From Asia Times:
Having passionately embraced blogging, bulletin boards (BBS) and MMORPG (massively multi-player online role-playing games), China’s burgeoning Internet population will soon have an array of three-dimensional virtual worlds and 3D social networks in which to work and play. By the end of 2011, 80% of global Internet users will be involved in some kind of web-based virtual activity. That would give China a virtual population bigger than the entire population of Mexico or the Philippines.
Driven by increased broadband penetration and rising incomes, online entertainment in China is a huge and rapidly growing industry. Revenue from online gaming alone totaled 6.5 billion yuan (US$840 million) last year, according to market researcher IDC. As MMORPG culture is already deeply embedded among Chinese netizens, and many players are accustomed to “repatriating” currency earned online to real life, 3D startups are expecting virtual “culture shock” to be minimal, especially when it comes to cyber-money transactions. [Full Text]
