A glimpse into the future: China and virtual economies

Two interesting sidebar pieces in the SF Chronicle this morning offer a glimpse into the future of the online world (though I can't find either on their web site):  

1. The Chinese Internet population reached 111 million people, growing by 17 million in 2005.  That's over 46,000 people a day.  Of course, the density of the activity is in the cities.  And I'm sure the mobile device adoption plays a huge role in those figures.  Regardless, things are moving fast in Asia.
2. PC Gamer announced that they are no longer accepting advertising from "gold farmers", brokers and resellers of virtual gaming currencies and high-powered players.  Throwing out an advertising revenue stream requires a deep philosohpical divide, which means there's also enough momentum from this economy to cause a real threat to the current state of play.

There's no doubt that both of these forces are going to be much more potent ingredients to the Internet mix in the coming years.

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