Huge sums are being poured in its development, and technology tycoons are proclaiming it as the future, but really what is the Metaverse?
The Metaverse is a virtual environment populated with digital representations of individuals in the form of avatars, locations, and objects. To put it another way, it’s a “virtual world” where actual people are represented as digital objects and this is powered by blockchain since the future is decentralized.
What’s so different about Metaverse?
The metaverse is envisioned as something you may experience from anywhere across the globe or location of your choice. This virtual environment allows users to accomplish more than they can presently on the Internet. People may party and meet out together with their friends virtually as if they were in real life. It would be a virtual community world where individuals could connect, work, and play.
Access to this digital world would be possible via augmented reality glasses, smartphone applications, headsets and other gadgets which will evolve with time. Tech giants across the world are already in the process of developing device solutions that will allow people to access the Metaverse via smartphones, computers as well as high-end virtual reality gadgets.
Right from Oxford…
The Oxford English Dictionary officially defines the term “metaverse” as a virtual-reality realm in which participants interact with a virtual computer generated world and with other participants as well.
You may conceive of the metaverse as a collection of interconnected virtual environments, similar to the Internet but accessed via virtual reality. This is mostly right, however there is a basic but slightly more esoteric aspect of the metaverse that will distinguish it from today’s internet: the blockchain.
What is the significance of cryptocurrency and blockchain in the metaverse?
While the web accepts PayPal and credit card payments, Cryptocurrency is available in the metaverse virtual world to help in the creation of a digital economy. Blockchain has shown to be effective in six essential metaverse categories: digital ownership proof, interoperability, asset transfer, governance, accessibility, and digital collectibility. Blockchain technology is suited for the metaverse since it is transparent and cost-effective.
A little about Blockchain and its technology!
Blockchain is a system that records transactions permanently, generally in a decentralized and public program known as a ledger.
A very well blockchain-based cryptocurrency is Bitcoin. Whenever you buy bitcoin, for example, the transaction is logged to the Bitcoin blockchain, which is replicated to thousands of unique computers across the world. This decentralized recording system is extremely difficult to cheat or manipulate.
In contrast to traditional banking books, public blockchains, like Bitcoin and Ethereum, are very transparent — all transactions are visible to anybody on the internet.
Ethereum, like Bitcoin, is a blockchain, but it is also programmable via smart contracts, which are basically blockchain technology software routines that execute automatically when a certain criterion is fulfilled. For instance, you may use a blockchain smart contract to create your ownership of a digital object, such as a piece of artwork or audio, to which no one else can claim ownership on the blockchain — even when they save a duplicate to their computer.
Crypto assets are digital objects that may be possessed, such as money, stocks, and artwork.
Currency units in the crypto realm are similarly fungible and interchangeable, but not all digital assets are. This is where NFTs come into the equation.
What do NFT's have to do with the metaverse?
An NFT is a distinctive and non-interchangeable data record kept on the blockchain that can record the transfer, ownership, and attributes of a specific digital object. The phrase non-fungible separates NFTs from many other blockchain entities such as bitcoins, which have the same value and are interchangeable or fungible. The digitization of media, including artwork, music, photos, publications, and even media or blog articles, has muddled the ownership rights, copyrights, and property rights. This is primarily because digital media is so easily duplicated and replicated. Nonetheless, NFTs enable owners of many forms of digital assets to sell and exchange their holdings by using the benefits of the decentralized crypto ecosystem.
Non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”) are items like artwork and music on a blockchain. Non-fungible objects are one-of-a-kind and cannot be replaced, in contrast to fungible items such as cash, which is worth the same as, and can be exchanged for, any other dollar.
The metaverse is not really being constructed by a single organization or company. Various groups will develop multiple virtual worlds, which will eventually be interoperable — establishing the metaverse. Users will want to bring their assets with them as they move between virtual worlds, such as from Decentraland’s digital environment to Microsoft’s. The blockchain will confirm ownership rights of the digital objects in both virtual worlds if both these virtual worlds are compatible. Essentially, the user will be able to access the digital objects as long as the user can access his cryptocurrency wallet inside a virtual environment.
A cryptocurrency wallet would also be able to store digital items exclusive to the metaverse, like avatars, virtual apparel, avatar motions, virtual ornaments, and firearms.
The primary link here between the metaverse and NFTs is digital assets and how they will be valued. People will be able to present digital forms of art work and assets in the metaverse, as well as NFTs will enable them to price that stuff with a proof of ownership.
NFTs have the potential to change the way users engage with established social media platforms and connect with one another.
What are users going to do with their cryptocurrency wallets?
Among other things, go shopping. Users will be able to buy traditional digital products such as audio, videos, games, and applications, just like you can now on the internet. Users will be able to purchase physical-world objects in the metaverse, as well as see and “hold” 3D replicas of what they are purchasing, which may help youthem make better informed selections.
In addition, much as one may carry an ID in a pocket or leather wallet, cryptocurrency wallets will be linked to real-world true identities, which may assist expedite payments that require legal authentication, like purchasing a real-world vehicle or real estate. Because the ID will be connected to the user’s wallet, so there won’t be any need to remember login details for every website and virtual world that is visited by the user — simply connect the wallet with a tap and then the user is signed in. ID-linked wallets will also be handy for restricting access to age-restricted regions of the virtual world. The crypto wallet might also be linked to the users contacts list, allowing to transfer information through one virtual world to some other.
Conclusion
The Metaverse is still very much in early stages, and its scope is growing exponentially as large corporations invest in it and create numerous viable use cases. We constantly hear about one-of-a-kind Metaverse initiatives being developed with specific features. It represents the future version of Metaverse that must be far more sophisticated than that of the Metaverse we know now.
Of course, the expansion of virtual reality, increased internet connectivity, and the widespread availability of the blockchain distributed ledger technology will enhance the Metaverse, allowing it to respond to expanding demand patterns. We, on the other hand, are all looking forward to living in the decentralized interoperable Metaverse and reaping its benefits. Let us prepare ourselves for the magnificent potential that the Metaverse has in store for everyone.
