Theme:
- In October 2021, Facebook announced that it has changed its company name to ‘Meta‘ to focus on building and supporting Metaverse, a shared virtual space where people interact through their digital avatars.
What is Metaverse:
- In metaverse, people can interact with each other using virtual and augmented reality technologies. It will result in forming the shared virtual world.
- Metaverse is considered web 3.0. The earlier version of the internet which consisted of web pages that provided information is termed web 1.0. The next version consisted of interactive web pages. Now, web 3.0 will be a result of assimilating virtual reality and augmented reality in web 2.0.
- We can shop, play games, buy things and own places in the metaverse.
- Many companies are creating gaming metaverses. The ‘Second life’ game, which was launched in 2003 can be stated as an earlier version of the metaverse.
Benefits of Metaverse:
- It will be quite beneficial to host meetings. There are some limitations for video conferences such as lack of personal connection. Metaverse will make us feel like we are sitting at the same place by interacting through digital avatars.
- It will also help people with special needs.
- It can also be used as a treatment method to cure phobias.
- It is expected that virtual currencies in the metaverse will significantly influence the world economy. Decentralization will reduce the dependence on governments.
Challenges:
- Few companies may control the metaverse and hence power and influence may stay in the hands of a few people.
- By tying up with companies, government surveillance and control may increase.
- Internet addiction, smartphone addiction are now common issues. So, it is quite possible that addiction to the virtual world will become the next common issue. Moreover, metaverse consists of entertainment, shopping, games and many other things that are addictive in nature.
- Even in this modern era, not everyone has access to the internet. Many people are digital illiterates. Due to the digital divide, the benefits of metaverse will not be accessible to many.
Conclusion:
Some people are saying that metaverse could be the future of the internet. Many companies are investing in building metaverse. It is important to make sure that there will be no monopoly in the shared virtual world.
Your words…
What are your thoughts on Metaverse? Do you think it is the future of the internet? Express your point of view through the comment section below. And subscribe to our blog to read answers to the trending GD topics.
Photo by VARAN NM from Pexels
References:
- Facebook’s metaverse plans labelled as ‘dystopian’ and ‘a bad idea’
- The rise of the metaverse
- Breaking down the hype around Metaverse
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