India To Be A Key Player In The Metaverse

Introduction

An Indian couple from Tamil Nadu seized the first Metaverse wedding reception this month and it was attended by 500 guests. This virtual event has created influences in the country and specifies the trend for Metaverse. However, the question pops up on the sustainability of Metaverse as a new technology trend in coming years — whether it is a trend or just a fad.

Though nobody knows the answer, applications of Metaverse are increasing with every passing day. Not only that, global technology titans, which generally intellect the next technology wave before its widespread implementation, are also investing heavily.

Such is the eagerness with regard to Metaverse technology that Mark Zuckerberg recently changed his company’s name from Facebook to Meta. Apple is predicted to announce a high-end headset that combines virtual reality and augmented reality.

Similarly, Google and Microsoft are also driving up to launch Metaverse products. Not only technology giants, but gaming technology firms including Roblox, Unity, Epic Games among others are joining Metaverse technologies for more immersive experiences.

Convergence of Technologies

As a concept, Metaverse is not new. Science fiction writer Neal Stephenson devised the term in 1992, and the application of virtual reality/augmented reality (AR/VR) is conventional among video game businesses. However, Metaverse technology carries virtual reality to the next level because it joins many technological applications under one authority.

Artificial intelligence (AI), AR, VR, and blockchain have their featuring role in the development of Metaverse technology. The advent of 5G will form these applications more interactive and immersive. Experts feel Metaverse as a technology is here to stay and grow due to such a combination of various technologies, which has the perspective to solve many problem reports in coming years.

Metaverse is perceiving its biggest application in the gaming industry as of now and the use cases are rising. The global trade industry will grasp more use cases in the upcoming days. Industry 4.0, the introduction of NFTs (non-fungible tokens), and many more such applications have also initiated emerging. So, the effort towards Metaverse is real,” said Pareekh Jain, an engineering services professional and Founder of Pareekh Consulting.

Community activities have changed extremely during the Covid-19 pandemic period. Users are more pleasant with the virtual world nowadays. This interactive change coupled with young generations’ quicker adoption rate of virtual technologies will drive the growth in coming years.

Opportunities Galore

All evaluations of future growth seem bullish in Metaverse space. According to Bloomberg Intelligence, the global Metaverse revenue opportunity can approach $800 billion in 2024 as compared to around $500 billion in 2020.

The main market for online game creators and gaming hardware is fixed at $400 billion in 2024, while opportunities in live entertainment and social media can make up the rest. Set the growth estimates, all technology companies- IT & engineering services businesses, AR/VR intensive tech startups & gaming technology companies among others- are likely to be the major recipients of this uptrend.

Interestingly, India is likely to play a key role in the development and growth of Metaverse technology. Since the country is home to a massive user base of video games, social media networks, e-commerce apart from its engineering competence. With 440 million gamers or 16% of the worldwide gamer’s base of 2.7 billion, the country is among the top five global markets in terms of user base

Given the opportunity, all big IT companies and engineering services companies are developing their Metaverse group. If the drive continues, we may see Indian technology firms reporting distinct Metaverse facts in coming years,” said Jain of Pareek consulting.

No surprise, Indian IT and engineering services businesses including Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, HCL Technologies, Wipro, Mindtree, L&T Technology Services and many more are developing several Metaverse applications. Startups like Bolly Heroes, Internality, Cope Studio, OneRare, LOKA, and Zippy among others are also offering many Metaverse solutions to users. Given the technology system in India, the country is likely to lead the design, development, and implementation of Metaverse technology in the coming years.

Top 5 Indian Startups Working On Metaverse

As smartphones are set to hint at one billion Indians in the succeeding five years, we hope India will advance a land of not only gamers but also creators, developing a Metaverse.

· Bolly Heroes:

Made in association with production houses, music labels, brands, celebrities, gaming studios, and animation businesses, Bolly Heroes is a similar Bollywood world. Its fans include Paperboat Design Studios, Fantico, and Vistas Media Capital.

· OneRare:

OneRare is India’s leading play to earn, food Metaverse game on 0xPolygon. It is a play-to-earn game with a simple goal to claim your favorite dishware. The user needs to follow recipes and use the right ingredients to get their dish to unlock the Dish NFTs successfully.

· LOKA:

LOKA is a multiplayer gamified virtual Metaverse platform built on 3D maps of real-world cities and locations, where players can join in live and simultaneous experiences powered by their favorite third-party apps.

· Cope Studio:

Cope Studio is a deep-tech intensive product studio that develops a platform for repeatable creation and evolution of successful products, motivated by early-stage ventures.

· Interality:

Interality is an exclusive platform for the creator and follower engagement in the Metaverse. Based in Bengaluru, the platform allows creators to capture and drop their life instants through NFT based holograms in augmented reality

Conclusion

However, any new technology movement drives through several phases and Metaverse will be no exclusion. Presently, billions of dollars are rolling into Metaverse space. However, distress over return on investment remain. Similarly, usual challenges of privacy and concealment also come up as Metaverse thrusts mankind to more virtual space. Probabilities of cyber-attack, theft of virtual identity, and shady financial transactions can’t be ruled out.

Therefore, governments throughout the world are likely to face the challenges of suitable guidelines in the coming years. No distrust, Metaverse is real and is expected to stay here. Nevertheless only time will adopt the form and circumstance of its presence. Interestingly, India will play a larger role in deciding its providence.