What We Talk About When We Talk About Metaverse
Metaverse
Metaverse is a network of 3D virtual worlds focused on social connection, coined by Neal Stephenson’s novel Snow Crash in 1992, and now becoming a trendy topic among top technology giants, such as Facebook, Microsoft, Google, and Apple. Even though the term is bubbling up everywhere, the idea of metaverse is not something new, and most of us have already been in the magical world before.
Video gamers are the pioneers in this new world. Fortnite, Minecraft, and Roblox, these video games that allow players to socialize, shop, and attend events in a virtual world, can be viewed as the prototype of metaverse. Besides gaming, attending virtual concerts and buying high-end designers’ virtual fashion clothing are also part of the metaverse. Thus, there is no need to be freaked out by the jargon. All we have to know is that the difference between metaverse and other online involvement is that there is no physical gaining from metaverse, all goods or services we consume are 100% digitally, and all experience or feelings we gained are 100% from virtual objects.
Profits
New things always bring new opportunities, so does metaverse. According to Emergen Research, the global metaverse revenue has reached USD 47.69 billion in 2020 and is expected to register a revenue CAGR of 43.3% during the forecast period and will achieve USD 828.95 billion revenue in 2028. This blue ocean is waving to welcome ambitious entrepreneurs to join it.
Video games, fashion, entertainment, and the art industry are metaverse’s starts. Currently, metaverse has incorporated with Blockchain and NFTs welly on several video game platforms, such as VRChat, Horizon Worlds, and Rec Rooms. In the fashion industry, most of them are currently investing as video game skins in metaverse, which make up an estimated $40 billion a year market. Balenciaga partnered with Fortnite, British designer Stefan Cooke was with The Sims, Burberry and Louis Vuitton are minting NFTS, while some new classes of brands, like RTFKT, are starting to issue virtual sneakers. Cryptovoxels is one of the more easily accessible entry points into the metaverse in the art industry. It hosts pop-up and “permanent” galleries that can be accessed through a desktop browser, phone or headset.
The other side of a coin
A coin has two sides, and the other side of metaverse is harassment and assaults. Even though these misbehaviors are omnipresent in real or digital life, they can be much more severe in virtual reality. That’s because virtual reality plunges people into an all-encompassing digital environment where unwanted touches in the digital world can be made to feel natural and the sensory experience is heightened, according to Sheera Frenkel and Kellen Browning. It is also likely that people who turn to virtual reality have less fun and companionship in their real physical life, making them attach a more emotional feeling to the digital network and harder to solve it on their own.
Besides cyberbullying, consumer privacy is also a big concern. People have to involve more of themselves in metaverse, and this means that except entering their personal information such as name, contact information, address, metaverse will also record their biological data, such as face id, fingerprint, moving habit. States have already used facial recognition technology to monitor individuals’ behavior. Adding all personal information together, any tech giant or government could easily use this technology to surveil any participant worldwide.
Future
Despite all the imaginary, analysis, foresight, or suspect, even objection towards metaverse, there is no doubt that we will finally achieve the day of its fully occupation in our world, just like 15 years ago we celebrated the coming of mobile era. The only question is how should we live with it.
This is Yang’s blog. Thanks for your reading. And see you next week :)
