Final Fantasy XIV is currently offline; the original version of the game was shut down in late 2012 to prepare for the upcoming remake/update, Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, which will be released on August 27, 2013. A Realm Reborn will be available as a free upgrade for anyone who purchased the original game.
Since you're already an owner of the original game, you will be able to play A Realm Reborn as long as you have either registered your original FFXIV registration key to your Square-Enix account, or you still have the original registration key in your possession. In the latter case, it will still be possible to register your original key to your account once ARR has been released.
Furthermore, if you already own the Collector's Edition of FFXIV, you'll receive the digital items included in the ARR Collector's Edition for no charge.
From Square-Enix's Lodestone post here:
Players Who Own FFXIV Version 1.0
Players who own FFXIV version 1.0
will not need to purchase the PC version of FFXIV: ARR and will be
able to download the FFXIV: ARR software for free.
- Details on downloading the FFXIV: ARR software will be provided at a later date.
Furthermore, users who have version 1.0 registration codes that have
not yet been registered will be able to register them and play FFXIV:
ARR on PC at the start of the service.
In the meantime, you can still sign up for the ARR beta if you'd like.
The "digital download" version of FFXIV:ARR simply e-mails the purchaser a product registration key, which you (or another person) can then register to your Square-Enix account. Therefore, you should be able to purchase a key and then give that key to someone else so they can register it on their own account.
Disclaimer: I only have first-hand experience with this on the North American Square-Enix online store, so I cannot completely guarantee that this is true for other regions.
Best Answer
It has no other effect on the item except binding the item to you so you can't trade it to another player or sell it on the Marketboard.