Virtual goods hit $1 bil in U.S.

The U.S. virtual goods market doubled in size from 2008, toÂ reach $1 billion this year, according to a new report from Inside Network.

“While virtual goods have been driving revenues in Asia and Europe for years, 2009 will be remembered as the year virtual goods-based businesses began to scale in the United States,” said Insight network editor Justin Smith in a statement.

The size of the Asian virtual goods market reached $7 billion in 2009.

One of the major reasons for the sudden rise in the size of the U.S. market was that social networks like Facebook have begun distributing virtual goods, said the report.

Other distribution channels for virtual goods include virtual worlds and massively multiplayer online games. But more channels for virtual goods are likely to emerge, the report’s authors said, including console games and iPhone apps.

“Virtual goods may be bringing the largest disruption entertainment, communication, and e-commerce infrastructure companies have seen for a long time,” said co-author Charles Hudson, vice presidentÂ of business development at Serious Business, and host of October’s Virtual Goods Summit.

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Maria Korolov

Hypergrid Business editor and publisher Maria Korolov is a science fiction novelist. During the day, Maria Korolov is an award-winning freelance technology journalist who covers artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and enterprise virtual reality. See her Amazon author page here and follow her on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn, and check out her latest videos on the Maria Korolov YouTube channel. Email her at maria@hypergridbusiness.com. Her first virtual world novella, Krim Times, made the Amazon best-seller list in its category. Her second novella, The Lost King of Krim, is out now. She is also the publisher of MetaStellar, a new online magazine of speculative fiction.