Would a metaverse be a profitable platform for businesses in 2022?
What would you do if you could never own the clothes you bought? Would you pay what you would for the clothes?
Recently, 620 virtual sneakers were sold for $3.1 million in less than five minutes by a startup company in the metaverse. A fan of Snoop Dogg charged a $450,000 fee to be his virtual neighbour. Fans went meta-crazy when Justin Bieber performed in the metaverse!
Clothing and shoes are very physical items. Your money cannot be classified as an investment in digital real estate. Watching a youtube video with VR headsets is equivalent to a VR concert. How does someone value something they cannot even touch or see with their own eyes because of some underlying instinct or emotion?
Fashion is shaped by what is around us and influenced by what the environment demands. Suppose we go to a wedding; our natural inclination is to wear traditional clothing since we know most people there will be dressed in formal attire. Wearing gym gear is an essential part of going to the gym because you cannot walk wearing pyjamas and be viewed as ‘the odd one out.
Isn’t it wonderful if your avatar looked beautiful at this wedding if this was in the metaverse? Would you not want your avatar to have a sporty look if this gym existed in the metaverse?
As people spend more and more time online, the physical and digital boundaries start to blur. What about the game Temple Run? Do you remember it? A default avatar appears when the game starts, and six options are available. Different avatars come with various outfits, purchased with ‘coins’. Taking part in the game will earn you more coins. The app is available for purchase through the App Store.
Now, this reward system operates so that, unless you are some cool dude with a crooked face, wearing a hat, it will not be enjoyable to run. Therefore, real money is spent to acquire those coins.
Avatars in the metaverse behave similarly. According to human psychology, it becomes the instinct to look good to be accepted in a new environment.
This metaverse, to be clear, is in its experimental phase, so the expenditure on virtual assets – such as virtual clothes, NFTs of sneakers, real estate plots, might seem like a gamble because people are getting accustomed to the new theories and concepts.
Web development
Understanding how the web evolved is essential to experience business in the metaverse. According to professionals, web 2.0 and Web 3.0 are three distinct phases in the evolution of the web.
Internet 1.0 was the time when it became accessible for the average person. There was no way for the user to communicate back to the content creator since the websites loaded slowly and the content creator only provided information. HTML was used to code these static websites.
Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter – today’s most popular applications – were first created by Web 2.0. Most of them are coded in CSS and Javascript, allowing users to interact, and the rest is well known.
Web 3.0 is the topic of our discussion today. Examples of this include Siri from Apple and the Cloud API from Google. AI and blockchain technologies are used to power these services, and they are designed to provide users with content that is relevant to them.
Users can start seeing suggestions from e-commerce websites based on what they type—the new age of encryption, NFTs, and metaverses — the crypto revolution.
Businesses that can sustain our life in the ‘other world’ are essential to our entry into this new age.
Advertising and Product Placement
Future generations will be spending more and more time online, so brands must find new methods for advertising their products in the metaverse to remain visible and prominent. Advertising will gradually move from the physical world to the virtual one.
Because of their importance, avatars are the next business opportunity in the metaverse. In the physical and the virtual world, people are willing to pay a great deal of money for the desire to look good. The fashion industry will see a whole new revenue stream. For the avatars, outfits and such would not be available. The best part is that they will be able to sell them as NFTs at prices they could never achieve with their actual clothes.
Concerts and events sponsored
Sponsorships of events and concerts follow next. Travis Scott had already done Justin Bieber’s performance in November 2020 in April, and it was themed into Fortnite. The same is true for Ariana Grande and Lil Nas X. Minecraft, too, has hosted virtual reality events. Hosting events has increased enormously without any negative consequences, and recent events have even led to a couple getting married in the metaverse.
Working remotely
When people start working in the metaverse, they will take this to the next level because Covid made it so that everyone had to work from home. All of the things people do at the office, such as sit in meetings and walk through the front door, would be possible from home. To do this, you would need a home setup. Hardware and software providing companies will experience growth.
The gaming industry
Over $180 billion is generated by the gaming industry. Several other gaming series are on their way to adapting to these new-world changes, including Fortnite and Minecraft. Name names like Second Life and Dungeons and Dragons are already well established within this VR category.
Bidding farewell is never easy.
