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Zynga's CityVille, Virtual Currency and Air Miles
To learn more about social gaming and the game mechanics used, a group of us got together and played CityVille for a while. Besides the social/gaming aspects of these games, something else struck me: the similarity between virtual currency in these games, and reward programs such as Air Miles. Here's my theory: Air Miles is a Virtual Currency - it's only the context that differs.
Air Miles as a Reward Program
So Air Miles is a reward program. I buy more flights with BA (say), and I get more air miles from BA that I can put towards decreasing the cost of another flight. The more I fly, the more air miles are rewarded to me, the more I save on another flight.
Virtual Goods
Virtual goods are often considered as "non-physical objects" with no intrinsic value. I'm not quite sure that definition will continue to hold. More and more these goods will hold real value - but no matter.
Virtual Currency
I need a currency with which to purchase virtual goods - and folk call this a virtual currency. Again, I think this definition will not stand the test of time. Think of the real monetary value attached to virtual land in Second Life for example. These virtual goods are not without intrinsic value.
Getting back to the theory: In CityVille, I can earn two types of virtual currency:
- Coins are easily generated within the game - if you play reasonably well, you'll get a reasonable supply of coins with which you can buy a host of virtual goods. Of course, I can use real-world money to buy Coins too. That saves me time. Time is money, literally.
- Cash is not so easily generated - and some virtual goods require Cash. To be competitive, I would guess folk would have to buy Cash with real money.
The point though is that I have to probably exchange real money to get virtual money to buy virtual goods.
A Parallel: Air Miles is a Virtual Currency
So here's a theory: Air Miles is a Virtual Currency.
- I can earn air miles/virtual currency by "playing the game" - this is obvious on CityVille. I think it's not a stretch of the imagination to consider buying and flying on British Airways as a game.
- I can buy air miles/virtual currency with real money. One can buy Zynga Cash, and one can buy Air Miles.
- I can spend air miles/virtual currency to increase my enjoyment/satisfaction/gifting/status.
Context is the Name of the Game
The only difference is context. Every game has a context. The context of CityVille is almost exclusively constrained to the virtual game. Not completely - and surely this will change. Big brands are going to move into these games, and we're going to see a virtual/real world exchange that's just not there yet on CityVille.
The context of Air Miles is constrained as well - I have a set of ways in which I can earn air miles (using a particular credit card, shopping at a particular shop, flying a particular air line) and spend it in particular ways (travel, primarily).
I believe we need to think of all of these things holistically. Just because one virtual currency is on a computer screen and lets me buy something somewhat more intangible than a cruise to Barbados, doesn't mean that it's fundamentally different.
Side Note: Air Miles Doing Better
If you think of other reward programs (American Express and other credit cards, your shopping reward card from Tesco or Sainsburys or wherever, etc.) as games in different contexts, with virtual currencies, then it begs the question: why are so many of them so bad.
Zynga has a staggering number of users. Staggering. Why? Not because the core game is amazing and delightful. It's not - it's reasonably simple. But what it does have are some great game mechanics, the social ones in particular.
Why doesn't Air Miles have a strong social aspect? Why can't they? Aren't they losing out big time. It's going to come - it's just a matter of time. When it does, we're going to see a delightful cross-pollination. You can now buy virtual goods in Zynga's games with American Express rewards for example.
What's missing is the injection of the social aspects into the credit cards, air miles and other reward schemes.
