THE IMPACT OF MICROTRANSACTIONS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMPUTER GAME BUSINESS MODELS

Abstract

The paper deals with the impact of microtransactions on the development of new business models in the field of computer games, caused by various monetized offerings within computer games, as well as other platforms such as gaming consoles and smartphones. The paper also examines the reasons for the emergence of business models based on microtransactions in the video game industry and the influence of the industry’s transition towards a consumer-oriented model. The central hypothesis of the paper is that microtransactions have a strong impact on the development of business models in the entire video game industry, and that over time, the value of products monetized in this way increases, despite consumers’ efforts to prevent this development direction of the industry. The paper conducted research on a population of consumers of video game content, mainly students of the Faculty of Organization and Informatics at the University of Zagreb, as well as respondents from other EU countries. The conclusion is that the number of microtransactions and the number of business models based on microtransactions will continue to grow in the future, but there are ways to combat those forms of microtransactions that have negative effects on consumers, especially minors, and, in some situations, even illegal.