Prag, on 14 November 2012 - 12:03 PM, said:
Why would Blizzard stop something that's earning them a pretty substantial profit? They do nothing about the small dupes (15 people of the millions playing) and continue to rake in money as that item continues to change hands in the RMAH->GAH flip, and then again when the Gold is sold on the RMAH.
There are several issues with this conspiracy theory.
1) Were it to get out (and these things always do; either by employee leak/hack/investigation etc) then Blizzard, a company already making shit-loads of scratch, would lose much of their customer base, as well as be subject to prosecution via electronic fraud laws.
2) They have a $250 limit on RMAH transactions. Were they truly trying to bilk it's customers, does it not make sense that they would raise this amount to say, $500, or more?
3) The RMAH business model is meant to provide long term coverage of this game, going well into the future. The 15% cut is not 100% profit. There are many hidden costs to them providing this service.
To assert that they either turn a blind eye to this practice, or, to assert that they perhaps quietly encourage it through inaction is akin to a criminal choosing to rob an ice cream shop instead of a bank.
Summary; There is no long term gain in them (Blizz) facilitating dubious sales of duped virtual items. To do so not only attacks the integrity of their system, but would stand to bring a quick end to their RMAH endeavors. They make enough money off of this long-term, sustainable income for a free-to-play game as it is. They need not play dirty pool to see a successful execution of the RMAH system.