Online Game Sweat Shops

November 12, 2007 · Filed Under MMORPG News, Musings, Online

Maybe you’ve heard it before, that there are “sweatshops” mostly in Asia (China in particular) that offer leveling, farming services or selling of gold and items. WoW is the most in-demand game for this.

While the managers and the companies running these sweatshops make millions of dollars every year, a typical employee who does the dirty work takes home only around $150 a month.

These operations are vast and pressure is toxic. But some of those who are in this “gray market” admit that they are helping poor kids earn a little something.

In an article by James Lee at 1up.com, he said that “for every reseller of gold, there’s a wholesaler who supplies it to gamers with real money to burn”.

The real money is made by the people with the resources and the right programs. Rich Thurman earned $100,000 by farming 9 billion gold in Ultima Online. A longtime user of the macro easyUO, Thurman says he had “up to 30 PCs running at once, automatically collecting gold for me.”

More details after the jump

The “workers” working in these sweatshops do 12-hour days and seldom get holidays or even days off. They get paid real low. But the demand for these “gray services” continue to rise.

A manager describes how he “helped” a boy in Romania; Adrian2001, a manager for Gamer’s Loot, says of his hiring process, “Trust is most important.” He gives an example: “I have one boy here [in Romania] that raises goats. So imagine someone who has never seen a PC in his life. I hired the boy because his family is very poor, and he is honest. I tested him by putting money where he might notice it. The money never moved from the spot. I do that with everyone I hire.”

For all the so-called virtual sweatshops discovered, a lot of these young men and boys don’t mind their jobs, and they aren’t exactly working in sweatshop conditions. There’s a world of difference between making sneakers and watching bots fight all day. However, they are underpaid, or as Smooth Criminal puts it, “They get paid dirt. But dirt is good where they live.”

Here in the Philippines, RMT and sweatshops have taken a new approach. We call it “piloting”. Rich gamers hire a gamer to control their account so that it levels and farms almost 24/7. There are different “packages”. Some are paid by the day, by the week or based on a “contract” or goal. Piloting has become an underground business and this calls for investigative journalism on my part so that I can know of the exact details and share the story.

Meanwhile, RMT and sweatshops will continue. That is a given. As long as there is demand for items, game cash and leveling, these “gray” businesses are here to stay.

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Comments

3 Responses to “Online Game Sweat Shops”

valfogg on November 12th, 2007 4:24 pm

the thing is with sweatshops, the workers have a daily quota.

you dont reach the quota of how much gold you earned in a day, you get paid even lower.
» Online Game Sweat Shops - New Gadget Pro on November 12th, 2007 8:41 pm

[…] (more…) […]
Anna on November 12th, 2007 8:50 pm

I’ve always thought games have something more to them. I’d personally prefer calling it “black” market rather than “gray” businesses hehe.