Do you think you own what you post on Facebook, Instagram or Tiktok? Let me be straight, you own sh*t!
This was how it used to work, but there are alternatives now. If you don’t trust the way the internet works nowadays and believe The Social Dilemma is right, continue reading. There’s an alternative: Web3.
First, we need to understand what the decentralized web is. The Web2 that we have nowadays is highly centralized in the hands of big corporates, but this is rapidly evolving to Web3. At the same time, the Metaverse is how the internet or virtual worlds will merge and integrate into our lives that we will be able to interact with it seamlessly. Let’s explore more in this article on the differences between Web 3.0 and the Metaverse and how they will complement each other in the future.
Web 3.0
Web 3.0 is a concept for the next generation of the internet. It is the evolution of how users are able to control and own their creations and online content, digital assets and online identities.
Web 2.0 is what we are experiencing at the moment. Companies develop and provide products and services in a centralized manner. Take Instagram as an example. Do you think you own your IG content? Nah, the company owns everything on the platform, and they have complete control of all the content that users create there. If they want to ban you or block you, they will do it.
Another example is the popular online game Fortnite. Users have zero control over their in-game identities and assets that they “own”. In Web 2.0, users cannot control and monetize the content they create.
More than 2.5 billion gamers worldwide have been lied to that they own their in-game assets. They don’t own it.
In Web 3.0, however, users can create content while owning, controlling and monetizing them through the implementation of blockchain and cryptocurrencies. This is what enables NFTs. Am I sure you heard of it, right?
Blockchain can enable users to interact with online services governed by peer-to-peer networks, which is essentially a decentralized network of computers instead of the server of a single entity. In such a setting, users can own their data and have permissionless and peer-to-peer transactions, bypassing middlemen’s need for anyone with an internet connection and cryptocurrency wallets like Metamask. The full control of digital identities and how and when data are shared is therefore returned to users with different online applications through their private keys.
You can also read : Metaverse Architecture – A Peek Into The Future
The world is moving fast to Web3. The internet of assets:
- From AWS to IPFS
- From LLC to DAO
- From Chrome to Brave
- From your bank to Metamask
- From centralized systems to decentralized blockchains
- From Facebook to Steemit
- From Eve Online to Star Atlas
Data privacy is another issue of the current Web 2.0 internet. While the centralized entities have full control over the access to the service, they have full control over the users’ data. Users register to access a service and give up their precious private data and content in exchange for the convenience of the service, by agreeing to the terms of services. However, in Web 3.0, not a single entity has control over the access to the service as it’s open to everyone. No registration is needed, users then have complete control over their private data, but at the same time, users have to take the responsibility to protect their own data and assets as they will become the only custodians.
I think web2 has noticed this, and it’s already moving towards Web3. Twitter, for example, rolled out NFT profile pic verification.
Recently we have seen some fantastic new consumer behaviours emerge from Web 3.0 initiatives, like the booming of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), play-to-earn (P2E) games and Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAOs).
For the potential applications of Web 3.0, since it is presented to be the standard of a new generation of internet, we can take it as a set of rules and guidelines applicable for every internet user. As a result, web 3.0 would be applicable throughout the whole internet instead of just certain applications.
You can also read : Metaverse Use Cases and Benefits
The Metaverse
The word “metaverse” is originally from the 1992 sci-fi novel “Snow Crash”. Recently Facebook brought the Metaverse to the mainstream by rebranding itself as “Meta”. The Metaverse is not yet a concrete reality, while the vision of it is a 3D immersive world where we will be spending a lot of time socializing, working, entertaining, learning, etc. It is the combination of virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), gaming, cryptocurrencies, social media and much more.
To put it in very simple terms, the Metaverse is a new way for people to use the internet by transforming it from 2D to 3D. Instead of browsing and interacting with the web content by clicking and flipping different pages and tabs on the 2D screens on computers or mobile phones, this web content is transformed into three-dimensional objects. Take online gaming as an example, instead of playing the games on a 2D webpage. The webpage is transformed into a 3D space where users can walk around inside, interact with other users and play the games as in-game avatars. Users can interact with the web content virtually and immerse themselves in the virtual space. With the integration of virtual reality headsets, users can even have an immersive experience visually and physically.
For the potential applications of the Metaverse, it is expected to be an emerging dimensions which brings social media, work, entertainment, gaming and education all in one platform, by mirroring our real-world activities.
