Metaverse or ‘Doom’verse? Lack of clear use-case dampens prospects

The year 2023 has not started well for Meta. Its Metaverse division, Reality Labs, suffered a USD 13.7 billion loss in 2022, up from USD 10.2 billion in 2021. Meta itself saw a USD 251 billion devaluation on 2nd February 2023 – a record single day loss in US history. Even as losses mounted, Mark Zuckerberg remained adamant that investing into the Metaverse is Meta’s top priority.         

In year-end 2022 polling conducted by Blackbox Research and ADNA covering over 9,000 respondents from Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Philippines, a measly 2% of respondents believed that the Metaverse will become more popular and people will begin to build their own digital identities.

The public’s indifference for the Metaverse is not new. Past Blackbox surveys including a mid-2022 survey showed that 45% of respondents were not enthusiastic about the Metaverse anyway, with only a mere 9% being “very enthusiastic”.

Metaverse’s hindered development

The development of the Metaverse has encountered several challenges. The technology needed to create a fully convincing Metaverse experience is still in progress, and the most advanced Metaverse experience currently available to the public is VR Chat, which has its own technical and equipment limitations.

Another issue is the limited content available in the Metaverse. Currently, it is being primarily marketed as a business meeting tool, which may not attract a large user base, let alone business leaders who are satisfied with using Zoom meetings.

Metaverse needs to move from concept to meaningful execution

It is a common misconception that people are against the Metaverse as a concept. They are just not sure of how it will be executed. The Bondee app, developed by a Singapore-based company, uses the principles of the Metaverse to connect people, showcase their virtual spaces, and socialize. In fact, the popularity of the Bondee app demonstrates that users are participating in and enjoying the Metaverse.

However, the perception of recent technological developments may be affecting the adoption of the Metaverse. For example, when Bondee announced plans for NFTs, it received negative feedback from many in Singapore. NFTs, cryptocurrencies, and AI art have all faced criticism in recent months.

The lack of a clear use case for these technologies, including the Metaverse, has led to controversy and concern about their potential misuse. Developers have been focused on developing the technology but have not done enough to understand the public's sentiments or prevent the misuse of these technologies. Unfortunately, these technologies have been associated with scams, which has further damaged their reputation and raised questions on their marketing outreach of only being a “force for good”. While there may certainly be benefits to such technological advancements, these need to be communicated clearly to the public and all stakeholders involved.

Technology companies need to reach out to the public to understand how they feel about these technologies, allay any fears, and find potential uses for these exciting developments. For more such insights that help businesses to course correct, reach out to us on connect@blackbox.com.sg