Some may argue that the Metaverse has been around for years, as demonstrated by early gaming platforms, yet virtual ecosystems are now being embraced by almost every industry. A recent report from consulting firm McKinsey & Company believes that the Metaverse has the potential to generate at least $5 billion in value by 2030. McKinsey also found that investments exceeding $120 billion have been put toward Metaverse platforms this year, indicating that major growth is underway. While notable, there is still the perception that most metaverse platforms are lacking when it comes to graphic quality. For example, Mark Zuckerberg was …

A recent report from technology research and advisory firm Technavio predicts that the Metaverse will hit a market share value of $50.37 billion by the year 2026. Therefore, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the trillion-dollar fashion industry has started taking a major interest in the Metaverse. While most luxury labels and brands remain focused on creating nonfungible tokens (NFTs) to replicate physical items, a handful of projects have started bringing their communities into the Metaverse. For example, on Sept. 5, Vogue Singapore launched a fashion-first Web3 community known as “Vogue Singapore’s New World.” While Vogue Singapore has previously …

The metaverse sector is witnessing its very-own housing crisis moment thanks to massive declines in the prices of its virtual lands in 2022, led by waning users' interest and a crypto bear market. Land sales plunge 85% in 2022 In particular, metaverse projects built on the Ethereum blockchain, including the Sandbox and Decentraland, have witnessed substantial declines in their valuations and other key metrics, data from WeMeta shows. For instance, the average price of lands sold across Decentraland peaked at $37,238 in February 2022. But as of Aug. 1, their costs had dropped to an average of $5,163. Similarly, the …

It’s weird to think that anyone could look forward to downturns in the crypto market, but that is precisely the position held by many developers and project creators who enjoy the low-pressure environment that exists during a bear market. As the saying goes, bear markets are for building, and now is one of the best times to survey the landscape to see which sectors of the market are most active in designing the platforms that will soar to new heights in the next bull cycle. Here’s a look at five sectors of the blockchain ecosystem that may present some of …

A bottle of 52-year-old whisky made at Japan’s famous defunct Karuizawa distillery is being auctioned off as a nonfungible token (NFT). The starting price for the NFT and bottle of whisky is a dizzying $75,000, or about 62 Ether (ETH). Direct-to-Customer NFT wine and spirits marketplace BlockBar is handling the auction. To whisky collectors, the ultra-rare bottle of whisky from “The Last Masterpiece” cask made in 1970 is attractive, as there are now only 211 bottles of it left, according to a Tuesday report by Finbold. Now, an NFT collector can bolster their collection with a token that verifies authentic …

In this week’s newsletter, read about Playboy’s upcoming virtual mansion in The Sandbox (SAND). Check out how a startup is offering lifetime Netflix and Spotify access through nonfungible tokens (NFTs) and how NFTs can bridge gaming and blockchain. Additionally, learn how game company GameStop launched its own NFT marketplace. And, don’t forget about this week’s Nifty News roundup featuring an “Ape Now, Pay Later” scheme from a decentralized finance (DeFi) platform. Playboy to launch first ‘MetaMansion’ in The Sandbox Metaverse platform The Sandbox announced that it has partnered with lifestyle company Playboy to launch a digital version of the popular …

Blockchain gaming and venture studio Animoca Brands has closed another strategic funding round, giving the company additional resources to expand its acquisition targets in the metaverse sector. The company announced Tuesday that it has closed a $75.32 million funding round at a pre-money valuation of $5.9 billion backed by Liberty City Ventures, Kingsway Capital, Alpha Wave Ventures, 19T, SG Spring Limited Partnership Fund and others. The raise represents the “second tranche” of funding following a $358.8 million raise in January that was supported by venture giants Sequoia China, Winklevoss Capital, ParaFi Capital and 10T Holdings. Animoca said the new capital …

P2E vs. M2E Games The key differences between P2E and M2E are the rewarding system and the revenue model. As you can tell, there are some differences between the P2E model and the M2E model. Both of them are so much more than virtual gaming, that’s for sure. P2E is expected to transform from a trend to a mature concept. The gaming industry is exciting, but it should not be forgotten that relaxation and community engagement should remain central. Real gamers care more about the game and the graphics than about the revenue model. M2E is also gaining momentum in …

"Why don't you just right-click and download it?" When it comes to NFTs, bemused skeptics are often confused as to how virtual pieces of artwork can be worth millions of dollars. Of course, this criticism usually misses the point. You may take a photo of the Mona Lisa inside the Louvre, but it just isn't the same. Now, a new community-owned marketplace is taking on the naysayers by offering nonfungible tokens that aren't just digital goods. ClubRare says each of the NFTs in its collections represent ownership of a real-world authenticated collectible — and they can be brought to life …

Global spending in the Metaverse could reach $5 trillion by 2030, according to a new report from international consulting firm McKinsey & Company. Published yesterday, the 77-page report titled “Value Creation in the Metaverse” analyzed current adoption trends and drew additional insight from two global surveys; one gathered data from 3,104 consumers across 11 countries, while the other polled a range of executives from 448 companies across 15 industries in 10 different countries. McKinsey used this data to predict that the future of consumer behavior in the metaverse will most likely be divided into five primary activities: gaming, socializing, fitness, …

The Bank of Uganda is open to the idea of cryptocurrency businesses participating in its Regulatory Sandbox, inviting members of the Blockchain Association of Uganda (BAU) to share their knowledge with the central bank. A letter from the bank dated June 1 to the chairperson of the BAU, Kwame Rungunda, referred to a meeting between the two parties in early May. The central bank also advised the country’s crypto advocacy group to brush up on the sandbox regulations before it made time for further technical discussions. We look forward to working with @BOU_Official and all other stakeholders in shaping the …

A number of social gatherings have started to take place in the Metaverse as companies across the globe begin to understand the value that virtual interactive environments can have for consumers. It shouldn’t come as a surprise then that Pride Month — a month-long celebration held in June to commemorate the 1969 Stonewall Riots — will be celebrated in various metaverse environments this year. Pride in the Metaverse creates open access Akbar Hamid, co-founder of People of Crypto Lab (POC) — an innovation hub dedicated to increasing diversity and representation in Web3 — told Cointelegraph that the Metaverse is an …