The societal impact of the metaverse

Abstract In the 1920s developed a new artistic and cultural movement called “Surrealism”, which not only included the revolutionary paintings and sculptures, but also philosophical texts and novels. Around 100 years later, the arrival of the Metaverse with its independence of physical laws promises to bring Surrealism to a next level. On the other hand, the pure market power of some of the companies developing their concepts may limit this potential freedom for the users. As observed with social media platforms, inside the initial competition, various providers had to close their platforms, leading to today’s oligopoly. This means less choice for the users and a stronger position of the providers to create solutions maximizing their economic benefit. Today, independent companies work on their visions of the Metaverse, but unequal starting positions may make it difficult for them to compete with the established competitors. Similar to the attractivity of social media, also the Metaverse requires a high number of active users and service providers (private companies, but also governmental offices), fostering the tendency to an oligopoly. Based on literature, economy, psychology, and art, this paper discusses the opportunities and risks of the Metaverse, including an outlook on a predicted societal impact, especially laying its focus on the holistic connections of the different points of view. As the Metaverse only appeared in smaller parts yet, academic papers are still lacking. One aim of this article is to start an academic discussion. So far, actual concepts had been widely inspired by popular science fiction novels, ignoring Ray Bradbury’s thoughts: “It’s ‘prevent the future,’ that’s the way I put it. Not predict it, prevent it”.