Runescape has been enjoying a resurgence of popularity, but a recent court ruling in the United Kingdom may have made it a landmark in the realm of video game property. Essentially, an appeals court has ruled that theft of in-game currency from RuneScape is also theft in the real world.
Per IGN, the ruling came in the case of Andrew Lakeman, an ex-Jagex developer who is accused of stealing 705 billion gold–or approximately $750,000 in real-world funds–from 68 RuneScape players. Lakeman is also alleged to have sold this in-game currency for Bitcoin.
The initial judge in Lakeman’s case gave the defendant a favorable ruling by finding that the gold that was stolen had no actual value because the game can create an infinite amount. The Court of Appeal disagreed with the first judge’s take and found that the in-game currency does have value, and that stealing it constitutes theft in the eyes of the law.
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