Gold farming
Encyclopedia
Gold farming is playing a massively multiplayer online game
to acquire in-game currency which is then sold to other players. People in China and in other developing nations have held full-time employment as gold farmers.
While most game operators expressly ban the practice of selling in-game currency for real-world cash, gold farming is lucrative because it takes advantage of economic inequality
and the fact that much time is needed to earn in-game currency. Rich, developed country
players, wishing to save many hours of playing time, may be willing to pay substantial sums to the developing country
gold farmers.
and PayPal
to sell each other items and gold from Ultima Online
and Lineage, the sale of in-game currency has become increasingly more commercialized with the growing popularity of massively multiplayer online game
s.
Today's gold farming may have its origins in the MMORPG Lineage, where it was known as "adena-farming" as "adena" is the currency of Lineage. 2001 reports describe Korean cybercafes being converted into gold farming operations to serve domestic demand. This model seems to have been outsourced
to China to initially serve Korean and Western players, with full-time gold farmers working long hours in cybercafes. This type of operation experienced swift growth circa 2004. In 2011, The Guardian
reported that prisoners in Chinese labor camps were forced to engage in gold farming for the benefit of prison authorities.
Academic studies of gold farming reveal that the social networks of gold farmers are similar to those of drug dealers.
In 2005 The New York Times
stated that there were over 100,000 professional, full-time gold farmers in China alone. And in 2006 sales of such virtual good
s were thought to amount to somewhere between 200 and 900 million USD.
Another estimate, drawn from 2005/2006 data, valued the market at not less than USD200 million per year and suggested that over 150,000 people were employed as gold farmers with average monthly earnings of USD145. This same report estimated that 80% of all gold farmers were from China a fact which has led to prejudice towards Chinese players. 2008 figures from the Chinese State
valued the Chinese trade in virtual currency at over several billion yuan
, or nearly USD300 million.
and is grounds for a ban
.
s can have real value, some governments have taken action in this area.
n Government stated normal earned income rules also apply to income from the sale of virtual goods.
to buy real-world items in 2009 but not the reverse.
for real money is legal in the country although subject to taxation.
, the makers of FarmVille
, successfully sued to stop online sales of its in-game currency.
Jagex
, the makers of RuneScape
, have engaged in actions against several gold farmers and bot programmers including lawsuits.
's 2011 novel Reamde
has a plot centered on T'Rain, an online game that encourages gold farming, but whose players become vulnerable to losing control of their own data after being infected by the REAMDE "ransomware" virus, written by gold farmers who aspire to a higher-stakes income model.
Cory Doctorow
's 2010 novel For The Win
is based around gold farming and the fictional growth of unionisation among workers in developing country economies.
Alan Harris
's radio play The Gold Farmer was broadcast on BBC Radio 3
as part of The Wire series on February 6, 2010. It features a man who plays an online role-playing game and whose next door neighbour is a gold farmer.
A 2006 art project by UBERMORGEN.COM
, Chinese Gold, used found video and machinima
to document and explore the Chinese gold farming phenomenon.
Massively multiplayer online game
A massively multiplayer online game is a multiplayer video game which is capable of supporting hundreds or thousands of players simultaneously. By necessity, they are played on the Internet, and usually feature at least one persistent world. They are, however, not necessarily games played on...
to acquire in-game currency which is then sold to other players. People in China and in other developing nations have held full-time employment as gold farmers.
While most game operators expressly ban the practice of selling in-game currency for real-world cash, gold farming is lucrative because it takes advantage of economic inequality
Economic inequality
Economic inequality comprises all disparities in the distribution of economic assets and income. The term typically refers to inequality among individuals and groups within a society, but can also refer to inequality among countries. The issue of economic inequality is related to the ideas of...
and the fact that much time is needed to earn in-game currency. Rich, developed country
Developed country
A developed country is a country that has a high level of development according to some criteria. Which criteria, and which countries are classified as being developed, is a contentious issue...
players, wishing to save many hours of playing time, may be willing to pay substantial sums to the developing country
Developing country
A developing country, also known as a less-developed country, is a nation with a low level of material well-being. Since no single definition of the term developing country is recognized internationally, the levels of development may vary widely within so-called developing countries...
gold farmers.
