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Research Article
willingness to engage with and pay for these in-game This model taps into the affective economy of gaming,
purchases is heavily influenced by their levels of trust and where players develop emotional attachments to their in-
perceived value. (Naem & Okafor, 2019) (Kwark et al., game avatars and are willing to invest in customizing their
2017). Trust is a critical factor in shaping consumer behavior appearance. The study of League of Legends'
within the realm of user-generated content. When microtransactions highlights how these commercial
consumers feel a sense of trust towards the platform, game exchanges are often bound up in reciprocal forms of value
developers, or content creators, they are more likely to creation, where players actively contribute to the game's
invest in microtransactions, as they believe that their money aesthetic appeal and sense of community. Similarly, the
will be well-spent and that they will receive a fair and freemium business model, where a basic version of a
satisfactory return on their investment. Additionally, trust product or service is offered for free and users are
can alleviate privacy concerns, as consumers may feel more incentivized to upgrade to a premium version, has been
confident that their personal data is being handled securely widely adopted by e-business ventures that rely on user-
and responsibly. Perceived value, on the other hand, is a generated content. As the digital landscape continues to
crucial determinant of consumer adoption of evolve, content creators have increasingly sought out
microtransactions. Consumers are more willing to engage innovative ways to monetize their efforts. One emerging
with and pay for microtransactions when they believe that trend is the rise of microtransactions in user-generated
the items or features, they are purchasing hold significant content platforms, which offer potential for sustainable
value to them, whether it be aesthetic, functional, or revenue streams and enhanced user engagement compared
experiential. (Gefen et al., 2003) (Bleier & Eisenbeiß, 2015) to traditional advertising models. (Liang et al., 2021)
By providing consumers with a sense of value, game (Mileros et al., 2019).The growing popularity of content
developers and content creators can effectively incentivize creator-based business models has been well documented
and encourage the adoption of microtransactions, ultimately (Mileros et al., 2019). These models, exemplified by the
driving the growth and sustainability of the user-generated success of bloggers, YouTubers, and gamers, demonstrate
content landscape. the ability of individuals to earn substantial incomes from
Business Models & Monetization Strategies their online activities. However, the reliance on
monetization strategies such as advertising has raised
The rise of user-generated content has significantly concerns about the long-term sustainability of these models.
impacted the content creation landscape, with (Günzel-Jensen & Holm, 2015).Microtransactions, which
microtransactions emerging as a prominent monetization allow users to make small, voluntary payments for
strategy. In the context of UGC, microtransactions refer to additional content or features, offer a promising alternative.
the purchase of virtual items, features, or experiences by Research has shown that content providers can leverage
users within the content itself, allowing creators to generate such mechanisms to increase the rate of content propagation
revenue beyond traditional advertising models.One of the and capture viewer attention more effectively than
primary types of microtransactions in UGC is the sale of traditional advertising alone. (Pellegrini et al., 2013)
virtual items, such as customizable avatars, in-game items, Furthermore, the ability to offer exclusive or premium
or digital collectibles. These virtual goods can be purchased content in exchange for payments can create a more robust
by users to enhance their experience or to express their revenue stream, potentially outperforming advertising in
individuality within the UGC platform. Another form of
terms of both sustainability and overall earning potential.
microtransactions in UGC is the offering of premium
(Mileros et al., 2019) (Günzel-Jensen & Holm, 2015) (Liang
features or content, where users can pay to access exclusive et al., 2021). As noted in the literature, the success of
or enhanced content, such as ad-free experiences, early platforms like Fiverr, Chegg, and Upwork highlights the
access to new content, or specialized tools for content growing trend of online self-employment and the demand
creation. Platforms that host UGC often facilitate these for creative, skills-based services.
microtransaction-based business models by providing
creators with the necessary infrastructure and tools to Ethical & Regulatory Concerns
monetize their content. This allows content creators to Microtransactions have become a ubiquitous feature in
generate revenue directly from their audience, incentivizing modern user-generated content platforms, presenting both
them to continue creating and sharing engaging content. opportunities and challenges. The ability for content
(Min et al., 2019).The rise of user-generated content has led creators to monetize their work through paid features has
to the emergence of new business models and monetization empowered many individuals to turn their passion into a
strategies, particularly the widespread adoption of viable career. However, the widespread adoption of
microtransactions. Microtransactions, or the sale of virtual microtransactions has also raised ethical and regulatory
goods and in-game items for small monetary amounts, have concerns, particularly around issues of pay walling and
become a dominant revenue stream for many platforms that digital accessibility.One significant concern is the potential
host and enable user-generated content. (Jarrett, 2021).One for microtransactions to create a pay-to-win dynamic, where
successful implementation of microtransactions can be seen users with the financial means to purchase in-game
in the case of League of Legends, a popular multiplayer advantages or premium content gain an unfair advantage
online battle arena game. The game employs a "fair" free-to- over those who cannot afford to do so. This can lead to a
play model, where players can access the core game for free, situation where the content platform becomes a playground
but can choose to purchase optional cosmetic items and for the wealthy, excluding those from lower socioeconomic
character skins to personalize their in-game experience. backgrounds and creating an uneven playing field. (Tian et

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