Yahoo and Meta, two American companies plan to offer virtual activities there.
Companies are betting on Hong Kong to test the metaverse. According to South China Morning Post, the web services company Yahoo will launch a series of virtual events in the region to explore the use of immersive advertising technologies. He wants to organize concerts and exhibitions on the virtual reality platform Decentraland, thus featuring local artists. “We hope to use the metaverse to connect people regardless of time and physical location”explained Lorrain Cheung, audience manager of Yahoo Hong Kong.
It is reported that Yahoo is also planning to launch an NFT exhibit called “The Abyss of Kwun Tong” in collaboration with local creators. It will be dedicated to this district which has been transformed through development projects.
High interest for companies, but not for consumers
Also according to the daily, Meta – a company that has already invested heavily in the metaverse – has several projects for Hong Kong. Like Yahoo, it wants to explore the potential use of this universe in everyday life. In this purpose, but also to provide experiences, it works with local partners such as coffee chains, schools and artistic institutions. Virtual reality exhibitions in local cafes and open augmented reality training workshops for teachers and students will be planned. Meta will also work with regional creators, whose NFT projects should be shared on Instagram.
Besides Hong Kong, many companies have launched in the metaverse, especially in the United States. This concept was also discussed in France, with Meta, which announced the upcoming launch of an academy to train professions in this universe. A school called Metaverse College will also open its doors next October in the La Défense district.
If companies are enthusiastic about these virtual worlds, this is not the case for consumers. According to a recent study of 5,698 people aged 16 and over in the United States and Europe, they do not understand what the metaverse is. 27% of them expect an experience similar to the physical world. 26% of consumers also believe that it is a virtual assistant that shows more product information and almost a quarter believe that it will allow faster transactions. In addition, nearly half of the respondents indicated that experiencing realistic features, such as viewing a digital painting in their home using augmented reality glasses, is the determining reason for purchasing the metaverse. This is followed by a faster return processing time and the ability to place an order in this universe for a physical product delivered in the real world.
Regarding France in particular, a survey published in January revealed that most people are wary of it and that they especially do not trust Meta to create and manage a metaverse. In addition, they associate it with entertainment, expecting to find museums or cinemas there, a digital service for which they are willing to pay.