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Reality is losing big time right now.
—GamesBeat’s Dean Takahashi reflects on his hopes and dreams for a happy metaverse at a panel session held one year ago.

 
 
 
 
 
 
February 3 | 3pm EST | ZOOM
 
Special VEG Town Hall Meeting
 

Not long ago we thought that by now, January 2022, we’d be back to something close to normal, but then Omicron reared its spiky head. Some events were canceled, some pivoted to virtual, others activated their elaborate Plan Bs and Cs. We’ve invited industry veterans from all walks of life, journalists, event creators, platform designers, logistics companies, trade association reps, and more, to step into the spotlight and share their thoughts with you.

 
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February 17 | 3pm EST | ZOOM
 
The Pragmatic Metaverse
 

Yes, you can dress as a unicorn. Yes, you can trade swords and daggers. But you can also do some powerful events in the metaverse and monetize them. Andrew Nash from Rooom takes us on a tour of a metaverse that’s ready to work for you. 

 
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Mobile Event Apps
 

Did anyone have a chance to play with the CES app during CES this year? The app was licensed from WebSummit and what it lacked in the navigation of booths and space maps it more than made up for in its social features that let you mingle and get in touch with other attendees. Charlie Fink dives into the app’s success here. 


Apps are no longer an afterthought in the event business. Some of the other players that do a nice job on the mobile side include Whova, Hopin, and Socio. Speaking of event apps, Apple gave the already hard-hit events industry a break by forgiving any fees owed to Apple that are generated as a percentage of in-app purchases. For more on best app practices, here is a good guide to buying mobile event apps.

 
 
 
Twitter Blue Makes that NFT Monkey You Own Even More of a Status Symbol
 

We’ve been playing around with Twitter's new features. First, there’s Twitter Blue, which has a $2.99 monthly fee that gets you a bunch of extra features including the ability to edit published tweets and read ad-free news. (It’s all part of their new monetization strategy.) 


But the latest Twitter Blue feature is the brilliant head-slapper. It lets you display your NFTs as your profile picture, which gives the whole NFT thing another level of cred. Twitter will verify ownership of the NFT by linking your Twitter account with your digital wallet that stores the NFT. (What could possibly go wrong?) 

To emphasize the elevated status, an NFT user's profile will be hexagonally shaped, rather than circular. Twitter just legitimized NFTs and makes some cool cash at the same time. I expect other social media to quickly follow suit. Read more on the Twitter blog site. 

 
 
 
 

Photo Credit: Twitter

 
 

Also be sure to check out Twitter Spaces. It’s Twitter’s version of ClubHouse and it provides a simple way to amplify events or post voice clips. You need to be on a mobile device to set up your “Space”. Simply select “Create a Space” from the menu, start recording, and invite people to listen. The “Space” disappears when the conversation ends, you can have hosts and co-hosts and guests, and captioning is available. 

 
 
Speaking of The Pragmatic Metaverse
 

A lot of people envision the metaverse as a place where lizards and unicorns meet up and party, or where comic book characters meet anime figures and dance around. But there are a number of companies who are building a more pragmatic metaverse that doesn't require any special hardware such as a VR headset. 


While some metaverse proponents think VR headsets will be a must-have in order to experience the “verse,” we’re seeing evidence to the contrary. These provide 3D environments, avatars that navigate the space, proximity audio—everything but the complete immersion. We’re looking at them as metaverses for the here and now, which are particularly well suited to events. 

 
 
 

Figure Credit: Rooom
 
 

Rooom.com, our featured Feb. speaker and one of our newest members, is an all-in-one suite that lets you create events in 2D, 3D, AR and/or VR. It works across all desktop and mobile devices and includes tools that can render 3D models. The company is based in Germany where it has hosted events for up to 200,000 users. 

 
 
NewSkyXR
 
 
 

Photo Credit: NewSkyXR

 
NewSkyXR offers ready-made immersive themes like an office, cafe or cocktail venue, and lets you use your own video-head avatars for conversations. We’re working with them to create a virtual afterparty for the TOTY (Toy of the Year Awards).
 
 
Scuttlebutt
 
 
 

Extra Credit Reading 
To understand something like the metaverse you need the vocabulary (and imagery) to describe it. The language of the metaverse will be built as the metaverse is being built, and depending on who’s doing the building and talking, the results can be dangerous (here’s looking at you Mr. Zuckerberg). Read this essay by Epsilon Theory’s Ben Hunt to understand why multiple voices must be heard.

 
 

Even gamers are torn about NFTs
In a recent survey of game developers for the GDC, as reported by The Verge, it became strikingly clear that gamers aren’t exactly embracing NFTs. “How this hasn’t been identified as a pyramid scheme is beyond me,” one wrote. “I’d rather not endorse burning a rainforest down to confirm someone ‘owns’ a jpeg,” said another. And Casey Newton dissects the whys are wherefores about gamer ambivalence to NFTs (No F**NG THANKS as one gamer NFT critic calls them).

 
 

Still time for your new year’s resolutions
 
 
 
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Robin Raskin  | Founder
917.215.3160 | robin@virtualeventsgroup.org

 

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917.868.7160 | Julie@virtualeventsgroup.org
 
 
 
 
 
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