The Daily Grind: Should governments meddle in MMO business models?

Last year, we wrote about a Japanese government crackdown on free-to-play games that used a gambling-centered crafting mechanic. This past summer, the German high court effectively barred advertising for virtual items sold within free-to-play MMOs (because won't someone think of the children). Like it or not, governments are becoming more and more interested in how games, especially "free-to-play" games, conduct their business.

And that makes it our business. Some of us like subs, some prefer buy-to-plays, and some genuinely prefer a la carte free-to-play games. But I'm pretty sure none of us likes exploitative cash shops, even if we'd disagree precisely on which ones those are. And that brings us to today's question: Do you think governments should be deciding what constitutes an exploitative F2P mechanic or microtransaction practice and outlawing its implementation accordingly?

Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!