But Volvo, which is based in Sweden, and other corporations are not chasing revenue. Some companies are giving away virtual items, in exchange — they hope — for attracting and developing loyal customers.

In Volvo’s campaign, which began Sept. 1, the carmaker will try to revamp its reliable but staid image by offering virtual goods on MyTown, the popular iPhone app whose players buy real estate and collect rent on properties. This location-based game attracts more than two million players, according to its creator, the Silicon Valley company Booyah.

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MTV has a different goal. The network wants to drum up viewership for its 2010 Video Music Awards, on Sept. 12, by giving away virtual replicas of celebrity accessories and fashion items, like the singer Beyonce’s diamond ring on Mall World, a style and fashion-oriented Facebook application for women. Some 4.75 million users visit the site monthly.

The clothing retailer Hennes & Mauritz, better known as H&M, is planning a virtual goods campaign to follow its foray in March on MyTown. That campaign showcased its collection of denim and blue garments, called the Blues, and encouraged users to visit an H&M store to buy pieces they liked.

The company declined to talk about its new campaign, but during its first effort, some 700,000 MyTown players checked into game locations like hair salons and spas near H&M stores and earned points they could use to acquire branded items.

To succeed, “branded virtual goods have to be identifiable and have a real world relevance,” said Ravi Mehta, vice president for products at Viximo, a social gaming platform provider. “They are driven by the relevance to the purchaser. Paris Hilton has people who buy her virtual goods because they are fans and want to identify with her, her hair, her place in pop culture.”

Companies have to make sure that the site or game has a social activity that fits, said Chris Cunningham, chief executive of Appssavvy, a company in New York that connects brands and advertising agencies to social media applications on Facebook, MySpace, the iPhone and other outlets.