A virtual symbol, how to control our real life over the past 10 years?

Abstract: A virtual symbol, how to control our real life in 10 years? Does it hurt? Touch the scars on his arm, 13-Year-old Lei (a pseudonym) nodded, then he turned his head, looking at the silent tears behind her mother, and shook his head in fear. Scars are

A virtual symbol, how to control our real life over the past 10 years?

"Does it hurt?" Reporter asked. Touch the scars on his arm, 13-Year-old Lei (a pseudonym) nodded, then he turned his head, looking at the silent tears behind her mother, and shook his head in fear.

The scar is the Father dozen, a few days ago, in order to be able to in the "Imperial Dragon in Day" game realization "Q money to get hand cramp", he secretly took out 1000 yuan in a week from home to buy Q coins.

For more people like Ray, Q coins are their best weapon for manipulating privileged lives. Tencent, 10 years also very good insight and use of this human nature, the virtual symbol into a real gold and silver, the construction of a real Tencent empire ....

Tencent is playing with the data, we are playing the life

"Imperial Dragon in the Sky" is the first qte Tencent independent research and development of the first pan-national games, June 16, "Imperial Dragon in the days" open test, played "up to 1 to send 10Q coins, q currency to get hand cramp" advertising language. According to media reports, Tencent predicts that the maximum number of online players will be 300,000 to 400,000, and the monthly contribution to revenue would reach 75 million yuan.

As the virtual currency introduced in May 2002, the current 1Q currency is about 1 RMB. A player to the Tencent to calculate a sum: If it is really "up to 1 to send 10Q coins", according to the game 19 servers, each server about 18000 people of the scale, each player average 50, each Q-coin equivalent to 1 yuan for the renminbi, Tencent total to pay about 170 million RMB.

This attracts many players to participate actively. Little Thunder is one of hundreds of thousands of players. But really play on the game, the vast number of players only found that want to really achieve "Q-coin to get hand cramps" is not easy. "Indeed up to 1 levels of accumulation of 10Q coins, but the truth is, only 150 level before you can receive 1500Q coins." "A player who has spent a lot of energy upgrading but can't get Q coins said to the yellow gun," Tencent is playing with the data, we are playing the life. ”

According to Tencent's description of the game's website, about the end of the event, players need to pay attention to official announcements. In this respect, a senior game evaluation engineer said that for a game, the normal rise to 150 level, unless the daily 24 hours online, otherwise it may take a two years, then the activities may have long been over. For "Q money to get hand cramp" publicity, there is a suspicion of misleading the player.

This sparked protests from many players. From the yellow gun to understand the situation, in the "Royal Dragon in the Days" game, bar and forum, many netizens demanding Tencent "fraud", and even a player called for class action.

Of course, want to quickly upgrade to get Q currency, there is another way--that is, recharge equipment, fast-speed. 13-Year-old Ray was so, in late June, he secretly from home to take out more than 1000 yuan in cash, buy Q currency recharge card, put into the "Imperial Dragon in the days", expect to get the legendary "up to 1 to send 10Q coins", until finally was the father found, and was mercilessly beaten a meal.

"Privileged life" from Q-Coins

Sad-hearted Lei's parents told reporters that they could not understand why the son of Q coins so crazy, even at risk to take the road of illegal. Now they begin to rethink their education and prepare to sue Tencent.

They do not know that the Q-currency is so crazy is not a lei. At the beginning of July, the Nanjing Ms. Luo anxiously call yellow gun telephone, her 12-year-old son, incredibly in one weeks time, spent nearly million yuan, all these money was he filled the Q coins, used to buy game equipment.

Maybe it's just some crazy special case. But the fact is that although there are now hundreds of virtual currencies in China, none of the virtual currencies have such a huge impact as Q-coins, which have such a large online group that are most willing to spend.

And from the Yellow gun investigation three years to receive complaints, about Q currency complaints up to hundreds of. The parents threw their anger at Tencent. But perhaps, for those children, they prefer to enjoy a life controlled by Q-coins.

In the interview, a 14-year-old boy called Xiao Hui, heard the word "Q coin" is extremely excited, he went home every day the first thing is to open the computer login QQ, so he is not only fascinated by chatting, and those who let him feel confident things--VIP member privileges, decent dress, tasteful accessories, the virtual world of the big Kill Quartet , no one can enemy ...

