A recent survey by business strategy firm Capgemini shows that 93% of consumers are interested in exploring the metaverse.
The survey suggests that despite rigid skepticism and continual mockery from the mainstream media, consumers remain open-minded on the subject.
The public wants to experience the metaverse
The survey invited 8,000 individuals, as well as 1,000 organizations in 12 countries to offer an opinion on the nascent sector.
Of the 93% who expressed an interest in going virtual 51% said they would use the metaverse when it becomes accessible, 31% said they would use it once their family and friends use it, and 11% said they would use it but not in its current form.
Among the 8,000 was a smaller group of 380 people who self-identified as already experienced in the metaverse. Canada and South Korea had particularly high numbers of experienced users at 6.9% and 5.4% while the UK and Spain recorded just 2.3% each. The global average was 4.2%.
The survey suggests that human connections and interactivity are the rocket fuel that will power the new virtual landscape. 43% of respondents said that interacting with friends and family is something that would interest them. Other popular activities included interaction with colleagues (39%), gaming (33%), and commercial activity (28%).
Mainstream media is out of touch
The public may be enthused about the possibilities of the metaverse, but the mainstream press remains hopelessly out of touch.
Earlier this year a piece in UK daily paper The Times called the metaverse “Sadville 2.0,” while Forbes bayoneted Meta’s Horizon Worlds by concluding “the graphics are garbage and it’s bizarre no one has legs after five years.”
While mainstream media may want to belittle the sector at every turn, the attempt can prove counter-productive. Last week MetaNews reported that an EU metaverse party that was widely pilloried by mainstream outlets eventually became a success story thanks to the negative publicity it received.
Whether receiving praise or criticism metaverse has proved one of the most popular words in 2022, and as the old maxim states, “there’s no such thing as bad publicity.”
It’s little wonder that so many people are keen to experience the metaverse for themselves.
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