I obviously don’t view the virtual goods business overall as a fad, though I agree that individual items or websites selling them certainly will be. And you make a good point about the business model being risky. In almost every practical example, virtual goods are sold as an accompaniment to a stronger business model – not as a standalone. For social websites I think it becomes another prevalent source of income, up alongside ads and sometimes service fees.

Yeah, I look cool (at least, I think I do, and that’s all that really matters anyway), but I also find the sun to be really bright. Plus, I like to stare at people but not be rude about it, and I like the fact that people don’t know if you’re looking at them or not. I do consider it rude to have anything more than idle chit-chat with sunglasses on, though.

As to virtual consumerism and virtual materialism, I find it hard to believe that it will be anything but a trend. Yes, it’s new and hot. But really, I think that most goods that do not provide anything other than “perceived satisfaction” are destined to be merely trends.

That’s not to say that fortunes can’t be made or businesses can’t be successful, but getting in on trends seems to me to be a dicey prospect. If you hop on the wave at the wrong time, you’re going to wipe-out.

The difference between virtual goods and sunglasses is that I perceive more than just a “looking cool” value in my sunglasses. They may not have that extra value, but I perceive it. Virtual goods would be very tough for anyone to justify tangibly as anything other than status, symbol, or fluff – except for certain demographic groups like kids, that is.