Metaverse: Loss of reality meets greed

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1661489669 metaverse loss of reality meets greed.jpg
1661489669 metaverse loss of reality meets greed.jpg

Gold rush mood in German IT: Bitkom has discovered that there is a lot of money in the Metaverse. In 3D worlds and colorful NFT hats for virtual avatars

The Bitkom industry association explains on 83 pages in its guide that you shouldn’t miss the Metaverse – it’s going to be big. And colourful. The same digital industry that has been struggling with elementary IT and security problems in the 2D computer world for decades and is already at the limit in terms of personnel thinks it is safe: In ten years we will be walking into 3D AR VR worlds. And there is then created in 3D and, above all, consumed diligently.

The Bitkom document is entertaining holiday reading because everything that makes a good story comes together: fear, greed, big money and an even greater loss of reality. Like Dallas, only with digital stuff instead of oil. The Bitkom copywriters openly write about the blessings of the platform economy and its further development thanks to NFTs, as if it were something worth striving for – as if they had suppressed the fact that its reputation has suffered greatly.

As one of the examples of NFT success from Germany, Bitkom unpacks Adidas. They sell virtual sneakers for their own 3D avatar to customers who already have everything else. The fact that Adidas of all things is involved in the digital knick-knack business is only logical, since the group’s business model has for decades consisted of having synthetic slippers manufactured in Asia for a few US dollar cents, in order to then sell them to fans and enthusiasts with fat margins for sale. And only one commodity is even cheaper than the cheapest textile from the Far East: in production and development almost free of charge, because any cloneable sneaker NFTs.

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The Metaverse ideas are about more than windy NFT deals. We have summarized for you what the ideas consist of and what you can try out today. What Bitkom still has to learn: Before you can distribute the bear’s fur, you first have to kill it. There is still a long way to go to a platform-independent 3D VR world in which money is made – with a lot of problems from the 2D computer world.





c’t issue 19/2022




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c’t 19/22

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Don’t be afraid of your e-mail inbox anymore! In c’t 19/2022 we explain how to avoid the phishing danger. Learn how to better detect ransomware threats and mitigate attachments. To do this, we test PCIe cards, card readers, cables and SSDs that can handle Turbo USB with 20 Gbit/s and show you how to monitor the performance of your PV system. You can read that and more in the current issue of c’t.

  • Email without the risk of phishing

  • Super fast USB up to 20 Gbit/s

  • Balcony power plants: measure electricity production

  • The Videoident hack and its potential consequences

  • Test: Palm-sized, fanless miniature PC

  • Test: Android newcomer: Nothing Phone (1)

  • Practice: Interactively evaluating data from the James Webb telescope

  • Metaverse: Problems, Visions and Promises

  • Fritzbox project: Raspi monitors line quality

  • FAQ: Backup

  • c’t 19/2022 in the Heise shop


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