A study released Thursday by the World Bank Group's infoDev program reveals that virtual online currencies and digital work are providing income and jobs opportunities to some poor and unskilled workers in developing countries.

The new study entitled "Knowledge Map of the Virtual Economy," finds that more than 100,000 people in countries including China and India earn a living through online games and websites, the Washington-based agency said in a statement.

The study predicts that the market for such services was worth 3 billion U.S. dollars in 2009, adding that with the help of appropriate mobile technologies even the least-developed nations could benefit from this emerging virtual economy.

"Developing countries' roles in the digital world have been mostly limited to users and consumers, not producers. But today, a growing mesh of digital services is giving rise to a new layer of entrepreneurial opportunities with very low entry barriers," said Valerie D'Costa, Program Manager of infoDev.

Entrepreneurs should focus on digital micro-work that benefits society including transcribing books and translating documents, noted Dr. Vili Lehdonvirta, a researcher at Helsinki Institute for Information Technology and the main author of the study.

The infoDev is a global technology and innovation development finance program of the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation (IFC).