The Metaverse: A hype or the inevitable future?

Be it the Simpsons that predicted the "Ultranet" or movie adaptations such as "Matrix" or "Ready Player One", many have explored the thought of a completely digital world. With Mark Zuckerbergs rebrand of Facebook as "Meta" the beginning of a new era for virtual reality has been established. Is it too early to predict its impact on our society or was the rise of the Metaverse only a question of time?

The Metaverse, as Zuckerberg suggests, will serve as a platform for consumers to interact through computer generated content with a multitude of individuals via Virtual or Artificial Reality. Not only will this happen in real time but will happen no longer in 2D, aka Smartphone zombie scrolling, but through a fully immersive 3D experience. This gives plenty of room for companies to retail, showcase and present their products to all kinds of consumers while gathering a multitude of data to convert into insights and further into products and services. Sounds like a complete package, doesn't it?

Is it virtual Christmas yet?

As of now, Zuckerberg estimates that the time is not right just yet. A project of this size cannot be accomplished through one single company, however, needs the support of many technologically advanced enterprises. He estimates a sheer 10-15 years for the creation and adoption of the Metaverse by the mass public. So please stay patient. Rome wasn't built in a day either.

The cult game Second Life has proven the viability of such an endeavour. Epic Games "Fortnite" provides a newer take on a virtual reality alternative, where the game was gradually converted into a mini virtual world, where user can interact, customise, and attend concerts etc. By including these community building aspects Epic Games created an ecosystem beyond measure binding a new, tech savvy customer group, informally known as Gen-Z, to their brand.

It is not too late or too early to start implementing VR & AR tools and products into the portfolio of entertainment and gaming providers. The spawn of Zuckerbergs brainchild lays the foundation for the next digital transformation and levels up of the human race. With the Covid-19 pandemic the world was forced into digital adoption which spiked sales of technological apparel such as virtual reality glasses and this trend is estimated to continue for the next decade. Studies show that the sales of VR & AR glasses will rise threefold until 2025 peaking at almost 30 million units. The adoption rate of VR glasses on the other hand lies at 45 million users by 2025.

What can we expect from the Metaverse?

Have you ever wanted to be somebody else? Live a different life in a different body? What sounds like a cringe Pay-TV ad could eventually become reality. The Metaverse will enable you to create an avatar of your choosing, without the elemental powers sadly, making you the player in your own RPG called life. Decentraland already shows that it is possible to buy virtual land online. But that's not it. Users will be able to consume, share and create content from travel to cinema to consumer goods and education. If you have purchased cryptocurrency in the past, you might just be able to purchase these goods with them bitcoins and dogecoins.

All on one platform. Potentially free since Zuckerbergs mantra stays the same: "Content should be affordable for everybody." Let's look past the consumer curtain and enter the real show. What does the emergence of the Metaverse mean for the avengers of brands?

Marketing in the Metaverse

Imagine a town square. A market similar to Stardew Valley's Pelican Town Fair. Wherever you look you can see tents and market criers presenting their offering. Everything is beautifully displayed and ready to be consumed. This place offers everything you want and never thought you would need. But boy, oh boy, you really need it all.

Being able to visually engage with your audience and provide the most interactive and appealing experience possible is the epiphany of Marketing best practice. Creating those fully immersive, long lasting Marketing campaigns will confirm a brands place in the Olympic discipline of digital expression and storytelling.

Big names such as Animal Crossing, Overwatch, Roblox and Minecraft already leverage the networking effects of effective community building, which will be crucial to build a fanbase on the Metaverse super servers. These communities build the groundwork for long term customer value creation and the necessary means to build a stable fanbase. Having the backup of advocates and ambassadors open the door for meaningful influencer campaigns, sharable content and continuous hype cycles. This will be essential especially for Social Media activities which thrive from the engagement through user generated content on these self-sustaining multisided platforms.

Privacy & security: NFTs and digital ownership

Let's change gears here and look at the current web concerns and trends to mitigate those. Non fungible tokens are in every corner of the internet. Most known for their incredible trend potential in art / collectibles, the on blockchain based authentication technology is able to assign ownership to a variety of non-tangible goods - like for example your identity. To be realistic though this kind of dystopia probably won't happen. NFTs can be sold and transferred between owners protecting the art / product from illegal copying or pirating. Argh. Not funny? Ok. It was a long shot. Back to the topic. In the Metaverse scenario this could mean safer transactions of virtual property and creation of more scarcity in the world of collectibles. I mean, who would want to share their newly obtained scribbles of Elon Musk’s freshest tech adventure?

On the other side of the medal, you will find another user case of NFTs. Taking a step further company such as Activision Blizzard, now under Microsoft’s wings, are the owner of the content shared by their users. By implementing blockchain in general the rightful ownership could become the users, reducing the limitations and intermediaries of current trading and transactions on gaming platforms. Not only will the introduction of blockchain gaming create more interconnectivity between platforms (yes, the age of cross platform gaming has dawned), but it will allow for more control on the developers end when creating a game due to the decentralised nature of blockchain. If correctly executed these networking effects, hype around scarce collectibles and cross platform availability can potentially lead to sinking costs and no lag (our prayers have been answered) due to the resource efficiency and super speed of the blockchain system.

Now why does this meta for Meta - pun fully intended -? With the introduction of big data, new cyber currencies and stricter data privacy regulations, there is a need for higher cyber security and digital identification as well. The incorporation of blockchain, NFTs and coins will significantly increase safety through decentralised blocks. Could you imagine a world where you don't have to change your passwords every 2-3 months due to cyber breeches? I'd sign up for this.

Are you ready for the new normal?

We have talked to many people about their thoughts on the Metaverse. Most of the consumers are stoked to be able to communicate as an entirely digital avatar with others around the globe. Being able to work, game, socialise and share in a fully customisable virtual world seems highly appealing to many users. But where is sunshine there must be shadow as well - Batman’s usual hideout.

Studies show that the mental health of many Social Media users is drastically declining, alongside the repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic. With this new type of personal expression comes the issue of physical separation. The prolonged interaction with tech reduces our capabilities to socially connect with others. Creating self-sustaining and healthy communities that build amongst trust, passion and support should be a company’s first priority when building a platform business. Now more than ever to ensure that their user base is really ready for the new normal.

It's worth waiting for!

We share the same thought as Mr. Zuckerberg. The Metaverse technology is still in its early phase and will need more technological advancement in several areas, ranging from VR/AR to blockchain and wide adoption of 5G to become fully operational. Not to talk about the incompatibility to most companies’ current resources, which will need a revamp to accommodate for this new trend.

However, we at Quindom strongly believe in the immense advantages the Metaverse can bring to humanity in terms of social community building, where brands can only profit from. . We are aware that the introduction of such a big project has many risks, financially as well as customer wise. Rest assured: We will keep you updated on our thoughts regarding the Metaverse, new tech, gaming in the era of blockchain and how to introduce your company to the virtual world. Stay tuned!

References:

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