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Hamburg (dpa) - It sounds innocent and idyllic: the case of Internet game players Farmville plant strawberries and trees, milking cows and to build a farmhouse. In the online network Facebook, the game quickly became a mass phenomenon.

Nearly 75 million farmers from all parts of the virtual world, cultivating their little piece of Internet-land - and rising. But in vain Farmville world is not all sunshine, consumer watchdogs warn of Datensammelwut of agency, some players reported from unauthorized account withdrawals.

The American Internet company Zynga appears surprised by the success of the game started only in June 2009. He had expected at the end of the year, perhaps around the five million users, said founder Marc Pincus in an interview. But games like Farmville experience of this type in online networks just a boom. Zynga one can tinker with an aquarium (Fishville), Pets care (Petville), a restaurant run (World Cafe), or battling through the underworld (Mafia Wars).

Playfish is a competitor with similar games like gangsters City, Pet Society or Country Story at the start. In November, the computer games developer Electronic Arts took over Playfish. In addition to the purchase price of approximately 275 million U.S. dollars paid EA for about 25 million U.S. dollars and other assets provided further payments of up to 100 million U.S. dollars for certain outcomes in sight.

The virtual worlds provides operators with very real money. In Farmville, for example, you can indeed gain initially free with diligence, "experience points" and earn virtual money to buy seeds and pets. Therefore, the farmer must regularly check on his plants, otherwise them go. Sought-after items such as a house but you get faster if you have Farmville for real money account, credit card or fill up on the payment service Paypal.

Although most players spend only small amounts, it comes together a lot. Zynga has bound to its own data more than 230 million players per se. According to the New York Times, the company per year, approximately 250 million U.S. dollars and occupies growing rapidly. The Russian committed investor Digital Sky Technologies - among other things on Facebook - recently put 180 million U.S. dollars in the startup. Sharp tongues mocked, which must be due to the enthusiasm for "Mafia Wars".

The overall market for virtual game paraphernalia in the U.S. alone is estimated at one billion U.S. dollars - and could grow to 2013, according to experts at five billion dollars. In Asia, it should already be about five billion.

But critics doubt whether anything goes on in the clean, neat online worlds. Sun Partner of Zynga dubious business practices should have applied. They offered to users Farmville-money if the software (Frankfurt: SOWJ.F - News), or cell phone ring tones bought. Critics such as the IT blog TechCrunch saw behind it a subscription-trap. TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington coined the term for the system, "ScamVille" - fraud city. In the United States is running a class action lawsuit against Facebook, and Zynga. The gaming provider stopped the practices in terms of subscription.

Exciting it is also the issue of privacy. Anyone who watches the game on his Facebook profile loads, allows Zynga access among other things, to their own profile information, photos and information about friends. "The privacy statement is sometimes very vague and the provider reserves the right, as well as" get everything, "Henry says Krasemann by the Independent Center for Privacy Protection Schleswig-Holstein.

The company created a profile of users for which it is composed of several data sources: Some "newspapers, internet sources such as blogs, message services, Zynga games and" other Zynga users, as it says on the website of the company. Together with browser information on websites visited these data are used for targeted advertising. Under German law is questionable, if not illegal, says Krasemann, as well as the permanent storage of data by Zynga.

The 25-year-old native of Munich Tschochner Anna was born as a hardworking farmer. Many of their Facebook friends joined in, by the ever-necessary activities and status messages, the game was always present on the home page of their network - for Tschochner it was an enjoyable pastime. Then Zynga but booked their money from Paypal account three times, although she had never given their consent. Perhaps an oversight. Zynga spoke to Reuters on request no. Tschochner have been warned their Facebook friends before the game. Your money is recovered, the young woman, although that is their pleasure in Farmville, however carefully passed.

Thank you Vizoner.

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