Startups that Help You Buy Your Own Piece of the Metaverse
World’s first virtual real estate.
The Metaverse is the next frontier of virtual reality, and it’s already being built by companies popping up daily. It’s a fully immersive virtual world where you can buy digital real estate and build anything you want, from houses to entire cities.
But what if you don’t have millions of dollars or secret folders of Bitcoin to invest in this technology? Don’t worry; there are startups out there that will help you buy your own piece of the Metaverse.
Many businesses and brands are already picking Metaverse properties as quickly as possible. Samsung built Samsung 837X in Decentralized. Adidas purchased virtual real estate in The Sandbox for their exclusive brand content. Even Miller Lite recently purchased space for a Meta Lite Bar that was advertised during a Super Bowl.
The fact is, now is the time to pick up Web 3 real estate before it is all gone.
A Brief Intro to the Metaverse & Virtual Real Estate
The virtual reality world that Ernest Cline described in Ready Player One may be just a few years away, and tech startups are already figuring out ways to open up the Metaverse to a broader audience.
One way to do this is through virtual real estate. Virtual real estate means buying and selling pieces of land in an online world, just like you might buy a house today — but instead of taking possession of the physical property, you’d get access to digital assets that exist only in cyberspace.
This is a world of infinite possibilities, where anything is possible, and everything is permitted. By definition, the Metaverse is a virtual world built upon the internet that allows users to interact in real-time with other people around the globe through digital avatars or holograms. It’s also an entirely new frontier for entrepreneurs and investors looking to capitalize on an industry that may be worth trillions.
Virtual real estate refers to any virtual space owned by someone or some entity (or even just rented out) within the Metaverse itself. This includes things like apartments in buildings, shops on streets, land on which houses stand, and pretty much anything else you can imagine.
Why Investing in Web 3 Real Estate is Wise
Buying virtual real estate is an excellent investment. It’s also a good way to build your portfolio and diversify it, as the value of this type of property tends to increase over time. The reason so many companies and crypto investors are flocking to virtual real estate is because of the expected value in the future.
Despite rising prices and investment opportunities, the Metaverse is promising to be a sound space for growing your portfolio. The purchase of a street in San Francisco could be worth $5,000 USD today and rapidly grow to $500,000 by the end of the year. It all comes down to who is using the space and how to leverege it for profit.
There are already numerous games, businesses, and universities hosting events and classes in the Metaverse. If you are a brand seeking marketing opportunities to a highly targeted audience, hosting a billboard on your property in the Metaverse is a good way to grow recognition.
The reality is we are not so far away from a world where the majority of interactions occur in the online world. For example, instead of going to a movie at the local Cineplex, you can expect to meet up with friends from around the globe in a Metaverse-built theater via VR goggles. The possibilities are endless, and the time is ripe for the development of Web 3 real estate.
How do You Purchase, Sell, or Trade Virtual Real Estate?
The good news is that getting your hands on virtual real estate takes minimal effort. You use digital assets to buy and sell real estate in the Metaverse. Let’s say if you have 5 Bitcoin, and the current price of a parcel in Florida near Disney World is valued at 3 Bitcoin, you would use your digital wallet and an exchange platform to finalize the transaction in minutes.
There are plenty of new startups and third-party platforms chomping at the bit to get real estate business. Most of these platforms include comparables of digital real estate, just like you would see when shopping for a new home in real life.
To get started, you will need a digital wallet, some form of digital asset — usually a cryptocurrency, and a platform to conduct the transaction.
What Startups are Available for Metaverse Land Purchasing?
Everyone from major brands to celebrities and musicians is pickup up virtual real estate. They are doing this through four primary startups that include:
1. Decentraland
This is a virtual world based on a multiplayer role-playing game. Think of it like SimCity and SecondLife where the entire space is centered on a plaza called Genesis City. All of the real estate (“LAND”) except for roads and plazas are allowed to be purchased, sold, and developed using “MANA — the native crypto-token for Decentraland.
This is a relatively young player in the Web 3 real estate game with significant notoriety from events like being featured in Sotheby’s virtual art gallery and Paris Hilton hosting a virtual concert in the game featuring musicians Deadma5, Alabaster deplume, and 3lau.
2. The Sandbox
If you have ever wanted to create a world similar to Minecraft, but with property you can own, then the Sandbox is your answer. This is still in active development, with Beta versions available for gameplay via sign-up.
Included in the game are parcel maps allowing players to purchase land using graphic place holdings. You can visit the map and see major IPs and brands already staking a claim, including Atari, The Walking Dead, and even those blue-colored favorites — The Smurfs.
3. Cryptovoxels
This difficult-to-pronounce virtual real estate startup is based on the Ethereum blockchain and an independent developer from New Zealand. In Origin City, you can find land available throughout various neighborhoods using your in-game avatar that can be customized in any way you would like.
A benefit of Cryptovoxels is that you can display any NFT assets on your property. This is creating the status symbol and art scene many in the crypto world have been waiting for a while to take hold.
4. Somnium Space
Remember that theater idea? This is probably where it will happen most. Somnium is a variable real estate market that bases land following an in-world river instead of rigid parcels like Minecraft. There are parcels of varying sizes and unique land features like mountains, water, and valleys.
Somnium Space has gathered high target partnerships with companies like the exchange Gemini, Nifty Gateway, FTX, and the Republic Real Academy (virtual classrooms). All of these partnerships promise to expand the offerings of virtual real estate on the market soon.
Wrapping it Up
Still confused about purchasing or selling virtual real estate? Don’t worry; this world is still relatively brand new and in the new adopters’ phase of development. You can try to navigate it yourself or seek out the advice of asset management and real estate consulting firms that already have a stake in the market. They will be able to explain all the details of a real estate transaction in the Metaverse so you can pick up your investment now and learn more later on as it becomes more mainstream.
The Metaverse is an exciting and innovative place with endless possibilities for exploration. While it’s still in its infancy, you can get in on the ground floor by purchasing your own piece of this virtual real estate. So whether you want to learn more about how these startups work or just want to see what else there is, don’t miss this opportunity to become a land baron in a digital world still being formed.