Of course, all this has to pay Q-coins. At present, Xiao Hui spends more than 80 yuan per week on Tencent, which in his opinion is not much, and many of his classmates spend several times a week on him. Xiao Hui said not clear why this virtual life so serious, he thought for a long time, suppress such a sentence: "Perhaps, because can manipulate the fate of other people's special power ..."

In fact, for a lot of flower Q coins such as water users, a considerable number of people are seeking psychological satisfaction: the pursuit of personality of the teenager want to be different from their own image; The girl who loves beauty is more willing to pay for blinking eyes; gamers want to be in the virtual world.

All this, they feel that they are different, they are willing to spend their own pocket money, living expenses, even at risk, to get these in real life difficult to easily hand the feeling.

Q-Coins built by the Tencent Empire

It is clear that Tencent understands this human need and deliberately directs users to consume them according to these modes of thinking. Therefore, in today's Tencent Empire, almost all value-added services, need to pass this is called "Q-coin" symbol.

For more than 10 years, it was such a virtual symbol that built up today's huge Tencent empire.

March 2002, QQ registered user number exceeded 100 million. At that time, Tencent main revenue still comes from wireless, operators to SP policy of the cloudy and sunny transformation let Tencent eat hard, how to profit has become a problem in front of MA. In May of that year, Tencent developed a virtual currency system, representing the symbol "Q coin". Users pay through the equivalent denomination of the card number, password and QQ number associated with the "recharge." "If the user does not buy Q-coins, the Q-currency does not exist, Q-coin value and the user's recharge value is matched." One Tencent insider said.

A senior electrical business observer said to the yellow gun: Q-Coin sales channels are diverse, not only in convenience stores, roadside stalls, kiosks and other shops in the form of physical recharge cards to buy, or from Beijing Cloud Network, Chun Net, Taobao and other channels to buy virtual cards, can also be deducted from the user's mobile phone. And in the Tencent product Service system, the Q coin and Q Point, QQ game currency and so on have established the Equal exchange relations. These channels effectively break the payment barriers for the sale of Tencent Q-coins created conditions.

Analysis is not difficult to find, although over the years Tencent has been plagued by the industry "cottage", "plagiarism" accusation, but for Tencent is not really a big deal, it needs to do is only "copy" just, put on the QQ will have a huge user to pay for it-according to Tencent rules, Q currency is one-way flow. Once the user recharge will not be able to change the Q currency back to the renminbi, so users spend the speed of Q-coins and whether they are willing to continue to use Q-coins, all determine the survival status of Tencent. So the challenge for Tencent is simply to replicate which products can make more money in many projects, and how to design them with Q coins so people pay.

The most typical example is the QQ space. According to Tencent's official figures, as of June 2012, the QQ space division to the developer has broken through 1 billion yuan, including the main revenue means from the yellow diamond.

Launched one after another drill, this is Tencent's first and most successful profit model. Qzone can be used for free and can get simple templates and gifts. But many users will pay for more advanced services, users can use Q coins in QQ Show Mall to buy virtual apparel, jewelry, scenes to decorate their QQ, QQ chat room, Tencent community virtual image.

21-Year-old is steaming, he is a reporter's cousin. His space has a time axis function, left is the elapsed time, the right is the time he wrote the log, sent photos. This is the new function of QQ space this year, only to the yellow diamond users open use, now cousin's grade is yellow drill 7, "This is the highest grade, you can use the QQ space in any function and props."

2006, cousin opened the Yellow diamond, the monthly need for 15 Q coins, that is, 15 yuan. Then opened the Red Diamond, but also 1 months 15Q coins. One night in 2010, he called a reporter 3 o'clock in the morning and asked to recharge it immediately because the red diamond was due soon.

Tencent is deeply insight into the importance of this psychological needs of users, so decided to the user's interest point as the company's key development direction, and increased the QQ entertainment function development, a series of personalized entertainment products came into being: QQ pets, QQ friends, QQ games, QQ greeting cards, QQ yellow diamond ... Real life in all the details, are doing everything possible to move to the QQ virtual world, even for QQ pets to provide "tea cool toothpaste."

The latest news shows that Tencent in mid-June this year launched the latest value-added services, "QQ drilling emperor." It is reported that the QQ drill Emperor monthly pay for 50 yuan/month, annual pay 600 yuan/year. "Drill Emperor Users can get 210 privileges, the students are very envious." "Just recharge upgrade for drilling The emperor's little Ting said."

