Will the Metaverse “Revolutionize Everything?”
Multinational corporations of all stripes are writing Metaverse into their business plans, even though examples of what the Metaverse might look like almost always involve video games. A much-discussed book by Matthew Ball is titled, The Metaverse and How It Will Revolutionize Everything. This is a startling claim given that hardly anyone can explain what the Metaverse is. Ball provides this highly technical definition:
A massively scaled and interoperable network of real-time rendered 3D virtual worlds that can be experienced synchronously and persistently by an effectively unlimited number of users with an individual sense of presence, and with continuity of data, such as identity, history, entitlements, objects, communications, and payments.
To make sense of this definition you need to understand some of its terms: Virtual worlds are computer-generated simulated environments. Rendering is the process of creating a two- or three-dimensional object or environment using computer programing; the more-detailed the object, the more processing power required to display it.
Interoperability is the ability to take content from one virtual world to another. This would make it possible for someone to “buy” an outfit in Minecraft and wear it in Fortnite, two of the most popular video games. Synchronous means two or more players in a game have internet connections capable of transmitting data fast enough that all players share the experience concurrently, without lag time in the transmission. Persistence means that when players take actions in a game, such as destroying an enemy’s fort, the fort will revert to its original condition when the play is completed.
This is all relevant to video games, but so far only a small fraction of the population engages in these virtual worlds. Ball and multitudes of websites offer examples of how the virtualization phenomenon is already touching non-gamers. For example, Amazon uses scores of cameras and sensors in their Amazon Go stores to track and record customers as they pick their own groceries, place them in their bags, and walk out, while an app on the customer’s iOS or Android smartphone records purchases. The app is linked to the customer’s Amazon account for billing, and a receipt is sent.
Two years of Covid lockdowns led millions of skeptics to participate in virtual world activities such as Animal Crossing and Fortnite. Consumers who had known about online grocery services before Covid but never tried them became first-time users. On a smart phone using an app called Instacart, they could tap into their favorite grocery store and shop virtually, viewing pictures of items and their prices, then tap to select what they want. A personal shopper selects the items and delivers them to the customer.
Remote working has proven its value and desirability. The Metaverse promises virtual shared work spaces, sitting around a table with colleagues who are in multiple remote locations. Person-to-person phone conversations may be enhanced similarly, with three-dimensional images of those on the call. Students will be able to virtually enter the historic times and places they are studying.
Sensors, holographic displays, and immersive headsets combine with Peloton-type digital classes to offer enhanced fitness routines. Automakers may drop their new models into a virtual world so players can “drive” the car. Video games incorporate images of consumer products as sources of additional revenue.
A prototype of what entertainment will look like in the Metaverse is a concert Fortnite sponsored in April 2020, featuring rapper Travis Scott. The free concert attracted 12.3 million Fortnite players, earning about $20 million for Scott. Incorporating virtual reality to create unreal special effects, similar events have been “staged” by other digital entertainment companies.
I have only scratched the surface describing what the tech world is promising. Cryptocurrency, virtual travel, digital twins, virtual real estate investment, and more are coming. Is the Metaverse revolutionizing everything? Marshall Ball’s book is an introduction, but enter “Metaverse” into Google and you’ll have enough reading to keep you busy for months.
As for me, I probably won’t be buying a virtual backpack in Fortnite to use when playing Minecraft, but my guess is we will all be facing a learning curve considerably steeper than we climbed when the internet was new, or we bought our first smart phones.