<s>
Gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
is	O
the	O
practice	O
of	O
playing	O
a	O
massively	B-Application
multiplayer	I-Application
online	I-Application
game	I-Application
(	O
MMO	O
)	O
to	O
acquire	O
in-game	B-Application
currency	I-Application
,	O
later	O
selling	O
it	O
for	O
real-world	O
money	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
is	O
distinct	O
from	O
other	O
practices	O
in	O
online	O
multiplayer	O
games	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
power	O
leveling	O
,	O
as	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
refers	O
specifically	O
to	O
harvesting	O
in-game	B-Application
currency	I-Application
,	O
not	O
rank	O
or	O
experience	O
points	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
actual	O
labor	O
mechanics	O
of	O
these	O
practices	O
may	O
be	O
similar	O
,	O
and	O
those	O
who	O
hold	O
employment	O
as	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
may	O
also	O
work	O
as	O
power	O
levelers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
most	O
game	O
operators	O
ban	O
the	O
practice	O
of	O
selling	O
in-game	B-Application
currency	I-Application
for	O
real-world	O
cash	O
,	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
is	O
lucrative	O
because	O
it	O
takes	O
advantage	O
of	O
economic	O
inequality	O
and	O
the	O
fact	O
much	O
time	O
is	O
needed	O
to	O
earn	O
in-game	B-Application
currency	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Rich	O
players	O
from	O
developed	O
countries	O
,	O
wishing	O
to	O
save	O
many	O
hours	O
of	O
playing	O
time	O
,	O
are	O
willing	O
to	O
pay	O
substantial	O
sums	O
to	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
from	O
developing	O
countries	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
What	O
began	O
as	O
a	O
cottage	O
industry	O
in	O
the	O
late	O
1990s	O
became	O
increasingly	O
more	O
commercialized	O
in	O
the	O
2000s	O
with	O
the	O
growing	O
popularity	O
of	O
massively	B-Application
multiplayer	I-Application
online	I-Application
games	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
in	O
the	O
past	O
players	O
used	O
eBay	B-Application
and	O
PayPal	O
to	O
sell	O
each	O
other	O
items	O
and	O
gold	O
from	O
games	O
like	O
Ultima	B-Protocol
Online	I-Protocol
and	O
Lineage	B-Protocol
,	O
contemporary	O
,	O
commercialized	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
may	O
have	O
its	O
origins	O
in	O
South	O
Korea	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
2001	O
reports	O
describe	O
Korean	O
cybercafes	O
being	O
converted	O
into	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
operations	O
to	O
serve	O
domestic	O
demand	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
model	O
,	O
with	O
full-time	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
working	O
long	O
hours	O
in	O
cybercafes	O
,	O
was	O
outsourced	B-Architecture
to	O
China	O
and	O
initially	O
served	O
demand	O
from	O
Korean	O
players	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
in	O
China	O
was	O
experiencing	O
swift	O
growth	O
c	O
.	O
2004	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2011	O
,	O
The	O
Guardian	O
reported	O
that	O
prisoners	O
in	O
some	O
Chinese	O
re-education	O
camps	O
were	O
forced	O
to	O
engage	O
in	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
for	O
the	O
benefit	O
of	O
prison	O
authorities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Academic	O
studies	O
of	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
have	O
revealed	O
that	O
the	O
social	O
networks	O
of	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
are	O
similar	O
to	O
those	O
of	O
drug	O
dealers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Similar	O
to	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
,	O
people	O
may	O
be	O
hired	O
to	O
level	O
up	O
in-game	O
avatars	B-Application
by	O
harvesting	O
experience	O
points	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
reliable	O
figures	O
for	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
are	O
hard	O
to	O
come	O
by	O
,	O
there	O
are	O
some	O
estimates	O
of	O
the	O
market	O
for	O
in-game	B-Application
currency	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2005	O
,	O
The	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
estimated	O
that	O
there	O
were	O
over	O
100,000	O
full-time	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
in	O
China	O
alone	O
,	O
and	O
by	O
2009	O
the	O
number	O
had	O
increased	O
to	O
one	O
million	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
And	O
in	O
2006	O
–	O
2007	O
,	O
"	O
the	O
market	O
"	O
(	O
whatever	O
it	O
means	O
)	O
for	O
such	O
virtual	B-General_Concept
goods	I-General_Concept
was	O
thought	O
to	O
amount	O
to	O
somewhere	O
between	O
US$300	O
million	O
