Online riches for kids come at a price.

Willy Wonka's Veruca Salt was way ahead of her time when she declared, “I want it now!”
Today, kids can get instant gratification faster than you can say “Download in progress.”

Sites are springing up all over the Internet, says the New York Times, offering virtual worlds for kids with an endless posse of downloadable friends. And they’re not free.

One of the most popular, Club Penguin, lets visitors dress up digital penguins and decorate igloos with various Arctic accoutrements for a $5.95 monthly fee. With more than 750,000 subscribers, Club Penguin is making a cool profit.

Should parents let kids start a collection of pixelated pals, or make them go outside and make some real ones?