Will the metaverse change business models and what are the options on making money on this expected network of internet platforms sometimes called the Web 3.0?

Many companies are already there to secure a position for future revenues. Consultancy Deloitte stresses that the metaverse is not a future dream, the metaverse is, to some extent, already here with the web being a routine part of our lives.

Meta has now announced that it is testing tools for creators to sell virtual items and experiences on the metaverse that CEO Mark Zuckerberg used to change Facebook’s name to Meta when negative publicity around the Facebook name made a rebranding necessary.

Talking about the future impact of the metaverse, media theorist and venture capitalist Matthew Ball told consultancy McKinsey´s podcast The Edge that “the advent of graphics-based computing and 3-D environments is going to change many of the technologies, standards, conventions, and monetization models.”

”It’s going to have profound generational change. And, most importantly, it’s going to reach many of the categories we’ve long hoped would be altered by mobile and the internet and yet haven’t been”, Ball said.

TOOL FOR MONETIZATION

Meta in a blog post said the company has started testing several new tools that will enable creators to experiment with different ways to monetize what they’re building in Horizon Worlds.

“While we’re launching this today as a test with a handful of creators to get their feedback, these types of tools are steps toward our long-term vision for the metaverse where creators can earn a living and people can purchase digital goods, services, and experiences.”

”The metaverse—by nature of its not being limited by physical space—will bring a new level of creativity and open up new opportunities for the next generation of creators and businesses to pursue their passions and create livelihoods.”

The tests include a handful of creators that will sell virtual items and effects.

“For example, someone could make and sell attachable accessories for a fashion world or offer paid access to a new part of a world.”

BONUSES FOR CREATORS

Purchasing items in Horizon Worlds is available to people 18+ in the US and Canada where Horizon Worlds is currently available. Creators selling items will see a Commerce tab and gizmo when they’re in Create mode that lets them create purchasable items.

Meta is also testing a Horizon Worlds Creator Bonus program for participants in the US. Creators will be rewarded for building worlds that attract the most time spent. ”But over time we may evolve these goals, for example, to encourage creators to adopt new tools or features we roll out”, Meta said.

Deloitte predicts that the metaverse can be a challenge for media companies business models.

With a growing focus on the metaverse, media and entertainment companies may need to collaborate more to create a future where they remain at the centre, Deloitte says in its 2022 report on digital media trends with data collected from the US, UK, Germany, Brazil, and Japan.

IT´S ALREADY HERE

The report stresses that the metaverse is not really only a futuristic dream. To some extent, it is already here.

”The web and all it may entail is no longer just a destination or a place we sometimes opt into. It’s become a routine part of our lives—enough to feel just as real for many people.”

”Our smartphones have become more of an extension of ourselves than an independent tool we use. The metaverse may be riding a hype cycle because we already spend much of our lives there.”

”Given the rapid global adoption of social media and the steady drive toward more complex and social gaming experiences, it’s understandable that the metaverse has become such a big priority for leading companies.”

Many businesses and economies exist in both real life and online. People have been building their digital lives for a few decades now. Statistics show a growing interest in site where you can get help to create an attractive avatar to be you in the digital world.

Deloitte stresses that there are lots of deeper questions for the metaverse about ownership, rights, interoperability, monetization pathways, and partnerships would have to be answered.

“It’s further complicated by the ongoing empowerment of users, influencers, and content creators who can aggregate their own loyal audiences, attract advertisers, and wrestle more of the customer relationship away from businesses. What will this look like if we move further into virtual worlds architected to engage, empower, and monetize?”

NOW OR IN TEN YEARS

”A major shift is underway, one that could radically recompose internets and economies. In the integrated marketplace of the future, streamers, social media, and gaming companies could see their business models further disrupted—not just by younger generations, but also by the emerging infrastructure of Web 3.0.”, Deloitte says.

Ball also stressed future issues for the metaverse saying wew are going to see two waves.

“The first is that we’re going to see more brands, more investment, more M&A, and more users in all things 3-D and real-time rendered. These are all trends that have been going on for multiple decades, and there’s no reason to believe that time spent online, the number of smartphones in use, and the criticality of digital to our economy are going to reverse.”

”At the same time, we should expect some sort of backlash to the metaverse as a theme, as an investment case, and as a point of shareholder prioritization, because the narrative, at least in my perspective, has outstripped the products and the revenues that we see.”

”Companies of course need to be investing long before the revenue, the products, and the disruption are here. Never before have we so collectively said, “The metaverse is here; the products are here.” Bill Gates has said that he believes in the next two to three years that the majority of meetings will happen in the metaverse. The reality is that it’s going to take a decade or longer for that to happen. And so we’re going to have to go through that hump in the interim”, Matthew Ball predicts.

So the conclusion could be that so far we have only seen the beginning of the metaverse experience but there is more to come including new business models.