and	O
US$900	O
million	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
estimate	O
,	O
drawn	O
from	O
2005/2006	O
data	O
,	O
valued	O
the	O
market	O
at	O
not	O
less	O
than	O
US$200	O
million	O
per	O
year	O
and	O
suggested	O
that	O
over	O
150,000	O
people	O
were	O
employed	O
as	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
with	O
average	O
monthly	O
earnings	O
of	O
US$145	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
same	O
report	O
estimated	O
that	O
80-85	O
%	O
of	O
all	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
were	O
from	O
China	O
,	O
a	O
fact	O
which	O
has	O
led	O
to	O
prejudice	O
towards	O
Chinese	O
players	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
game	O
developers	O
expressly	O
ban	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
in	O
their	O
game	O
's	O
EULA	O
or	O
terms	O
of	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
order	O
to	O
combat	O
this	O
,	O
game	O
developers	O
such	O
as	O
Blizzard	O
and	O
ArenaNet	O
are	O
attempting	O
to	O
discourage	O
third-party	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
by	O
implementing	O
official	O
real-money	O
transaction	O
systems	O
within	O
their	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
in	O
2015	O
,	O
Blizzard	O
implemented	O
in-game	B-Application
items	I-Application
and	O
tokens	O
that	O
cost	O
players	O
real	O
money	O
to	O
purchase	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
can	O
then	O
be	O
auctioned	O
off	O
to	O
other	O
players	O
for	O
in-game	B-Application
currencies	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
and	O
power	O
leveling	O
can	O
affect	O
a	O
game	O
's	O
economy	O
by	O
causing	O
inflation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
the	O
crisis	O
in	O
Venezuela	O
,	O
Venezuelans	O
became	O
gold-farmers	B-Protocol
and	O
could	O
be	O
seen	O
playing	O
online	O
video	O
games	O
such	O
as	O
RuneScape	B-Protocol
to	O
sell	O
in-game	B-Application
currency	I-Application
or	O
characters	O
for	O
real	O
currency	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
governments	O
,	O
perhaps	O
recognizing	O
that	O
current	O
regulatory	O
systems	O
may	O
be	O
ill-suited	O
to	O
address	O
activities	O
such	O
as	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
,	O
have	O
made	O
statements	O
concerning	O
the	O
sale	O
of	O
virtual	B-General_Concept
goods	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2006	O
,	O
a	O
spokesperson	O
for	O
the	O
Australian	O
Government	O
stated	O
normal	O
earned	O
income	O
rules	O
also	O
apply	O
to	O
income	O
from	O
the	O
sale	O
of	O
virtual	B-General_Concept
goods	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
in	O
China	O
is	O
more	O
pervasive	O
than	O
in	O
any	O
other	O
country	O
,	O
as	O
80%	O
of	O
all	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
are	O
in	O
mainland	O
China	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
total	O
of	O
100,000	O
full-time	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
in	O
the	O
country	O
as	O
of	O
2005	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
in	O
China	O
is	O
done	O
in	O
Internet	O
cafes	O
,	O
abandoned	O
warehouses	O
,	O
small	O
offices	O
,	O
private	O
homes	O
and	O
even	O
"	O
re-education	O
through	O
labor	O
"	O
camps	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Prisoners	O
in	O
Laogai	O
camps	O
have	O
been	O
forced	O
to	O
engage	O
in	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
for	O
the	O
financial	O
benefit	O
of	O
prison	O
authorities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
popular	O
massively	B-Protocol
multiplayer	I-Protocol
online	I-Protocol
role-playing	I-Protocol
game	I-Protocol
subject	O
to	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
in	O
China	O
is	O
World	B-Protocol
of	I-Protocol
Warcraft	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
to	O
increases	O
in	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
,	O
in	O
2006	O
the	O
Japanese	O
Government	O
urged	O
the	O
computer	O
game	O
industry	O
to	O
self-regulate	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
vowing	O
to	O
investigate	O
this	O
species	O
of	O
fraud	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
in	O
2012	O
this	O
practice	O
was	O
set	O
to	O
be	O
banned	O
alongside	O
a	O
raft	O
of	O
other	O
means	O
to	O
cheat	O
in	O
games	O
,	O
and	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
could	O
face	O
stiff	O
penalties	O
—	O
up	O
to	O
$	O
45,000	O
in	O
fines	O
and	O
five	O
years	O
in	O
jail	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
United	O
States	O
Congressional	O
committee	O
investigated	O
taxation	O
of	O
virtual	O
assets	O
and	O
incomes	O
derived	O
from	O
them	O
in	O
2006	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
