Interview with a V-Empire

I'm grateful to Bob Kiblinger from UO Treasures for answering my questions below. UO Treasures is a website and Ebay Store that sells MMORPG virtual items for 15 different games. My questions are in italics, followed by Bob's answers

How would you characterize the growth of your business over time? e.g. has it been steady? slow at first? just recently took off, etc.
It has been pretty steady since the beginning, way back in 1999.

What events or technologies do you believe have had a noticeable positive or negative impact on your business?
In-game email systems save a lot of delivery time. Negative impact were certain game companies prohibiting virtual item sales - some going so far as threatening legal action against me.

Which items or currency have seen the most growth in value recently?
World of Warcraft is the hottest selling game at the moment.

If you were investing, what item or currency would you invest in for the short term? Which one for the long term?
I think true rares are great investments. My personal preference is for the game Ultima Online.

Is UO Treasures your sole or main source of income? Do you work at it full time or part time?
Yes, it is my full time endeavor and has been for about 6 years.

How do you go about acquiring the items and currency that you sell?
We buy accounts and items from thousands of players who want to sell their items. Either they are switching games, quitting the game, or just have a need for some quick cash.

What changes would you like to see in online gaming this year?
I would like for MMORPGs to embrace the secondary market. It is VERY obvious it is something the majority of their players want - just take a look at ebay where tens of thousands of people vote daily with their dollars.

What feature would you most like to see in an online game this year?
Well, I am looking forward to D&D online as it's a game I played a lot as a kid.

Do you ever hold on to any items or currencies in anticipation of their value going up before you offer them for sale? If so, has this strategy worked well for you?
No, not really.

Do you see an increase in sales around the holidays?
Yes, especially Christmas.

Would you like there to be more online games in operation or fewer ones?
More high quality games are fine. With so many options it is becoming difficult for lower budget games to compete.

How are you affected when a title such as Asheron's Call 2 shuts down operation?
We don't carry a lot of inventory, so not affected much.

What real world banking service(s) has been the most helpful to your virtual item business?
Paypal.

What inspired or motivated you to go into the virtual item business?
I played Ultima Online for fun when it came out. I started playing around on ebay with it and it really took off.

How many people are employed by UO Treasures and what are their roles?
Hundreds of people are involved either directly or indirectly. There are people who get certain items for us, assist with the delivery process, and work on ebay auctions/site design.

What's the most expensive single virtual item sold through your store
and which game was it from?
Probably castles from Ultima Online. Have sold these for as high as $2,000 US individually.

If you were an in-game item, which one would you be and why?
Strange question. I guess the Blade of the Righteous from Ultima Online - I like to think I've treated everyone honorably over the years. We have assisted many players who were "scammed" by others retrieve their goods.

What's your favorite in-game gesture and why?
The bow, it's nice to show others respect.

Is there anything else you'd like our listeners, um, readers to know about?
Well - I love to reference this post by Raph Koster (bigwig as SWG currently, one of the pioneers of MMORPGs and a damn good guitar player!!)

Hmmm..I didn't know SWG has a guitar player character class ;-)