Of late, we have heard the term Metaverse being mentioned a lot, since Mark Zuckerberg changed the name of Facebook to Meta.

If you are still in the dark about what Metaverse is, this article may be able to summarize it for you.

So what is Metaverse?

It is a combination of numerous technologies, including virtual reality, augmented reality, and eye-tracking, all used to create the ultimate virtual experience within a virtual universe.

If you think this is a thing in the distant future, you would be mistaken, as the technology is already among us in the form of Fortnite, Roblox, and The Sandbox.

For the uninitiated, the term Metaverse itself is not new. It was first mentioned in the 1992 science-fiction novel "Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson.

Renowned Hollywood director Steven Spielberg's 2018 movie "Ready Player One" would be able to give you a picture of how life in the Metaverse would be.

How do I access it, and what's in a Metaverse?

Although some Metaverse are available as online gaming platforms, the best way to enter the Metaverse is with virtual reality (VR) goggles. Users can create an avatar, and talk to other characters, hang out, play games, watch movies, ad even browse the web. The Metaverse will have texture, dimension, and color. Users can even own digital assets in the Metaverse with the use of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and cryptocurrency.

As a Metaverse user, you can monetize your creations, meet new friends, participate in virtual events, and even host business meetings.

In fact, a couple from Tamil Nadu even held their wedding reception on the Metaverse, last weekend. Guests virtually attended the Harry-Potter themed event and passed on gifts to the newlyweds in the form of gift vouchers, and even cryptocurrencies.

While the Metaverse offers pretty much the same features you could have in the real world, the major difference is with Metaverse, you can "teleport" to any part of the world, from the comfort of your own home. Talk about saving on flight tickets!

So why is theMetaverse important?

You may think that the Metaverse is more like a plaything for the youths, but this is not the case. As the world moves towards digitalisation, the Metaverse is important as it offers people an in-person way to connect and communicate from anywhere in the world, virtually.

In addition, the Metaverse also supports a whole virtual economy, where users can build businesses, network with others, and even host family gatherings, in the virtual world. We can bet that this is the safest bet to avoid physical contact in the pandemic era.

By having the infrastructure to build and monetize digital locations, the Metaverse is also capable of creating more job opportunities for developers, and virtual architectures, among others.

The Metaverse technology is still in its initial stages, but developing rapidly. Some of the renowned brands that have already begun building in this "tomorrow technology" include Atari, Adidas, Google, Microsoft, Nike and Sony.


Source: one37pm.com
Photo source: trendsactive.com