IRS	B-Application
has	O
,	O
in	O
its	O
National	O
Taxpayer	O
Advocate	O
's	O
2008	O
Annual	O
Report	O
to	O
Congress	O
,	O
expressed	O
concern	O
that	O
virtual	O
worlds	O
are	O
a	O
growing	O
source	O
of	O
tax	O
noncompliance	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Due	O
to	O
hyperinflation	O
in	O
Venezuela	O
and	O
the	O
devalued	O
Venezuelan	O
currency	O
,	O
popular	O
MMOs	O
like	O
Runescape	B-Protocol
and	O
Tibia	B-Protocol
have	O
been	O
subject	O
to	O
mass	O
gold	O
mining	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Reddit	B-Application
,	O
a	O
user	O
published	O
a	O
racially	O
abusive	O
guide	O
on	O
how	O
to	O
kill	O
Venezuelans	O
in	O
the	O
“	O
player-v-player	O
”	O
places	O
where	O
the	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
takes	O
place	O
;	O
the	O
guide	O
was	O
followed	O
by	O
intemperate	O
comments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Considering	O
many	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
utilize	O
Bitcoin	B-Protocol
as	O
an	O
intermediate	O
currency	O
,	O
regulation	O
or	O
taxation	O
is	O
n't	O
feasible	O
at	O
the	O
moment	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
the	O
2019	O
Venezuelan	O
blackouts	O
,	O
RuneScape	B-Protocol
's	O
trading	O
market	O
suffered	O
a	O
"	O
economic	O
crisis	O
"	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
reduced	O
number	O
of	O
goods	O
,	O
as	O
Venezuelans	O
could	O
not	O
access	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Zynga	O
,	O
the	O
makers	O
of	O
FarmVille	B-Application
,	O
filed	O
a	O
lawsuit	O
to	O
stop	O
online	O
sales	O
of	O
its	O
in-game	B-Application
currency	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Jagex	O
,	O
the	O
makers	O
of	O
RuneScape	B-Protocol
,	O
have	O
engaged	O
in	O
legal	O
actions	O
against	O
several	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
and	O
bot	B-Protocol
programmers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
February	O
1	O
,	O
2008	O
,	O
Blizzard	O
Entertainment	O
,	O
the	O
makers	O
of	O
World	B-Protocol
of	I-Protocol
Warcraft	I-Protocol
,	O
won	O
a	O
lawsuit	O
against	O
In	O
Game	O
Dollar	O
,	O
trading	O
under	O
the	O
name	O
Peons4Hire	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
business	O
producing	O
avatars	B-Application
and	O
in-game	B-Application
currency	I-Application
in	O
MMORPGs	B-Protocol
is	O
sometimes	O
labelled	O
a	O
game	B-Protocol
sweatshop	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Workers	O
employed	O
by	O
these	O
companies	O
either	O
collect	O
in-game	B-Application
currency	I-Application
(	O
known	O
as	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
)	O
or	O
generate	O
high-level	O
avatars	B-Application
(	O
known	O
as	O
power	O
leveling	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Such	O
organizations	O
are	O
referred	O
to	O
as	O
sweatshops	O
because	O
the	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
are	O
usually	O
paid	O
very	O
low	O
wages	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
has	O
been	O
discussed	O
as	O
a	O
tool	O
for	O
socioeconomic	O
development	O
by	O
the	O
United	O
Kingdom	O
's	O
Department	O
for	O
International	O
Development	O
and	O
University	O
of	O
Manchester	O
professor	O
Richard	O
Heeks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Gold	B-Protocol
farmers	I-Protocol
receive	O
a	O
higher	O
percentage	O
of	O
sale	O
revenue	O
from	O
their	O
work	O
than	O
do	O
farmers	O
of	O
fair	O
trade	O
coffee	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Neal	O
Stephenson	O
's	O
2011	O
novel	O
Reamde	O
has	O
a	O
plot	O
centered	O
on	O
an	O
online	O
game	O
that	O
encourages	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Cory	O
Doctorow	O
's	O
2004	O
short	O
story	O
Anda	O
's	O
Game	O
,	O
2010	O
novel	O
For	O
The	O
Win	O
,	O
and	O
2014	O
graphic	O
novel	O
In	O
Real	O
Life	O
(	O
based	O
on	O
his	O
short	O
story	O
,	O
Anda	O
's	O
Game	O
,	O
and	O
illustrated	O
by	O
Jen	O
Wang	O
)	O
include	O
references	O
to	O
gold	B-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Alan	O
Harris	O
's	O
radio	O
play	O
The	O
Gold	B-Protocol
Farmer	I-Protocol
was	O
broadcast	O
on	O
BBC	O
Radio	O
3	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
The	O
Wire	O
series	O
on	O
February	O
6	O
,	O
2010	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
features	O
a	O
man	O
who	O
plays	O
an	O
online	O
role-playing	O
game	O
and	O
whose	O
next	O
door	O
neighbour	O
is	O
a	O
gold	B-Protocol
farmer	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
2006	O
art	O
project	O
by	O
UBERMORGEN.COM	O
,	O
Chinese	O
Gold	O
,	O
used	O
found	O
video	O
and	O
machinima	O
to	O
document	O
and	O
explore	O
the	O
Chinese	B-Protocol
gold	I-Protocol
farming	I-Protocol
phenomenon	O
.	O
</s>