History
What began as a cottage industry in the late-nineties with players using eBayEBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
and PayPal
PayPal
PayPal is an American-based global e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Online money transfers serve as electronic alternatives to paying with traditional paper methods, such as checks and money orders....
to sell each other items and gold from Ultima Online
Ultima Online
Ultima Online is a graphical massively multiplayer online role-playing game , released on September 24, 1997, by Origin Systems. It was instrumental to the development of the genre, and is still running today...
and Lineage, the sale of in-game currency has become increasingly more commercialized with the growing popularity of massively multiplayer online game
Massively multiplayer online game
A massively multiplayer online game is a multiplayer video game which is capable of supporting hundreds or thousands of players simultaneously. By necessity, they are played on the Internet, and usually feature at least one persistent world. They are, however, not necessarily games played on...
s.
Today's gold farming may have its origins in the MMORPG Lineage, where it was known as "adena-farming" as "adena" is the currency of Lineage. 2001 reports describe Korean cybercafes being converted into gold farming operations to serve domestic demand. This model seems to have been outsourced
Outsourcing
Outsourcing is the process of contracting a business function to someone else.-Overview:The term outsourcing is used inconsistently but usually involves the contracting out of a business function - commonly one previously performed in-house - to an external provider...
to China to initially serve Korean and Western players, with full-time gold farmers working long hours in cybercafes. This type of operation experienced swift growth circa 2004. In 2011, The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
reported that prisoners in Chinese labor camps were forced to engage in gold farming for the benefit of prison authorities.
Academic studies of gold farming reveal that the social networks of gold farmers are similar to those of drug dealers.
Figures
While reliable figures for gold farming are hard to come by, there are some estimates of the market for in-game currency.In 2005 The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
stated that there were over 100,000 professional, full-time gold farmers in China alone. And in 2006 sales of such virtual good
Virtual good
Virtual goods are non-physical objects purchased for use in online communities or online games. They have no intrinsic value and are intangible by definition....
s were thought to amount to somewhere between 200 and 900 million USD.
Another estimate, drawn from 2005/2006 data, valued the market at not less than USD200 million per year and suggested that over 150,000 people were employed as gold farmers with average monthly earnings of USD145. This same report estimated that 80% of all gold farmers were from China a fact which has led to prejudice towards Chinese players. 2008 figures from the Chinese State
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
valued the Chinese trade in virtual currency at over several billion yuan
Renminbi
The Renminbi is the official currency of the People's Republic of China . Renminbi is legal tender in mainland China, but not in Hong Kong or Macau. It is issued by the People's Bank of China, the monetary authority of the PRC...
, or nearly USD300 million.
Rules and enforcement
In virtually all online games gold farming is specifically prohibited by the game's EULA or terms of serviceTerms of service
Terms of service are rules which one must agree to abide by in order to use a service. Unless in violation of consumer protection laws, such terms are usually legally binding...
and is grounds for a ban
Block (internet)
On the Internet, a block is a technical measure intended to restrict access to information or resources. Blocks should not be confused with bans, although they are often used to enforce a ban.-Effects of blocks:...
.
Law, regulation and taxation
Awakening to the idea that virtual goodVirtual good
Virtual goods are non-physical objects purchased for use in online communities or online games. They have no intrinsic value and are intangible by definition....
s can have real value, some governments have taken action in this area.
Australia
In 2006 a spokesperson for the AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Government stated normal earned income rules also apply to income from the sale of virtual goods.
China
The Chinese State banned using virtual currencyVirtual currency
Virtual currency is used to purchase virtual goods within a variety of online communities; which include social networking websites, virtual worlds and online gaming sites....
to buy real-world items in 2009 but not the reverse.
Japan
In response to increases in gold farming, in 2006 the Japanese Government urged the industry to self-regulate as well as vowing to investigate this species of fraud.Korea
A Korean high court's 2010 ruling means that exchanging virtual currencyVirtual currency
Virtual currency is used to purchase virtual goods within a variety of online communities; which include social networking websites, virtual worlds and online gaming sites....
for real money is legal in the country although subject to taxation.
US
A US Congressional committee investigated taxation of virtual assets and incomes in 2006, and the IRS has, in its National Taxpayer Advocate's 2008 Annual Report to Congress, expressed concern that virtual worlds are a growing source of tax noncompliance.Lawsuits
ZyngaZynga
Zynga is a social network game developer located in San Francisco, United States. The company develops browser-based games that work both stand-alone and as application widgets on social networking websites such as Facebook and MySpace....