QQ members, network hard disk, QQ music, subscribe to magazines, QQ games, QQ pets .... 12 years, Tencent is the use of Q coins to create a "virtual privileged life", a force to build today's Tencent Empire. According to Tencent's 2011 annual results Report of March 14, 2012, Tencent's total income for 2011 was RMB 28.5 billion, with Internet value-added services earning 23.1 billion yuan, up 48.8% from the same period in 2010. "People who have played QQ know that QQ value-added services are the Q-coin, Q-point to price." In other words, the issue of the income of Q coins accounted for more than 80% of Tencent's revenue. "A senior Internet practitioner has analyzed this.

The society affected by Q-Coins

Over the past 10 years, Tencent has issued a number of Q coins, I am afraid that no one can answer the question.

"This can not calculate, the small and medium-sized cities issued the point card, online recharge, network games equipment transactions, online shopping, are available to Q coins." "said the senior industry insider, who was interviewed by reporters. "To be sure, Q-Coin has a full range of influence on Chinese society." ”

For Tencent, Q currency is a virtual currency that can be released at will, and there is no cost. But it is this virtual symbol, not only created the Tencent Empire, but also has a full range of influence on Chinese society.

Taobao, 5173 and other platforms, there are a large number of Q coins for sale. Tencent Q-dollar price of the official 1Q RMB 1 yuan, and Taobao on the Q-coin price can be up to 60 percent to 70 percent of the official price. Tencent has also been on Taobao trading Q-coins and Taobao in court. In Tencent's view, Q-Coin is Tencent exclusive issue, Taobao sold on the Q currency, but also must be recognized by Tencent to use, and Tencent official if there is no discount, Taobao sellers how to toss also useless.

And in the QQ game, many game players can also earn a lot of game coins, the game currency to exchange for Q coins and to sell. This, including some through the theft of QQ numbers and then steal with QQ number of the bound Q-coin network hackers. These people often by the stolen Q currency into the game currency, and then the game currency to Exchange Q currency method for money laundering, and then sell the set now.

Some young people have embarked on a criminal path. In May this year, Xinhua reported that a group of criminal gangs made up of 90 suspected on tens of millions of computer users implanted Trojan, steal QQ number and q currency, accounting for China's Internet theft Q-Currency crime industry chain of nearly 80% of the total scale, and formed a trojan, research and development of auxiliary software, horse, stolen number, washing letter, Selling Q-coins and other crimes throughout the pipeline operation.

Over the years, the topic of "Q-currency impact on RMB" has also been highly concerned by public opinion and scholars from all walks of life. As early as 2005, a signed Cheil Netizen published an article online, questioning Tencent's online casino. The article said: "QQ game form and our life in the same as gambling, only to play the currency instead of RMB ... Since the game currency can not be replaced by RMB, then Tencent will be the winner forever. ”

Although experts are still arguing about the subject, one view is that virtual currency trading, once out of control, is a hazard that cannot be overlooked. The events of October 2011 have, to some extent, proved these concerns.

October 9, 2011, Tencent released a message said: "October 15, Q coin, Q Point business through train sales price will be increased from 89 percent to 93 percent ..." q-dollar price increase news, the total dealers and distributors will pass the risk of price increases to the end of the large size of the market bar. And the size of Internet cafes to consumers to pass the risk, has been 10 yuan in the value of the Q-currency price of several yuan prices sales.

Take Xi ' an as an example, for Shaanxi more than 3,000 large and small internet cafes, Tencent official monthly to Q-coins Shaanxi total dealer 12 million yuan purchase amount. Q-dollar price increase news, some real estate, wine industry, including funds, have flowed to the net swims the market, hoped that in the Q currency year October 15 before the price rises, from the underfunded Q currency total dealer buys 89 percent of Q currency, then in the price rises one months to 93 percent or even higher price to sell, earns 4 points "The price increases money".

In foreign countries, some foreign media, Q-coins this incredible business model called "book Legend." The Wall Street Journal has commented: Tencent's Internet ambitions are understandable, but regardless of the impact and consequences, every effort to induce Q-money consumption, there is a loss of social responsibility. The accusations of "the public's low age, entertainment, and lack of sense of responsibility" over the years are still not going away.

So, a "scary" question is, if there is a, Q coin suddenly canceled, what will be the scene?