Copy this: Zynga raises $130K for two charities through social games

Zynga, the biggest social game publisher, has been criticized for copying the games of others. But when it comes to generating donations for nonprofits in a social fashion, it’s a leader.

Today, the company announced that Zynga game players have raised more than $130,000 for two charities through virtual goods purchases.  “I don’t think enough of you have copied it,” joked Mark Pincus, chief executive of Zynga, to an audeince of his peers a couple of days ago at the Inside Social Apps conference.

Thousands of Zynga users participated in two separate five-day promotions last month to raised money for the Huntington’s Disease Society of America, which supports research for a rare neurological disorder that affects one in 10,000 people, and Water.org, a nonprofit founded by entrepreneur Gary White and actor Matt Damon to bring safe drinking water to developing nations.

More than 24,000 Mafia Wars fans bought a virtual teddy bear to promote awareness for Huntington’s Disease. And thousands of FishVille players bought nearly 70,000 limited edition fish to raise $13,000 for Water.org. The funds will be used to benefit safe water projects in earthquake-hit Haiti. To date, Zynga players have raised $3 million for social causes associated with Zynga.org. It turns out that giving is a lot easier when it happens in the context of fun and is as easy as clicking an icon.

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