"Pirated" Virtual Weapons from China?

First, pirated DVD's and CD's, then they came up with "pirated eggs", now some enterpreneural Chinese are selling pirated MMORPG weapons from The Legend of Mir.

According to INQ7.Net:

The software weapons -- essentially just bits of data -- are given out to players at high levels of the massively popular game "Legend of Mir," produced by Shanghai-based Shanda Interactive Entertainment Ltd.

A former Shanda manager, Wang Yihui, is accused of manipulating the game's software to illicitly award weapons such as the highly coveted "dragon slaying blade," the Oriental Morning Post said.