Analyzing the Impact of Game Vendors' Actions on the Monetary Value of Virtual Goods

Kay F. Hildebrand and Tim A. Majchrzak
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Kay F. Hildebrand: University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
Tim A. Majchrzak: Department for Information Systems, University of Münster, Münster, Germany

International Journal of E-Business Research (IJEBR), 2014, vol. 10, issue 1, 33-52

Abstract: Computer games have become an influential socio-economic phenomenon. Millions of people play online games regularly. At the same time, game vendors' revenues are increasing. As a new emergence, virtual (i.e. in-game) goods are traded for real money. However, not much research has been conducted on the monetary effects of virtual economies. Therefore, the authors present the theoretical background and a study aiming to understand how game vendors' actions reflect on the monetary value of virtual goods. The study is based on a huge dataset gained from Web shops that were monitored over a period of several months. The data was analysed in order to find out whether effects known from real economies apply to their virtual counterparts. A reset of the virtual economy allowed us to exactly follow price developments. The authors present and discuss their findings, as well as derive directions for future research.

Date: 2014
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:igg:jebr00:v:10:y:2014:i:1:p:33-52

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