[VERN] Response to David Grundy

[GUILLOU Laurent]

Dear David,
your question strikes me as a very geat concern for economics. What are the
motives, for a person who owns a valuable goods, to deny it voluntarily and
let it lapse?
I would like to know if someone could provide information (in law,
economics, sociology, information science) on that fact. I was only aware of
one paper (in law and economics) on abandonware and orphan works.
We can only try to guess what incentives lead your friend to let his
property collapse.

- A feeling that WoW is "evil" and a will not to spread the "disease"...The
lapse of his account is worth the little contribution he made to stop the
thrust of WoW.
- A very strong link between him and his avatars (as an occasionary mmo
players and RPG gamers, i can totally understand but a character sheet full
of numbers and crosses cannot be as valuable as a WoW account but, to my
mind, the issue remains the same). But it makes sense only if he value his
feelings (remembrance, social network, fame not to have sell is account...)
as much as the monetary value he could earn by selling his account.
- A matter of information cost: maybe he doesn't know that his account is
valulable ? (question: how many players in WoW or MMORGP dont know about
Real money trade?). It would mean that WoW account is not a real commodity
and needs (or not) a more developped second hand market.
- Finally, a voluntarily lapse of property rights could be explain by the
deep desire to begin a "new life", desire that could not be achieved if the
property still exists. Then, the loss of property is offset by a future
gain.

Sorry if I bother you with the economist's mania to find cost-benefit
motives everywhere but I feel that david's question id of great interest and
I wanted to have your impressions on this question (from all the perspective
you may add).
It's just some hints to launch a discussion opened by David.

Best whishes,

-- 
Laurent GUILLOU
Doctorant en Sciences Economiques (Paris10 / EconomiX - Axe HPE)
Adjoint Administratif au Programme "Attractivité Economique du Droit" (Paris
10)
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