Within the realm of applications, a relatively new payment form has emerged: called Microtransactions. These small one-time payments (less than 10 Euros) offer an addendum to an existing app, service, or game. Microtransactions have generated a revenue stream largely due to the tech savvy segment of young adults aged 18 to 24, but there hasn’t been significant research from an academic perspective which sheds light on this trend. This issue prompted the research question: Which quantifiable elements of a Microtransaction contribute to a university student’s purchase decision? The phenomenon of Microtransactions has not previously been studied under traditional theories of consumer behavior, which is what the scope of this research provided. The consumer behavior theories selected include: Ego Depletion Theory, Extended Self, and Perceived Value Theory. The selected methodology was a quantitative survey and content analysis. The data collected partially supported Perceived Value Theory, but was unable to validate Ego Depletion and Extended Self as significant influences on purchasing behaviors of Microtransactions among university students. Although the theories were unable to support all our hypotheses, we still concluded with two major findings. First, pricing and functionality are the primary elements of a Microtransaction which university students will consider before purchasing. Second, the Perceived Value Theory’s consumption values of Emotion and Finance are, indeed, consumption values shared among university students.

Background: Incorporating microtransactions has become a popular business model for video game publishers as it ultimately provides stability and reduces financial risk. While microtransactions are becoming increasingly prevalent, they do not come without trouble as they have been linked to unfair gameplay advantages and reduced satisfaction with the game. However, understanding and meeting players’ perceived values mean that developers can incorporate microtransactions more effectively and avoid such concerns. Problem: Despite comprehensive research and the consistent recognition of perceived values as having a significant impact on the propensity to purchase microtransactions, the existing literature has yielded inconclusive results regarding the precise extent of their influence. Furthermore, the current body of literature has mainly focused on multiplayer games which differ greatly in their nature compared with single-player games, meaning that these findings do not necessarily apply in a single-player environment. Thus, very little is known about what happens when the social element is absent in the game and more research is needed on single-player games to understand this impact, where perceptions can be explored in another setting yielding potentially different results. Purpose: The research seeks to examine the influence of social elements on players’ attitudes toward purchasing microtransactions and build a theoretical framework. With the absence of research on single-player games and the distinction to multiplayer modes, emergent findings will elaborate adjacent theories on microtransactional gaming and provide an increasingly nuanced understanding of the topic. Research Question: How does the social element of gaming impact players’ willingness to purchase microtransactions? Method: Ontology – Interpretivism; Epistemology – Social Constructionism; Methodology – Inductive Exploratory Multiple Case Study; Data Collection – 10 Semi-structured Interviews; Interview Technique – Laddering Technique; Sampling –Purposeful Sampling and Snowball Sampling; Data Analysis – Thematic Content Analysis. Conclusion: The present study provides evidence of four distinct perceived values, namely self-expression, emotional, convenience, and social, which exert influence on players' willingness to purchase microtransactions. Notably, the social aspects within the gaming environment were found to differentially impact each of these values. Furthermore, these perceived values were found to possess a temporal dimension, indicating whether the anticipated benefits would be realized immediately, in the future, or both. To determine the overall perceived value and purchase intent, players assess the expected benefits of perceived immediate and future value relative to the purchase's associated costs and perceived social risks.

This study explores the behavior of Swedish gamers regarding microtransactions in the Free-To-Play model. It focuses on their attitudes towards in-game purchases and explores the psychological, ethical, and social factors influencing their engagement. The study used qualitative research methods, including semi-structured interviews with nine Swedish gamers. The findings reveal that community norms and peer pressure significantly impact microtransaction engagement, especially among younger players. The study also identifies a psychological barrier that, once crossed, triggers increased spending. Furthermore, the research highlights the controversial role of loot boxes, their association with gambling, and the psychological effects they have on players. The results from this study suggest the need for regulatory oversight and ethical monetization practices. Additionally, the study reveals that premium in-game currencies obscure real-world costs, which can impact spending behavior and raise ethical concerns about transparency. The research suggests that game developers and policymakers should prioritize fair and transparent strategies that uphold player autonomy and well-being by considering the complex interplay between player experience, microtransaction design, and ethical considerations.

The monetary policies of states and systems built upon them do not naturally allow transactions of a very small value, as the transaction costs exceeds the actual value of the transaction. These types of transactions are called micropayments. This is problematic as it removes the possibility to monetize content that has a valuation that is so low that the costs of the transaction exceeds the value of the content. In this thesis we aim to create a system that allows micropayments to monetize low value content. We do so by developing a design theory based on Gregor and Jones conceptual model for design theories within Information Systems research. The system that we develop will use the end users computational power to generate a value, by running a cryptocurrency miner. We present the background knowledge required to fully understand the presented design theory. Within the design theory, we present a theoretical framework to base systems on that enables micropayments through cryptocurrency mining. We also present a developed proof of work prototype that proves the validity of the theoretical framework. Lastly we discuss our design theory. We conclude that the design theory enables transactions of a very low value, such as 0,0001 \$ cents. Transactions of such small value is not possible with systems built upon states monetary policies. We also conclude that the proposed design theory can be further developed to function independently of cryptocurrency mining. Instead the value for the transaction could be generated through solving complicated problems if institutions are willing to pay for computational power to solve them.