, the makers of FarmVille
FarmVille
FarmVille is a farming simulation social network game developed by Zynga in 2009. It is similar to Happy Farm, Farm Town,, and older games such as the Harvest Moon series...
, successfully sued to stop online sales of its in-game currency.
Jagex
Jagex
Jagex Games Studio, based in Cambridge, is the UK’s largest independent developer and publisher of online games. Jagex is best known for RuneScape, the world's largest free-to-play MMORPG....
, the makers of RuneScape
RuneScape
RuneScape is a fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing game released in January 2001 by Andrew and Paul Gower, and developed and published by Jagex Games Studio. It is a graphical browser game implemented on the client-side in Java, and incorporates 3D rendering...
, have engaged in actions against several gold farmers and bot programmers including lawsuits.
In the media
Neal StephensonNeal Stephenson
Neal Town Stephenson is an American writer known for his works of speculative fiction.Difficult to categorize, his novels have been variously referred to as science fiction, historical fiction, cyberpunk, and postcyberpunk...
's 2011 novel Reamde
Reamde
Reamde is a speculative fiction novel by Neal Stephenson, published in 2011. The story, set in the present day, centers on the plight of a hostage and the ensuing efforts of family and new acquaintances, many of them associated with a fictional MMORPG, to rescue her as her various captors drag her...
has a plot centered on T'Rain, an online game that encourages gold farming, but whose players become vulnerable to losing control of their own data after being infected by the REAMDE "ransomware" virus, written by gold farmers who aspire to a higher-stakes income model.
Cory Doctorow
Cory Doctorow
Cory Efram Doctorow is a Canadian-British blogger, journalist, and science fiction author who serves as co-editor of the blog Boing Boing. He is an activist in favour of liberalising copyright laws and a proponent of the Creative Commons organization, using some of their licences for his books...
's 2010 novel For The Win
For the Win
For The Win is the second young adult science fiction novel by Canadian author Cory Doctorow. It was released in May 2010. The novel is available free on the author's website as a Creative Commons download, and is also published in traditional paper form by Tor Books.The book is centered around...
is based around gold farming and the fictional growth of unionisation among workers in developing country economies.
Alan Harris
Alan Harris
Alan Harris is a Welsh playwright. His play A Good Night Out in the Valleys launched the new National Theatre Wales in March 2010 and he has worked with theatre companies throughout the United Kingdom....
's radio play The Gold Farmer was broadcast on BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
as part of The Wire series on February 6, 2010. It features a man who plays an online role-playing game and whose next door neighbour is a gold farmer.
A 2006 art project by UBERMORGEN.COM
Ubermorgen
UBERMORGEN.COM is a swiss-austrian-american artist duo founded in 1995 by lizvlx and Hans Bernhard. They live and work in Vienna, Basel and S-Chanf near St...
, Chinese Gold, used found video and machinima
Machinima
Machinima is the use of real-time 3D computer graphics rendering engines to create a cinematic production. Most often, video games are used to generate the computer animation...
to document and explore the Chinese gold farming phenomenon.
See also
- Gold farming in the People's Republic of ChinaGold farming in the People's Republic of ChinaGold farming in the People's Republic of China is more pervasive than in any other country, as 80% of all gold farmers are in mainland China, with a total of 100,000 full-time gold farmers in the country as of 2005. Gold farming in China is done in Internet cafes, abandoned warehouses, small...
- Powerleveling
- Virtual currencyVirtual currencyVirtual currency is used to purchase virtual goods within a variety of online communities; which include social networking websites, virtual worlds and online gaming sites....
- Virtual goodVirtual goodVirtual goods are non-physical objects purchased for use in online communities or online games. They have no intrinsic value and are intangible by definition....
External links
- Current Analysis and Future Research Agenda on "Gold Farming": Real-World Production in Developing Countries for the Virtual Economies of Online Games Richard Heeks, Development Informatics Group IDPM, SED, University of Manchester, UK - 2008
- Gold Farmers - Website of Ge Jin, a PhD student from UCSD who made a video documentary of gold farming in rural and suburban China.