The fortunes of Bitcoin have risen and fallen, but lately more companies are beginning to accept the digital currency as payment.
Over the past weekend, social gaming company Zynga announced that it now accepts Bitcoin as a form of in-game payment. The San Francisco-based company plans on accepting the money for seven games: Farmville 2, Castleville, Chefville, Coasterville, Hidden Chronicles, Hidden Shadows and CityVille, according to CNN Money.
In a post on Reddit, Zynga reported that the move was made “in response to Bitcoin’s rise in popularity around the world.”
The post continued, “Zynga is always working to improve our customer experience by incorporating player feedback into our games. We look forward to hearing from our players about the Bitcoin test so we can continue in our efforts to provide the best possible gaming experience.”
The value of the Bitcoin currency began to rise almost immediately following the news, according to USA Today. Just last month, the currency had taken a huge hit when regulators in China decided to crack down on the use of digital currency.
However, some United States businesses are changing their thinking on digital currency because of one key fact – the people interested in using Bitcoin are part of an attractive advertising demographic, the tech-savvy male between the age of 25 and 40.
Most also have above-average income and live on one of the United States coasts, according to USA Today.
In addition to Zynga, online retailer Overstock also has announced it will have a Bitcoin purchasing option in place by the second half of 2014. Others that have announced that they will accept Bitcoin include dating site OKCupid, WordPress, Reddit and Virgin Galactic, which is Richard Branson’s space travel company.
At least one real estate company – CORE New York – has announced it will accept Bitcoin as a payment for broker fees, according to USA Today.
Mobile gift card app company Gyft is also accepting the digital currency. The company’s CEO and co-founder, C.J. MacDonald, told USA Today that the company has already seen millions of dollars in sales with Bitcoin in the six months since they started to accept it.
The primary purchasers are males who are early adopters to using the digital currency, many of whom have used the currency to buy electronics.
