If Facebook applications like Farmville and Mafia Wars make your skin crawl, you may want to look away. Facebook has announced that its Facebook Credit Gift Cards are now on sale at retail giants such as Wal-Mart, Best Buy, and Target. Credits are essentially virtual money to spend on virtual games and gifts, purchased with real hard-earned cash. Until now, credits could only be purchased online through credit card, PayPal or mobile phone payment, but Facebook has figured out a way to reach more users by selling at brick and mortar locations.
According to a survey amongst social gamers, performed by Information Services Group, the average social gamer is a 43-year old woman. This may come as a shock, as many people picture the average gamer as a thirteen year-old boy (which is funny because the average gamer is now 35 years old), but it does make sense. Kids don’t have access to the electronic payment methods required to purchase non-existent goods in social games like Farmville. This trend may see a drastic change as younger people gain access to Facebook Credits via retail stores.
Not surprisingly, this announcement comes just in time for the holiday shopping season. Currently, there are nearly two-hundred applications built into Facebook that accept “Facebook Credits.” Considering Farmville alone currently has over 60 million active users, this could mean huge profits for Facebook. Mashable.com reports that by 2013, global sales of virtual goods should exceed $6 billion, up from an estimated $2.2 billion in 2009. For a nation that is slowly pulling itself out of a recession, it seems surprising that people are willing to spend so much money on nonexistent items.
Are there any social gamers on your shopping list this holiday season?
