Financial Innovation and Economic Development (ICFIED 2026), 2026, pp 959-965 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract This paper aims to help people understand how the CSGO market works and how does it become a stuff that could be similar to futures. In the paper, the connections between the skin market and the futures were listed, also, specific examples could be found there. Next, this paper provides how social media affects such market. Especially how the words mentally controlled the players who wants to buy skins. There are also clear examples that have been happened within 5 years. The motivation is to provide an insight for the mechanism of such markets, generalizing the rules and proved analyzes to help beginners better understand the system. Examples like pro gamer S1mple, who made the skin price skyrocketed within one game, Kenny that shows their appreciation toward one skin also boost its price and the stock. Streamers also provides case opening service made the market keeping its heat within ten years. Those side effects helped the game involving more new players and better community atmosphere. Moreover, famous icons advertising this game made more people who don’t know it to start watching game plays and memes.

Keywords: CSGO Skin Economy; Pricing Mechanisms; Social Media (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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DOI: 10.2991/978-94-6239-642-5_101

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