File this one in the "it's about time" file.
SOE has finally stepped into the digital goods arena with Station Exchange. The auction site, due for launch in June, will let players swap in-game goods for real-world money in a secure environment. J Allard's GDC keynote presented a microtransaction system where the publisher can, potentially, reap the rewards of an MMOG. But we're not talking next-gen possibilities here — we're talking about mega money to be made right now.
People have been selling EQ's digital goods on eBay for years. Every sale of an item looks like opportunity lost to SOE. We're talking millions of bucks here. To make matters worse, unhappy players who are ripped off on eBay swamp SOE's CSR team as a last resort. It's not a pretty picture. But, if the initiative works, things are about to be real, real pretty for Sony.