Remember the days when we wrote text messages instead of using WhatsApp? The default messaging app was frustrating because we couldn’t find out if a letter had been delivered or not or if it had been read. Still, the move came with a lot of reluctance, if not total unwarrantedness.
Human behaviour is one thing that will not change in this constantly evolving world, and on the other hand, it is also the only thing driving all the other changes. Whether this behaviour will usher in a new era or make the present one obsolete.
Metaverse: Is humanity on the verge of extinction?
Rather than being informative, today’s blog is more imaginative. It discusses both the present and the possible future. This time we discuss the metaverse.
It’s no secret; you’ve read multiple blogs about it, watched videos, and even discussed it with friends. The metaverse may become humanity’s next evolutionary step, or it may destroy it. This is what I hope to share with you today.
Keep on reading, will you? Humour me a little, and I will tell you a story that will confirm and disprove your positive thoughts and fears.
Technology, the Next Frontier
Messages posted by anonymous users on the image-posting platform 4chan have stated, “We are the middle children of history.”. Born too late for exploration on Earth, born too early for exploration in space.”
When that is the case, what are we doing with this generation? Are we simply wasting time, or are we trying to imagine what could be? Should we be critical of our delay in arriving in this world? Is there some greater purpose for our lives?
The method we use to define “something greater” is the classic one – the “monkey to man” chain of evolution. Humans are currently the end; therefore, they are considered the end. However, I would like to suggest that this isn’t true. Could the human race be a stepping stone to something new and better?
It’s difficult to tell what our evolution will look like next because I don’t know the answer. The best I can do is provide a rough idea. The best I can do is offer a rough idea.
According to pop culture, there will be more discoveries in space. Unfortunately, humans have to die to reach the area.
Surprised? Perhaps death isn’t as final as you think. If humanity dies, it might be a blessing rather than a curse for the species.
Humanity is no longer homo sapiens.
Humans are pretty inefficient. Only a few resources on this planet can be considered renewable over the long term, and it is much faster for us to consume these resources than for them to replenish.
Humans are decreasingly able to obtain resources of all kinds, including power, building materials, and other consumables. In addition to this nonrenewable consumption habit, humans are currently reproducing at an alarming rate, increasing mouths that need feeding, heads to shelter, and bodies to be warmed.
As a result, humanity will face a much more permanent death if this trend continues. It would be the end of society, and a solution to this problem is not apparent.
Can you envision a death where you and at least a few of your loved ones could continue to exist if an alternative end existed?
My point is that your consciousness continues to exist after your physical body has perished. Wouldn’t this make death very temporary?
The next obvious question would be, “Well, if my consciousness lives, but I am not physically present, where does my consciousness live?” Inside a computer that manages a server resides the answer to your question. According to my ramblings, this PC is also the next and not final step in the evolution of humanity.
Metaverse is the solution to this problem. Let’s look at how it works.
Take a look at the Meta Universe.
To understand precisely what the metaverse is and what it involves, let’s stop and pause before returning to the philosophical.
Digital metaverses are digital representations of an open world that can’t just be accessed through screens. Instead, it is a 3-dimensional space where users can interact with.
Visual media is any form of visual media that you enjoy. This may be a movie, a picture, or even a video game. 2D media has been the only way we could view them in the past. The media portrays height and width but does not provide depth, and the experience is incomplete.
This is changed by metaverse by immersing the viewer into the media by changing their perspective from one observer to one of an observer.
I’m trying to say that the famous “first swing” scene from two out of three Spiderman movie sets can be seen in the first person, but it can also be experienced as if it is repeatedly happening. The best part is that you don’t have to worry about bug bites!
The responsibility for answering your questions also falls to me as the one who roused your curiosity. The day will be filled with a lot of “answers.”
Therefore, it is perfectly possible to ask me, “How does a computer program do all of this?”
Virtual reality holds the key to answering this question. While VR has been around since the 1960s, the concept became popularized in 2012 with the announcement of Oculus Rift, a virtual reality headset.
Among the earliest uses of VR, those of gaming included “Beat Saber”, “VR Chat,” and “Blade and Sorcery”. Virtual reality is today the literal ears and eyes of the virtual world.
Having taken care of vision and sound, the sense of touch was the next step in immersion. Haptic suits were developed to satisfy this sense’s requirements, and Onesies emblazoned with sensors would emulate touch for the wearers of haptic suits.
