Quote:
Originally posted by Bristlebane
I suppose he thinks it's a way to further the notion that it's "okay" to buy and sell things with real cash.
If anyone thinks he just bought it and re-upped the gold EZboard purely for benevolent purposes, you are a fucking moron.
Yantis sees it as a great advertisement, that's it. |
What, you don't think it's ok to buy and sell intangible things with real cash? Got news for you bud, you do it every days: its called services. You pay money so someone will prepare that cheeseburger for you instead of making dinner yourself, you pay money so someone will watch your kids for you in daycare while you work, and you pay your broker money to make you more money. If for some reason you think that Norrath, as a virtual construct, is somehow not allowed to be part of the real world economy in certain ways or have its economy interact with ours, you're in some kind of perverse denial.
With the rate that computers and computer technology are becoming integrated into our lives, you won't last long in the future if you take that attitude towards a piece of virtual property. If you think "real" money (what is money anyway? is the idea of currency in trade for goods and services "real"? what exactly does "real" mean in this case?) has no influence over virtual concepts and intellectual property, you need to read up on some basic economics my friend. Or you could just open your eyes and look at the world around you. Read the news maybe. It's good for you.
I know that ebaying accounts can lead to some high level characters being put into the hands of the inexperienced, and I agree that that isn't a fun thing to play alongside in game, but just accept it. It's not going to go away. Aside from that isolated case, the other forms of ebaying in relation to EQ really don't have that much of a negative effect at all, and may even make the in game economy healthier in some cases. Think of the high level melee that buys a high level shaman or cleric to duo with.. how in the hell does that hurt anyone? They already know how to play the game, they're just purchasing the ability to save time levelling up a bot. What about the L50 warrior who happens to be well off IRL and can afford a BoC. Is that akin to pissing in your cheerios somehow? Do you get upset on a deep level when you see someone driving past you in a Ferrari?
You think Verant really cares about the clause in the EULA that forbids the sale of Everquest property? As long as it's keeping them in extra profits from account subs, they're happy. That clause is only there so they have leverage IF they want to ban people for it for certain reasons.
And you're right, Yantis is likely just buying the board for advertising purposes. So what, he's not allowed to put in 1 tiny line of text to advertise his business? I've sold platinum to him before, spoken with him on the phone, and he's a good guy. Just trying to make an honest living with a business enterprise. Maybe he actually has an interest in keeping the monk community boards alive and popup free for a personal reason too? Perhaps he used to play a monk, who the fuck knows. He probably didn't, but it irks me how some people villify him instantly because of the nature of his business.
This mini-rant is directed towards all the people I've ever seen get their panties in a bunch over the concept of Ebay. I can't figure out what your malfunction is, but I bet it might have something to do with a basic lack of understanding of socioeconomic principles. Maybe, just maybe.