Web 3.0 and the Metaverse — the future
So we have gone through the different definitions of Web 3.0 and the Metaverse, here comes the important question: How do Web 3.0 and the Metaverse complement each other in the future?
I want to say it is the most ideal to have an “open and decentralized” metaverse where no single entity has control over users’ data and assets. However, it seems as of today, the majority of the early stage metaverses out there are owned by different service providers. With Facebook rebranding itself as “Meta” and hiring 10 000 people to work on developing the Metaverse, some people have urged that it’s just a ploy for the company to distance itself from the scandals of data security and users’ privacy. To look at it more positively, the entry of Facebook into the Metaverse helps bring an influx of capital (50 million USD) and talents (10,000 new jobs) together to build its metaverse infrastructure and helped to bring the idea of the Metaverse to mainstream consciousness.
However, companies like Facebook are centralized identity providers which means the digital identities and contents the users created on their platforms are stored in centralized servers where users have no control over them. It means these companies are the technology provider, decision-makers as well as data owners all at the same time.
As we have seen over the past few years, these tech companies are often poor custodians of user interests and our data. As lots of new entrants to the metaverse market draw a outline of the future vision for the Metaverse, it is important that the implementation of decentralization and users’ ownership are prioritized, and this can be achieved by the set of rules and guidelines Web 3.0 provides.
Both the technologies of Web 3.0 and the Metaverse support each other perfectly. Although the Metaverse is a digital space while Web 3.0 favors a decentralized web, it could serve as the basis for connectivity in the Metaverse. On the other hand, the creator economy in the Metaverse can nicely supplementing the vision of Web 3.0 by developing a whole new financial world with the implementation of decentralized solutions.
As we move towards decentralized Web 3.0, we need to consider what kind of internet we want to underscore in the Metaverse. As the Metaverse is all about the merge between virtual and physical worlds, it is very important to have an interoperable and open source public chain to ensure different virtual worlds will be able to interlink, bringing assets from one to another and able to overlap each other in a seamless way.
While Web 3.0 has been shaping up nicely with the exponential growth of NFTs, P2E games and DAOs recently, there is still a long way to the full development of the Metaverse and a lot more room to grow in terms of technology which will make the metaverse experience fully immersive.
The Metaverse of Web 3.0 will manifest the new open and decentralized world reality appearing in the virtuality. I can’t wait to see
As we have seen over the past few years, these tech companies are often poor custodians of user interests and our data. As lots of new entrants to the metaverse market draw a outline of the future vision for the Metaverse, it is important that the implementation of decentralization and users’ ownership are prioritized, and this can be achieved by the set of rules and guidelines Web 3.0 provides.
Both the technologies of Web 3.0 and the Metaverse support each other perfectly. Although the Metaverse is a digital space while Web 3.0 favors a decentralized web, it could serve as the basis for connectivity in the Metaverse. On the other hand, the creator economy in the Metaverse can nicely supplementing the vision of Web 3.0 by developing a whole new financial world with the implementation of decentralized solutions.
As we move towards decentralized Web 3.0, we need to consider what kind of internet we want to underscore in the Metaverse. As the Metaverse is all about the merge between virtual and physical worlds, it is very important to have an interoperable and open source public chain to ensure different virtual worlds will be able to interlink, bringing assets from one to another and able to overlap each other in a seamless way.
star atlas vs eve online
Wouldn’t be cool if you can really own the spaceships inside a game and do whatever you wanna do with them? The Star Atlas spaceships are NFTs that the users own.
While Web 3.0 has been shaping up nicely with the exponential growth of NFTs, P2E games and DAOs recently, there is still a long way to the full development of the Metaverse and a lot more room to grow in terms of technology which will make the metaverse experience fully immersive.
The Metaverse of Web 3.0 will manifest the new open and decentralized world reality appearing in the virtuality. I can’t wait to see how Web 3.0 and the Metaverse will shape up in the future!
You can also read : Web 3 vs Metaverse: What’s The Difference
Aight! I hope this was useful!
Thanks, Bee Lee for the crucial research made to create this article!
how Web 3.0 and the Metaverse will shape up in the future!
Aight! I hope this was useful!
Thanks, Bee Lee for the crucial research made to create this article!
Blog Credit : Medium
