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What metaverse means for businesses
What metaverse means for businesses

March 18, 2022

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Welcome to the metaverse! Though the term is gaining a lot of traction now, its origins can be traced to 1992 when Neal Stephenson coined the term in his novel Snow Crash, describing it as “a fully-realized digital world that exists beyond the analog one in which we live.”[1]

The metaverse is essentially an evolution of ICT (information-communication-technology), which will create a 3D virtual world riding on the back of emerging technologies like AR/VR, AI/ML where businesses, consumers, and other types of users can connect and interact. This means that connections will now be even greater and closer to real-life scenarios and the possibilities of this could take us to a much higher level than ever before.

For businesses, this means there could be more opportunities to connect with customers, offer more deals, rewards, or loyalty programs, which are metaverse-specific. This could help enrich the customer experience, enable the collection of more customer data about their preferences, and even possibly support new types of payment methods.

The metaverse could also allow more flexibility within learning, training, and development. For example, with a VR headset, factory employees could potentially examine new machinery and gain training on how to use them. They could also use touch-screen dashboards and have prompts to guide them through this process – all from the comfort of their desks across the world!

Though still in its infancy, the metaverse offers huge potential for industries like retail, education, entertainment, real estate and hospitality. Thus, the immersive nature of the ‘meta’ environment easily lends itself to increased connections and communication, albeit virtually.

Of course, these are still early days in the metaverse and issues surrounding security and privacy, data protection and legal issues still need to be addressed. Further is the question of ownership as even today issues plaguing Big Tech continue to spring heated debates regarding platform content regulation,  government and cyber laws and monopolization of technologies. Additionally, if payments are to be made, this brings in another aspect of discussion regarding cryptocurrencies, blockchain technology and NFTs.

Nevertheless, these issues notwithstanding, the concept of metaverse is an exciting prospect. Here businesses and brands can truly unleash themselves and gain the competitive edge. However, the usual rules will still apply and businesses need to do the groundwork with in-depth research and due diligence. They need to study their target groups more carefully, understand what their peers and competitors are doing, and plan when and how they intend to enter and leverage the metaverse. All of this requires brands to become more creative while still understanding the potential of what is to come.

Madhurima Agarwal

Director, Engineering Programs, NetApp India
Head, NetApp Excellerator


[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/10/style/metaverse-virtual-worlds.html

 


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