The real challenge was how to make the user experience touch without having to wear heavy suits. Today, technology has evolved to the point that meeting someone in person and the metaverse is almost identical without feeling like you’re wearing sports clothing.
People were ready to enter a whole new world when VR and haptic gear were introduced. Imagine a world where you have nearly all of the world’s benefits but none of the dangers, negatives or pains.
In the metaverse, there are wonders and more. In addition to providing services like the sale of the “land” and the creation of assets in the form of NFTs, Metaverse is currently engaging in financial activities. Even the casino at Decentraland in the Metaverse is hiring, and it’s free! The metaverse is quickly becoming its ecosystem.
In Metaverse, Decentraland is one of the two open worlds where users can immerse themselves. Previously, Horizon was another open world. Decentraland is already up and running, while Horizon is still in development. Additional platforms are, of course, in the works. It might not be so virtual anymore when entertainment and earning a move to the metaverse. The metaverse may become your real life, and your biological existence may serve as more of an obstacle than an essential element.
There’s no doubt about it; we’re going back.
Metaverse: To Be or Not To Be
According to the story, I am spinning; the metaverse is on the verge of becoming the “new normal”. As a result, fulfilling one’s biological needs has become less of a necessity than a hindrance. The real world is becoming somewhat outdated as more and more people move to the digital world. Most of all, you’ll wonder whether you should switch to.”
My goal is to persuade you to switch, and this does not benefit me financially—just an observation. As always, I welcome your thoughts as well. I accept all civilized discussions regarding this topic since it lives rent-free in my head.
Positive opinions are more welcome than negative ones; as Voltaire said, “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend your right to say it till the end.”
What are the benefits of switching? As I mentioned earlier, humans are highly inefficient, to the best of my belief. More of our kind is produced than consumed, making the situation worse. The world we have to finish will run out before we extinction at this rate.
What are the chances of this extinction occurring very soon? It is possible. Considering only our lives as a standard of measurement, we’ll be feeding the Earth long before our end. However, to paraphrase a Native American proverb, “We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors; we loan it to our children.” So let me ask you again, will you doom your children to this slow, but sure, death?
It sounds alarmist, I know. Couldn’t we avoid this end if we never created future generations? Okay, lower your pitchforks; let’s hear what I say. Let’s face it; this will get a lot more “heartless” soon.
From the evolutionary perspective, the primary objective of reproduction is to make a copy of an existing being to enhance the knowledge of those beings. To ensure its repeatability and make sure more humans are made, parents’ emotional connections to their children play an essential role.
Do you think humans would ever procreate if they lived forever? How sustainable would a system like that be if there were eternal humans that consumed resources and multiplied forever?
It would be ideal if the human species could live forever without reproducing. However, learning and memory would become problematic. The human body goes through different phases as it grows, and they go through three stages: learning new things, implementing this information, and slowly losing all that knowledge. It’s not ideal that human memory is imperfect, as the ability to remember information diminishes as one ages, and the ability to gather information also goes down as one age.
Brain-Computer Interfaces can be helpful here. However, it is hard to believe that it could be a viable solution in today’s world. Mind-to-machine interfaces have advanced tremendously in recent years with the conversion of mental signals into mechanical inputs. Computers are already capable of interpreting brain activity through electroencephalograms or EEGs, and Electroencephalograms were discovered in 1929.
When technology advances enough, it will be possible to read, record, and turn a person’s mental activity into algorithms and protocols, immortalizing them as uploaded consciousnesses. The new “digital being” will have perfect retention since its memory will not be confined to what a person can remember within their brain but to the vast store of information they would be uploaded to.
In the future, new individuals would be able to join this vast collection of knowledge so that it will grow forever, and the being could always learn more.
What remains to be seen is if you will join the singularity when the assimilation takes place?
What are the steps to enter the metaverse?
The buzzword has been around for quite a while now. Some credit should also go to us for introducing you to this word. Indeed you’ve read our blogs.
Earlier, we discussed what goes on in the metaverse how it could affect human evolution and employment opportunities in the virtual world.
What is the process of entering this metaverse? The name sounds like someone will have to do a Jeff Bezos and hop on a rocket to visit outer space if they are interested.
