NewNews - Diablo 3 announces auction house with real currency

Here's a video I found which explains some of the changes and announcement made for Diablo 3.  You can alternatively read the source article on the bottom:

Source: Youtube Channel OMFGcata

So Blizzard has decided to allow players to auction off and bid for items in-game with real money.  The reasoning behind this was that the same activities were done on sketchy websites and in-game dealers who were willing to sell items for real money.  This was allowing 3rd-parties to earn money off the game (or rip off a poor kid who didn't know better).  So in a way, Blizzard is trying to look out for the players; however, a lot of people have been saying that it is an act of greed.  That could be the case if Blizzard is earning money off of it, but I don't know how that would work yet.  I suppose if you look at Team Fortress 2 and Valve's change in business model for it, it makes more sense.  Valve places items for high prices and players still buy them.  Of course, Blizzard also mentioned that items can still be auctioned with in-game gold.  I never liked auction houses in online games.  Items were always at high prices and unless they were the best equipment that a player could get, it eventually becomes useless later on.  If it is the best, it would take a long time to get the amount of currency in-game to be able to get it.  I am curious about the auction house allowing the use of real money though.  It makes me wonder if I can make any money off the game if I just auctioned off rare items instead of buying or bidding.  I'm not sure how crazy I'll play when the game comes out since I barely touched Starcraft 2 after I bought it the first week (even got the Collector's Edition too).  We'll see...

In addition, Blizzard announced that the game will require a constant connection to the internet (be it single-player or multiplayer online).  It's not a surprise to me at all since Starcraft 2 was like that.  It's not too big of a problem, but I feel a lot more disconnected from the game when it requires it.  I feel like I'm always on an unstable line to be able to play my games when they require a constant internet connection.  I suppose I'm used to it already from playing games on Steam.  Regardless, I am still ecstatic about Diablo 3 and can't wait to play it when it comes out.

Source:
-Gamasutra: Blizzard Reveals Real Money-Powered Diablo III Auction House
-Joystiq: Diablo 3 to feature player-to-player real money auction house for virtual items