Switex & the World of Virtual Goods
In light of the exciting milestone that will be completed by Switex this week, namely the first live transaction over the platform, we thought it would be a good time to take a closer look at the incredibly interesting word of virtual goods as assets.
The worldwide gaming industry is absolutely enormous, with an estimated 2 billion active gamers driving its ongoing growth and scale. As you might expect from such a huge market where games are being played, there is also a great level of competition in this world. Gamers don’t just play for fun. Just as in their offline equivalents, gamers play to win and to be the best.
This desire to win, to be the best, and to get the most from the game, drives the virtual game items (or in-game items) market where gamers can buy and sell virtual items. Those who already hold sought after items can sell them, whilst those who would like to cut a couple of corners and swiftly boost-up their in-game prowess, can happily buy them. This is such a booming market place that revenues generated in the global games market in 2017 topped $108 billion.
A big problem encountered amongst all of this activity, however, is the fact that the trading of in-game items is not safe and gamers are often victims of scam or fraud. The reason for this is that most of the virtual goods trading websites offer trading without any concrete protection of gamers, as most of the websites simply rely on trust that the gamer will give the item he/she sold after obtaining cash or coins. This trust is often not repaid by unscrupulous scammers.
This environment presents a number of problems. The buyer rightfully feels angry at having been ripped off, and this anger often then gets vented at the game’s publisher. The knock-on effect goes even further now that the game publisher doesn’t want to sell their game on a site that is bringing it a negative reputation.
When you look at the numbers and realise that on a global basis virtual goods have a much higher average revenue per user (ARPU) than advertising revenue, it’s clear that a better system is needed to protect all players within the virtual game items ecosystem.
Our upcoming gaming and virtual goods platform, Switex, aims to do exactly this. By creating a safe and secure environment that both gamers and publishers can have complete trust in, Switex aims to revolutionise the industry. Both gamers and publishers will be empowered by Switex. And in a world where just a single game like League of Legends has generated over $1 billion in micro transactions, there really should be a better solution in place for all end users.
After the great success of the alpha mode of Switex at the start of 2018, the team has been working hard on honing the final touches before Switex goes fully live, most likely in April. This week’s milestone that will see the first live transaction completed over the Switex platform is just the first of what will be many as we look to make a real difference in the world of gaming and virtual goods. Not only that, but Switex will be assimilated into the wider NAGA Ecosystem, eventually combing, for the first time, the trillion dollar industries of gaming and trading.
The future is exciting. The future is Switex!
Visit: https://www.switex.io/
