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Earning Virtual Currency on your Credit Cards
ptorrone wrote to mention an article on the MAKE blog, where the author theorizes that perhaps someday instead of frequent flyer miles we'll get WoW gold or EQ plat as a reward for using our credit cards. From the article: "It's not a matter of if, just when - credit card companies, Pay Pal, Amazon, eBay and the individual "gaming" companies eventually bridge the real and virtual currencies with loyalty programs and private label credit cards - there's too much money out there to -not- to do this. This 'demographic' is the battleground. The more you spend, the more you earn, sorta. Virtual $ isn't a crappy electronics doo-dad, it's just a number in a computer. Maybe you'll get some discounted airline tickets when you hit level 60 too, you deserve it! Earn your way to a new graphics card, why not."
Virtual $ isn't a crappy electronics doo-dad, it's just a number in a computer.
Dollars, and any other fiat money are too. Just cause it's printed and you can carry some in your wallet doesn't give it any intrinsic value - only the one that we agree to give it.
Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known. -- Carl Sagan
If this happens, it will make it even more likely that the IRS actually weighs in on the issue of the taxability of items obtained through online gameplay. There was a story on NPR's Marketplace a few weeks back about the fact that if you work and obtain something in payment that can be exchanged for money, you owe income tax on it, even if you don't sell it. Since eBay clearly establishes a value for a single piece of WoW gold, you are liable for income tax on that $0.05 you've earned when you sell that BoE item in the auction house or when you loot it. Do you claim the value of your WoW gold as miscellaneous income?
Note: I am not a tax lawyer, and this is not to be interpreted as tax or legal advice. Contact the IRS if you have any further questions.
This sounds like a really bad financial move, considering the stability of online systems' finances. What happens when you buy $2000 worth of computer equipment on your card, only to have WoW roll back to before you made the purchase and wipe out your side earnings? Until online currency has the same financial and legal protections as true currency, stay away. No thanks.