South Korea Ahead In Metaverse Race

• South Korea to boost ahead in “metaverse” with its government support and investments.
• Role of Ministry of Science and ICT to back the nation’s emerging industry.
• The nascent industry is hidden with an immense number of opportunities.

South Korean authorities displayed its interest in early 2022 to ‘rock’ the metaverse, declaring in January an investment of $170 million in VR (virtual reality) concept and potential tech. 

Efforts to win

Yoon Suk-yeol, South Korea’s President, stated that technology is country’s priority, with a motive to set foundation for the nation to emerge in the top 5 in metaverse world till 2026. The Ministry of Science and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) released a set of guidelines of non-binding ethics in a meeting held on the topic of “Metaverse Ethical Principles,” on November 28, 2022.

As described by Venture Capitalist Matthew Ball: “The Metaverse is an expansive network of persistent, real-time rendered 3D worlds and simulations that support continuity of identity, objects, history, payments, and entitlements, and can be experienced synchronously by an effectively unlimited number of users, each with an individual sense of presence,” according to The Verge. 

According to the New York Times, Mark Zuckerburg, CEO of Facebook, rebranded company’s name to Meta and eventually became “metaverse company” in October 2021. He is eager for his vision to inhabit billions of humans in an immersive virtual world for unending hours, who will be busy spending time working, playing, outing and socializing inside augmented and virtual worlds. Dream of metaverse replacing the internet doesn’t seem far.

Strong Contender 

As per media reports, South Korea is the 13th world’s largest economy in terms of GDP and has fourth-largest gaming market, accounting for $8.3 billion of revenue from 33 million gamers in 2021. Nathan Lenga, an analyst who researched S.Korea’s metaverse strategy said: “But 50% of people in Korea actually reported that their daily dose of entertainment was gaming. So, it’s really, really immersed and just integrated into their culture.”

According to CNBC, South Korean Minister of Science and ICT Lim Hyesook regarded the metaverse as “an uncharted digital continent with indefinite potential.” South Korean government is among the first to invest in the budding industry, with a plan to kickstart by backing organizations and creation of employment opportunities.

As per news reports, South Korea’s “Digital New Deal” discussed creating a foundation for industry’s growth, pouring billions of dollars hoping to provide over 2 million new jobs. Tech journalist Nina Xiang, noted that “Other Asian countries don’t have similar types of metaverse programs in both scale and scope as that of the South Korean government.”

Nancy J. Allen is a crypto enthusiast and believes that cryptocurrencies inspire people to be their own banks and step aside from traditional monetary exchange systems. She is also intrigued by blockchain technology and its functioning.

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