The Metaverse and Blockchain: Creating New Worlds

ROBERT STONE

its basic characteristics are well established - it combines both physical and virtual worlds, has a fully functioning economy, and allows users to travel between its different "places" while keeping their purchased goods and avatars Like a virtual theme park with no limitations to size or creativity, users will be able to travel effortlessly from one location to another within the same virtual world

Why is the Metaverse Important?

A collective virtual experience may bring new opportunities to creators, gamers, and artists in the same way that non-fungible tokens have reshaped and invented the creator economy even if the Metaverse fails to achieve the epic vision many have for it�

Described as a successor to the Internet, the Metaverse could become a trillion-dollar industry It's a destination for entertainment, commerce, and for some, even a place of employment� Blockchains and decentralized applications are used to build it

Matthew Ball believes that the Metaverse will become "the gateway to most digital experiences, a component of every physical experience, and the next great labor platform." It will be a driving force behind a new generation of companies, similar to how the Internet created new companies In an interesting twist, the rise of digital platforms could lead to the fall of incumbent industry leaders�

Consider Facebook

Facebook announced in June that it would be working on "bringing the Metaverse to life." Instagram's Vishal Shah will lead the project along with Vivek Sharma and Jason Rubin from Facebook Gaming

Zuckerberg discussed his ambitions for the Metaverse in an interview with The Verge During his talk, he introduced the concept of virtual workspaces, which he called "infinity offices." Working in VR, he argues, allows for increased multitasking, and meeting in a virtual, metaverse-like environment can be more effective and productive Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg says he already prefers to hold his meetings in VR if possible since Zoom calls have obvious limitations

According to Zuckerberg, Facebook plans to invest heavily in this area Currently, it owns Oculus, the maker of the popular Quest VR headset According to Zuckerberg, VR technology will be capable of enabling metaverses "within the next decade."

Tech giants stepping into the Metaverse include Google and Microsoft

Although no single person or company can control the Metaverse, the usual suspects of the tech world have already staked their claim Facebook has joined Google, Microsoft, Samsung, and Sony in the XR Association, a group of technology companies working on the evolution of "experiential reality." Games have pioneered many aspects of metaverse technology and could continue to do so� The concept of in-game economies has been popular in video games for years, where players can buy and sell items with no real value outside the game itself� Fortnite is the most recent example, but Grand Theft Auto V is a longer-standing example Although released almost seven years ago, the game grossed over a billion dollars in profit in 2020, thanks to a large, active online community

In the Metaverse, these ingame economies are unified under one cohesive virtual experience Metaverse is not based on objective standards, as is the case in video games It will be more like the way we treat the Internet than some sort of virtual role-playing game

What role does crypto play in the Metaverse?

The Metaverse is driven by the need to deliver permissionless identities, financial services, and high-speed exchanges It will be necessary to store and serve data to millions, if not billions, of users Cryptocurrencies provide a solution to these problems� Virtual worlds such as Decentraland and The Sandbox, which incorporate cryptocurrencies, allow gamers to create virtual casinos and theme parks, which can be monetized Decentraland's currency is known as MANA, and it can be purchased on exchanges like Coinbase Decentraland even has casinos where you can gamble in MANA, with dealers paid in MANA to show up for work Metaverse NFTs will also play a crucial role in allowing people to own their characters, game items, and even virtual land A virtual estate consisting of 259 parcels in Decentraland recently sold for over $900,000, making it the largest sale so far Interoperable marketplaces will eventually allow the purchase and sale of virtual goods from different games and universes In Decentraland, a person could sell their virtual plot of land and use the money to buy Fortnite skins NFTs could be the only legal tender used in the Metaverse, with all virtual objects and intangible items expressing themselves in cryptocurrency

"Players are truly blown away by the amount of money they spend on digital assets These digital assets are worth hundreds of thousands and probably millions," said Arthur Madrid, CEO of

The

Sandbox "Building a NFT economy will add another layer to that existing marketplace."

The Metaverse's growth is inextricably linked to the role cryptocurrencies play No one can predict what the final form of the Metaverse will look like, but the impact of cryptocurrencies is certain� As we monitor the advancements in technologies like virtual reality, and how current industry leaders like Facebook are getting involved, blockchain technology and the cryptocurrency sector will also play an important role in shaping the Metaverse's future.