As you may already know, Facebook changing its name to Meta is more than just a facelift but also a move towards planting roots in the metaverse. Before the much-talked-about rebranding, the metaverse was pretty much a digital frontier known only to a few.
And even though the launch came with a website overhaul and a series of primer videos presented by Mark Zuckerberg himself, it still left a few head-scratching moments. Zuckerberg, in an attempt to make the metaverse digestible, summarized the pivot towards virtual reality with phrases like “build awesome things” and “live in the future.”
But with the metaverse still under construction, it’s understandable that Meta doesn’t have a detailed blueprint for the future yet.
And there are some notable developments in its pipeline, particularly in key metaverse features like VR platforms, cryptocurrency, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
Horizon Worlds reaches new milestones
Meta’s main entry in the metaverse race is Horizon Worlds, a collaborative virtual reality platform where users can play, hang out, and build, be it solo or with friends. The metaverse project is playable on the Oculus Quest 2 VR system.
Recently, the company announced that it has created over 10,000 worlds and saw a 10-fold growth to its user base, which now accounts for 300,000. In this user base, 20,000 are creators, a segment of the population Meta has no plans to ignore.
A way for creators to earn a buck
On April 11, Meta announced that it’s testing new tools that would let Horizon creators earn money by selling virtual items and experiences. On top of that, the company has pledged that it will continue to inject money into its Horizon Creators Fund.
One of the tools the company has rolled out and is testing with a community of creators is the option to offer paid access to a new part of a world, or even make and sell attachable accessories for a fashion world. The feature includes a Commerce tab and gizmo that creators can access when they’re in Create mode. The feature then lets them create purchasable items.
Bonuses for successful creators
Additionally, the tech giant is gearing to launch a Creator Bonus program to help compensate and reward the “awesome things” (as Zuckerberg puts it) the creators are doing on Horizon. The goal is that creators should be able to support themselves so they can continue to expand their world-building repertoire.
The program, in its limited test form, offers goal-oriented monthly bonuses that creators can get in full and without any fees. Creators will get rewarded if they build worlds that attract the most time spent. But Meta has clarified that these goals will eventually evolve to better cater to creators.
Meta believes that these additions, along with continuous tech upgrades, would encourage creators to build better and better worlds and experiences that people would put a premium on.
Meta plans to enters the digital coin and NFT space
Buying items in digital worlds is not a new concept. In the gaming world, one could argue that in-game purchases and exclusive perks are key profit drivers. So it’s no surprise that monetization will eventually become a main part of the metaverse. And with the addition of cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens, things are bound to get better.
In creator-driven metaverse projects like Horizon, crypto and tokens can help fund projects and innovations, create a market for investors, and encourage competition. In fact, there’s talk going around that Meta plans to introduce non-crypto payment tokens to its metaverse.
Internally, it’s being dubbed as “Zuck bucks.” Products being looked at are creator tokens for Horizon, as well as social tokens and reputation tokens for its social apps. These tokens appear to be a pivot from the company’s failed recent attempt to create a global cryptocurrency (initially called Libra, and later Diem) which was dropped due to issues with US regulators.
With a $10 billion annual budget to build over the coming decade and the growth Meta’s metaverse is seeing, it’s safe to assume that there are more breakthroughs on the Horizon (pun intended!).
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