Korean MZ generation accelerates inflow to "Metaverse (virtual world)" (new economy) --Yahoo! News
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3 comments 3Korean MZ generation accelerates inflow to "Metaverse"
Sean, a Korean engineer
Sean, a South Korean engineer, has a big plan to develop the land recently purchased for millions of won (hundreds of thousands of yen) as a long-term source of revenue. The 30-year-old investor told Reuters, "We plan to design a building suitable for K-POP live concerts and Korean drama screenings. In a few years, it will be a profitable business model." rice field. The effects of labor shortages and rising costs due to the coronavirus pandemic will not hinder his construction. Because Sean's epic projects are all in the blockchain-based virtual world "Decentraland." The Metaverse may be a future story for people in most countries of the world, but it is gradually becoming a reality in South Korea. As house prices soar and income inequality widen in South Korea, people called the MZ generation are being invited into a virtual world that is an alternative to reality. While enjoying games, walking with friends, parties, etc., their digital avatars aim to build cities on top of virtual worlds and develop profitable businesses. Sean was one of the fascinated people of Decentraland, and he gradually became absorbed in the platform over the last three years. Decentraland users can buy land in a virtual world and develop real-world businesses such as nightclubs that charge admission. As in the real world, the success of a business and its surrounding communities will increase the value of the land. Not only general users like Mr. Sean, but also investment advisors, telecommunications companies, and even the Korean government are entering this virtual world. Samsung Asset Management launched the Samsung Global Metaverse Fund in late June. About 1 to 2 billion won will flow into this fund every day, and it is expected that the goal of raising 100 billion won (about 9.5 billion yen) by the end of 2021 will be easily achieved. Choi Byung-gun, vice president of Samsung Asset Management, said that since the pandemic, people have been working remotely and the interest in the Metaverse has increased. Samsung's Metaverse Fund was launched just two weeks after KB Asset Management launched the KB Global Metaverse Economy Fund. "The industry is getting more money as the world's leading tech companies like Facebook are shifting their business direction to the Metaverse," Choi said. SK Telecom, South Korea's largest mobile phone company, opened the Metaverse "ifland" in July. The site allows users to meet with other avatars and join other meetings. SK Telecom officials told Reuters, "The pandemic has made non-face-to-face social trends soaring demand (for Metaverse services). Thousands of rooms are created every day, what every day. As many as 10,000 users are participating. " SK Telecom is a member of the "Metaverse Alliance" launched by the Korean government in mid-May. More than 200 companies and institutions participate in this Metaverse Alliance. "The government wants to play a leading role in the Metaverse industry," an official from the Ministry of Science and ICT, one of South Korea's national government agencies, told Reuters. In addition, the Korean government announced last week that it will accelerate digital transformation and foster new industries such as Metaverse in the budget of 604.4 trillion won (about 57 trillion yen) in 2022. It has recorded won (about 900 billion yen).
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