Metaverse is a combination of “Universe,” which means the real world, and “Meta,” which means “processing, abstract,” and means a three-dimensional virtual world. As Untact culture is popular due to COVID-19, the Metaverse, which can gather a large number of unspecified people in a virtual space at once, and can perform activities without time and space restrictions, is attracting more attention. The most famous Metaverse platforms include Naver Z’s avatar service, ZEPETO, and SK Telecom’s Efriend. ZEPETO creates 3D avatars to communicate with other users and provides services that allow them to experience various virtual reality experiences. It contains AR contents, games, and SNS functions, so it is very popular among young people. In a situation where offline events are not possible due to the COVID-19 crisis, Metaverse sometimes takes the place of concert halls. In addition, the Metaverse is being used in various fields, such as workshops, events, and university welcome parties for freshmen. When you act as a new character or character that is not your usual self, you are called a “Alter ego”. Alter ego was originally used as a game term, but is now one of the most frequently used terms in Metaverse. The Millennials and Gen Z who are trying to find pleasure by creating a second ego in the virtual world away from the harsh reality is gaining great popularity. It has become the so-called ‘golden age of Alter ego’. As such, the metaverse has had many changes and influences not only on our culture but also on our daily life. Let’s take a closer look at these changes and their impacts.
As it became impossible to talk face-to-face or host events due to the COVID-19, people began to find a way to replace this situation. One such method to solve this problems is the ‘Metabus’. Metabus has the advantage of being able to gather an unspecified number of people at once in a virtual space such as the Internet, and it can be engage in activities without restrictions on time and space.
The first platform that brought the Metabus craze to Korea is ‘Zepeto’, developed by Naver Jet. Launched in 2018, the platform has gained great popularity, especially among the MZ generation in their teens and 20s. The fact that anyone can design another character within the platform and communicate with others through the character can be seen as a good target for the MZ generation, which values individuality. In particular, in combination with the recent concept of ‘boo-character’, Geppetto users find another possibility that is different from reality through their characters. This craze of ‘Zepeto’ is clearly different from other platforms in various ways, with JYP, YG, and SM actually carrying out comeback promotions for each group within the platform.
There is a platform that has become a topic of conversation as the scope of metabuses has expanded since COVID-19. It’s “Gather.town.” Launched in May 2020, Gethertown is still sensational as it allows people to hold events online that inevitably gather a lot of people in the Corona era. This advantage of Gethertown has allowed companies and government local governments as well as the private sector to host events using Gethertown. In fact, Gumi Health Center provides online counseling services using Gethertown to citizens, and large companies such as GS Retail also hold job briefings and fairs through this platform. Events using the Metabus platform continue until now when distancing has been lifted, and as the use of such metabus space increases, various companies are entering the Metabus increases. In fact, as the Metabus business expands, the stock price will rise 88 percent from the current level, and the newly inaugurated Yoon government promised to visit IT events and fully support ICT innovation projects including Metabus.
Another area where Metabus has begun to be directly introduced into real life these days is “education.” As futurist Roger James Hamilton, who predicted that 2024 would spend more time in the 3D virtual world than in the 2D Internet world, interest in the use of metabuses in education is increasing today. As you get used to non-face-to-face life due to COVID-19, you can look at various educational sites using Metabus. Yeungnam University held the entrance ceremony for freshmen in 2022 in a metabus space. At Janggi Elementary School in Siheung-si, Gyeonggi-do, Metabus is now applied to the concept of real space beyond simple space reproduction, so expectations for a metabus that creates an effective and better educational environment are increasing. Infinite space and educational materials based on Metabus can provide an educational environment beyond time and space, which is expected to be of great help to improve students’ creativity. It is expected that many institutional levels of support will be introduced in the field of compulsory elementary, middle and high school education so that the educational environment in Metabus can be actively created.
However, Metaverse, which has grown suddenly, has threats that require adequate laws and regulations. Paradoxically, the Metaverse is a free space, but without laws and regulations, it becomes a space where freedom cannot be enjoyed due to all kinds of threats. The philosopher Hobbes described the state of a society without laws and regulations as “The war of all against all.” Metaverse will also be in the state of “The war of all against all” where cybercrime and many other threats are prevalent unless suitable laws and regulations are in place. Therefore, in order to minimize expected threats and effectively utilize the Metaverse, it is necessary to correctly predict and prepare for its future. Metaverse has not yet become common enough, so appropriate laws have not been prepared, but they can gradually melt into everyday life, so we need to prepare for this. It is most urgent to prevent various cybercrimes that may occur in Metaverse. Crimes in Metaverse, such as “Avatar Sex Offences,” are already occurring, and it is difficult to punish them properly. When order is established in the Metaverse society, the advantages of it will be further highlighted and it will be utilized in more diverse fields.
K-UNIV
ASIA JOURNAL
