New Scientist: "The court ruled that the games firm must return Hongchen's virtual belongings. The company was found liable because flaws in its servers had allowed the hacker to gain access to Hongchen's account. It has not been revealed whether the company must also pay out damages.
The court battle is the 'first virtual property rights dispute case' in China, says Xinhuanet. But the case is just another example of how the line between online games and the real world have begun to blur. Some gamers already trade game goods and characters for real money through online auction sites like eBay.
Edward Castronova, an economist at California State University at Fullerton, calculated that those playing the popular US game Everquest could make on average $3.42 an hour by simply playing the game.
Some companies have sought to exploit this phenomenon by developing games that integrate real money. Project Entropia, launched in January 2003, lets players buy equipment with money and exchange goods acquired through the game for real cash."
The court battle is the 'first virtual property rights dispute case' in China, says Xinhuanet. But the case is just another example of how the line between online games and the real world have begun to blur. Some gamers already trade game goods and characters for real money through online auction sites like eBay.
Edward Castronova, an economist at California State University at Fullerton, calculated that those playing the popular US game Everquest could make on average $3.42 an hour by simply playing the game.
Some companies have sought to exploit this phenomenon by developing games that integrate real money. Project Entropia, launched in January 2003, lets players buy equipment with money and exchange goods acquired through the game for real cash."
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