Those who bet their jobs a few years ago on inside sales, remote sales, virtual sales, or sales in the cloud, still have their jobs.
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Meanwhile, kiosks allow a customer to chat with a virtual sales associate who can provide advice on such topics as how to install a new flat-screen television.
The popularity of social network games, like "Happy Farm" or "House Buying, " is growing rapidly in China, but virtual sales from these games still generate only modest revenues.
Virtual item sales include movies and music for digital download, as well as games and avatar accessories.
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PlayStation Home, a 3-D virtual world on PlayStation Network, also says its virtual goods sales are doing well.
FORBES: U.S. Virtual Goods Market Will Pass $2 Billion In 2011, Study Reports
Zynga will gain insights to virtual goods sales in the lucrative Japan market.
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For Zynga, which also owns CityVille, Zynga Poker, Mafia Wars and Words With Friends, virtual tractor sales are big business.
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Which leads us back to those three Goliath-slaying words: virtual fleet sales.
If Wayne Huizenga thinks so -- and he probably does -- then we suggest three words for him (and for any other big-ticket-item broker): Virtual Fleet Sales!
Android phones may also ride the surge in mobile virtual goods sales, but the platform will need to do a better job of luring gamers and game developers first.
FORBES: U.S. Virtual Goods Market Will Pass $2 Billion In 2011, Study Reports
At what point will the unthinkable occur: will the game console be distributed free with an online registration requirement, and revenues derived from apps, virtual goods sales, and downloadable content?
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It counts all revenue from virtual goods sales at the time the player purchases them, providing investors a read on the pulse of business momentum regardless of the timing of revenue recognition.
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Facebook takes a 30% cut of sales of virtual goods, which are bought using its Credits payment system.
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As in this year, 2011 will also see the dominance of social games in the sales of virtual goods.
FORBES: U.S. Virtual Goods Market Will Pass $2 Billion In 2011, Study Reports
Sales of virtual goods, such as tractors and seeds for its Farmville game, make up more than 96% of those revenues.
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The free-to-play version also takes in revenue through sales of virtual goods.
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Sony ( SNE - news - people ), sales of virtual goods for the PlayStation tripled in the first quarter.
It was just last October that Apple allowed in-app purchases for free apps, effectively allowing for sales of virtual goods on the iPhone.
FORBES: U.S. Virtual Goods Market Will Pass $2 Billion In 2011, Study Reports
Mehta estimates that non-branded social games generate 5 to 20 cents per users through sales of virtual goods or from players completing advertiser offers and surveys.
And from the initial success of Street Wars, it expects a larger share of its revenue in the future to come from sales of virtual goods in its games.
Hogan thinks social games can both help THQ expand its consumer base as well as potentially provide new sources of revenue, through in-game sales of virtual goods, for instance.
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Last month Parks Associates forecast that revenues in the social gaming market will increase five-fold from 2010 to 2015, due in large part to advertising and sales of virtual items.
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Hiro estimates that the potential market size for sales of virtual items in the U.S. is in the billions of dollars, but that issues like too many virtual currencies are roadblocks for potential customers.
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The thinking is that in-game trades of virtual items like swords are not taxable events, but in-game sales of items for virtual currency are taxable events.
The slow sales growth and virtual halt to expansion in the U.S. explain why Greenberg is so eager to bring in new customers.
The slow U.S. sales growth and the virtual halt to expansion here explain why Greenberg is so eager to bring in new customers.
Neither site charges merchants fees for hosting the stores or a commission on sales, however Facebook recently announced it will take a 30% cut of sales of credits for certain virtual goods.
So by giving them a virtual product, it can drive and uplift sales.
And though Facebook takes a cut of the virtual currency pie, Credits evangelists like CrowdStar say that using the unified virtual currency system has translated into increased overall sales.
FORBES: Facebook's One Bling To Rule Them All: 5-Year Credits Deal With CrowdStar
The European Commission has said it is studying a proposal to impose value added tax (VAT) on sales of music, software and other "virtual" goods over the internet.
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