The people who buy gold typically are professionals who have disposable income but don’t have the time to invest in the game, said Craig Kelly, an Art Institute instructor who teaches video game design.

And the people collecting gold for real-money trading companies are largely from overseas, working in "gold farm" rooms filled with other "World of Warcraft" players. There have been estimates that there are more than 10,000 gold farms in China alone, said Ge Jin, a University of California San Diego graduate student who is making a documentary on gold farming.

Many gold farmers in China play the game 10 to 12 hours a day in an atmosphere Jin describes as "a mixture of boredom, exhaustion and fun."

"Most of the time it’s just a job for them ... killing certain monsters in certain areas repetitiously," Jin said.

There's four whole pages of someone who actually did their research, understands the rules and the situation, and I for one am so pleased to have this type of article come to light!