Online Platform for Gamers to Release a Cryptocurrency for In-game Skins Trading; Launches an ICO

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A team of developers for eSports industry is seeking to tackle the problem known to millions of gamers worldwide by issuing a single token dubbed Skincoin that they could use to buy and sell skins for popular games like Counter Strike: Global Offensive, Dota 2 or Team Fortress 2.

The project is developing an exchange service with an API for third-party websites that enables Skincoin payments, so that gaming platforms won’t have to create internal stores and keep the stock all the time.

If Skincoin tokens will be used by at least 10% of the market, the company’s future turnover will comprise $700 million. Various trade platforms and skin-related gaming services will use the tokens,” the developers state.

Skin is a term used for visual appearance of heroes, items, weapons and other objects in online games. Such add-ons make all those items and characters unique without necessarily changing their characteristics. Initially, skins were available only at Steam where one could use it or change it for a different skin from another player. Later on, third-party sites started using skins as means of payment in other games.

As Steam’s license agreement does not prohibit such activities, the industry started booming. There are 125 million users at Steam overall, with Dota 2 alone accounting for 99 million of them. The game is amongst the most popular for those who buy and trade skins.

According to Bloomberg and Eliers & Krejcik Gaming, third-party resources had $7 billion turnover of gaming items, with some skins worth up to $15,000 a piece, in 2016 alone. One can get a skin as a reward in a game, buy it at Steam’s official platform, or at a third-party website. After players became able to transfer items to each other, such services became abundant.

Some of those websites offer players to use their skins as bets in cybersports or gambling. Technically, this allows them to monetize their in-game achievements.

Skincoin, on the other hand, is going to create a platform for instant exchange of skins for a liquid cryptoasset that could be used for further turnover of skins at gaming websites. This makes Skincoin a universal cryptocurrency for settlements at online gaming services.

We plan to solve the problem of skins turnover at all game websites. This would save all kinds of gaming resources and third-party exchange platforms from claims by Valve and account suspension at Steam. As opposed to fiat money, Skincoin is not a means of payment in most jurisdictions. Third-party resources will be able to perform account transactions with Skincoin users without violating Steam requirements,” says Igor Solomatin, Skincoin co-founder.

In order to develop and promote the project with the online gaming community, the Skincoin team will launch a crowdsale of its tokens to raise at least 5,000 ETH, with the maximum aim being 100,000 ETH. In case the project fails to raise the minimum amount, the investments will be returned to the investors in accordance with the smart contract created by the project.

The crowdsale campaign will last for a month, from June 21st to July 21st, 2017.