There’s not much distance between us and this whole new world. As much money as Mr Amazon does not necessarily mean a rocket ship, and Metaverse entry and operation require particular gear and software. What do you think about these?
A Hardware Store
The concept of entering the metaverse may sound fun, but a few components need to be assembled.
Computers are the first thing you need, and I don’t mean a simple laptop or desktop that can boot up and play solitaire when I say computer. The metaverse can only be entered with hardware that can handle running a full-fledged VR setup.
Hardware components that are required include:
- Having a graphics processing unit (GPU) and central processing unit (CPU) strong enough. Graphics cards are often referred to as GPUs.
- With a connection speed of over 50 MB/s, you should have a stable internet connection.
- Sometimes, full-body motion can be captured using sensors.
- Finally, a Virtual Reality (VR) kit is essential.
The focus remains on the VR kit rather than turning this blog into a technical blog and diving into every part necessary. It would be impossible for us to go through all possible combinations and permutations of PC parts anyway, so we’ll skip them.
A headset and a set of controllers are included in the VR set. When combined, they help the user position their head and hands within the simulated environment.
It features two screens and lenses that let you see those screens, and users view these screens and lenses directly before their eyes. As part of the simulation, there are also motion sensors to enable the user to look around in the simulation without pressing buttons or moving an external device.
But the headset allows users to move only to look around. Travelling in VR is possible both physically and virtually, but the space available to the user in real life is much smaller than that of the virtual world. Accidents can be hilarious and severe.
VR controllers are here to help. They are equipped with the same button arrangement as conventional console controllers. However, virtual reality controllers are better suited to the metaverse due to their sensor-enabled arm movements that mimic human-like movements that traditional controllers cannot.
Among the major VR headsets on the market are Oculus by Meta, Vive by HTC, and PS VR (Playstation Virtual Reality) by Sony. Google has stopped supporting Cardboard and Daydream, and Microsoft’s HoloLens is geared more towards Mixed Reality.
One cannot enter the metaverse with hardware alone, and special software and programs are also required to enter the metaverse. Apps like Steam or Meta Quest store are comprised of either game libraries or specific to a headset manufacturer.
Software like these allows you to download, store and manage specific games available in their library that will enable you to be a part of the metaverse.
This makes the metaverse seem more like a fancy playground for the chosen few with even more sophisticated tools, doesn’t it? However, is there another way into metaverse? A method that average Joe’s like you and I can access more easily?
The solution is there; there is a solution.
Everyone can participate in the metaverse.
Those interested in entering the metaverse but locked out due to the high requirements may have found the list discouraging. Since we focused on going all out, using VR to enter the metaverse, we were limited in what we could do.
Decentraland is an absolute here, which is where they shine. Users can access the Metaverse through Decentraland without requiring full-featured VR gear. As the portal to Decentraland’s slice of the metaverse, the Decentraland website acts as the gateway.
This “available for everyone version” of Decentraland may be less immersive but is still pretty intensive on the system due to the lack of VR. Having tried to enter using my work computer, I know how intense it is on the system. The work computer I use at work is leagues ahead of the one I use at home (though I still enjoy using that junk). If my bosses are reading this, what I was doing at work was mere “research”.
Decentraland’s version of the metaverse offers a little more difficulty to users who would like to learn more about it. Users need to create an account with Decentraland’s three supported wallets, namely MetaMask, FortMatic or WalletConnect.
An individual’s crypto wallet holds their crypto balances and is required to complete transactions, such as purchasing “land” and “clothing” for their avatar(s). Neither these lands nor these clothes can be bought without cryptocurrencies since NFTs are only available with them.
You need not worry about crypto or the whole “blockchain” affair if you’re uncomfortable with it; we have a course just for you to ease any crypto-related problems you might be experiencing. Here is Finology Quest’s presentation on cryptocurrency and blockchain.
Conclusion
A metaverse is a concept that describes an alternate open world with many potentials that go beyond just being a game or a social gathering place. It’s only the beginning of what’s to come as technology and people transition to this new frontier. Decentraland and other versions of this open-world are all just scratching the surface.
There are very likely going to be some dark events associated with the development of Metaverse technology.
In the beginning, 3d space seemed like just a way to hang out with random strangers online, but now it has the potential to create significant economic and societal changes. Only time will tell what direction this will take.
edited and proofread by nikita sharma
