Social Gaming Takes Another Step

Target will be the first retailer to sell Facebook Credits in its stores come Sunday. The Facebook Credits gift cards will be available in $15, $25 and $50 denominations at all 1,750 Target locations and at Target.com. (Mashable)

When I read this yesterday, my first question was why? The answer I received was "what do you mean, why? huge revenue potential. huge. holiday gift cards are big business. social gaming is big business." This caused me to pause a moment. And that moment lasted more than a moment.

Maybe it is because I come from a different generation. I grew up playing sports, on teams and as an individual, against other people, in real time on a field of grass, outside under a blue sky. Hey, we used to sweat on each other sometimes. Or, as a competitive swimmer, I would compete against them in a pool. To borrow a phrase, we could see the whites of their eyes. I grew up playing Dungeons and Dragons. Laugh all you want about geeks in a basement, but these geeks were socializing, using their brains. Sure it was not always as physical as when we were banging heads on the football field, but we were socializing, face-to-face. Even today, with all of the various on-line poker games that are available to me, I would much rather sit down at a table of complete strangers and play a few hands than stare for hours (OK, minutes) at a video screen.

I have a number of friends. Some I only know through the Internet and I have been on it a long time. And I can assure you that knowing someone on-line leaves a lot to be desired. You really do not know them. You do not know what they sound like, how they react, who they are. I have been fortunate enough to meet a number of them face-to-face and get to really know them better. I wish I had the opportunity to do that will all of my on-line friends, but because of cost, distance or other reasons, I know that I will not get to meet them all.

Almost a year ago, I wrote about Social Media, or more correctly, my increasing disillusionment with it, especially Facebook. I am more convinced than ever that closing my Facebook account was exactly the right thing to do. Target's decision to sell credit gift cards convinces me even more. I played Farmville, for all of about 10 minutes and all it did was convince me that I really should reinstall SimCity on my system.

I see two dangers with these cards. The first is people converting money into...I do not even know what to call it other than air (flushing it down the drain would be what our parents would say) without even the tangible benefit of something to show for it, just so they can purchase a virtual sledgehammer, or pig, or what have you. In Las Vegas, they convert your money into tokens (chips) because of the physiological impact losing real dollars at the tables tends to reduce the actually betting. But at the end of the day, if you win, you have the option of reconverting these tokens into dollars and taking your winnings home with you. Does Facebook intend to do the same thing?

The second thing that concerns me is that there are a number of people, so addicted to these games, that they will go out and spend the money on these gift cards. And more money. And more money. And in the end you have accomplished what? You have what to show for it?

In Las Vegas (and other places) it is called gambling and there are very tight rules and regulations, imposed by the State and Federal Government on what you can and cannot do. What do we call these social games? I mean other than a money making engine for Facebook. If this does not concern you, it should. And like me, you should be asking more than just why?

We've done it to ourselves

Retailers usher in post-Xmas business By ANNE D'INNOCENZIO, AP Business Writer NEW YORK - With the 2007 run-up to Christmas boosted by a last-minute sales surge, retailers are putting an extra emphasis on after-Christmas discounts, hoping bargain shoppers and gift-card splurgers can enrich stores' holidays. (YahooNews)

No, you will not find me among those who are out arm wrestling for bargains this time of year. I do not want the leftovers, the scratched and dented or the open box specials. I want to cut my spending, reduce my overhead and make sure I have money to put gas in my car and food on my table. I want to make sure my credit card debt does not resemble the federal deficit and I want to make sure I have money for real emergencies like trees falling, broken bones and other unavoidable things that tend to pop up.

This commercialism is really beginning to bug me. As a nation, the United States is in way over our head, from the federal government down to the last tax payer and eventually, someone is going to start collecting. The housing foreclosures are just the beginning of a very long, very steep slide. The local budgets are going to feel it first, which will result in fewer services (fire and police) but will eventually start impacting other sectors of the economy. Reports are already showing that businesses are starting to adopt a bunker mentality going into the first quarter, maintaining or lowering staffing levels, not raising them. Get ready, it is going to be a very bumpy ride.