Odaily Frontline | Pioneering the virtual realm: Blockchain-secured land is attracting real estate investors

This article comes fromCointelegraph, Original Author: OSATO AVAN-NOMAYO

Odaily Translator |

Odaily Translator |

In the "real" world, real estate has historically been viewed as a viable investment. Individuals and companies often buy land and properties for development or to sell at a higher price in the future.

While VR provides the tools to visualize these digital spaces, blockchain technology is serving as the base layer for the monetization of virtual real estate. With the impact of the coronavirus pandemic taking a critical step toward a more digital approach to human communication, interactive virtual worlds may provide a safe space for preserving numerous social constructs.

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Second Life and Linden Yuan

Virtual real estate is by no means a recent phenomenon. City simulators like SimCity have been around for decades. In 2003, a 3D virtual environment called Second Life arguably kick-started the monetization of virtual real estate, with users rushing to purchase it using the platform's native currency, Linden Dollars. digital land. Second Life, which predates bitcoin, has seen users buy, sell and lease properties, as well as run businesses on virtual land.As other immersive and interactive virtual real estate projects emerge,This platform is going down fast. In its heyday, however, a player named Anshe Chung sold digital real estate。

Odaily Note: Linden dollars, an official currency, is popular in the virtual world of Second Life, and the transaction volume of goods and services provided to the residents in the virtual world reaches millions of Lindens every month. There are even ATMs in some virtual locations to facilitate transactions.

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Virtual Land as a CommodityBecomes the second largest holder of virtual land in The Sandbox game。

In August this year,In August this year,Binance Launchpad Conducts The Sandbox IEO, and raised approximately $3 million through a token sale. Binance is also one of the investors in the project,At the beginning of September, by buying 4012 LAND tokens

, get virtual real estate resources in The Sandbox. It is understood that Binance plans to organize social gaming activities within The Sanbox platform, such as NFT and game creation competitions, and reward the best creators with LAND tokens. The Sanbox plans to launch a public beta in December 2020, and has currently organized four Land (LAND) pre-sales and sold nearly $1.5 million worth of tokens.

Commenting on the growing popularity of virtual real estate, Joseph Madding, marketing and PR consultant for blockchain gaming platform The Sandbox, said investors are increasingly open to the idea of ​​digital land as a viable investment: “Virtual real estate is definitely is becoming more and more popular. In the past 10 weeks, the number of users using our Telegram chat, Discord, Twitter and other social media platforms for relevant interactions has increased by more than 1000%. As a result, we have expanded the community moderation to meet the growing In the case of virtual land as a commodity, we have seen LAND that originally sold for around $370 resold as small estates for over $2,000. Great interest."In fact, the frenzy for virtual land assets is just part of an established trend of rapidly selling out digital real estate. In March, VR world Somnium Space launched in the first week of its planned 10-week launch.。

Virtual land worth 110 ETH soldCoincidentally, after opening the platform in February,Decentraland Users Buy Millions Worth of Digital LandBecame the second most expensive NFT in 2019。

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Expanding the digital real estate landscape

While projects pursuing the tokenization of real-world goods are common, the emerging virtual real estate space is creating a self-sufficient digital economy. With blockchain technology as the base layer, these platforms can monetize digital land, allowing users to trade assets within the virtual world.

In addition to early adopters buying virtual land hoping to see assets increase in value over time, some individuals and organizations have been developing these assets. This process is similar to real estate development, including the establishment of commercial and residential complexes, industrial areas and parks.Part of the appeal that drives people to own virtual land seems to be a project based on optimism about the viability of virtual reality technology. Combined virtual and augmented reality market value by 2025, according to a study published this AugustEstimated to reach $20.9 billion

, Chinese and Indian companies are expected to drive this significant growth over the next five years. Head-mounted displays (HMDs) are gaining popularity among game developers and gaming enthusiasts alike. As 3D technology advances, manufacturers are getting better at creating HMDs that can deliver more immersive and interactive VR experiences.

At the same time, for blockchain projects in general, scarcity plays an important role in driving the value of their native tokens. Like the real world, the virtual land in these Metaverses must be finite in order to maintain the value of real estate.

"For a game developer, virtual real estate provides a platform for your game distribution with little to no risk. With NFT technology, you will no longer just publish the game in the app store, you will have the design and distribution of the game True ownership of the space. As a consumer, owning LAND feels like buying any physical game, and if you find yourself wanting to create something creative, you can create with our free tools, or you can resell the digital real estate, just like you would sell copies of any physical game."

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Life after the pandemicThe new crown pneumonia epidemic has brought about earth-shaking changes in the communication between people, and the use of virtual communication methods has become the focus of attention. As lockdowns continue around the world,Organizations have started using electronic video conferencing solutions to hold meetings

. America's tech giants have even issued work-from-home orders. This practice will continue whether or not scientists develop a coronavirus vaccine, the report said.

Conferences and meetups are everywhere in the crypto and blockchain space. However, due to COVID-19 restrictions, people will not be able to attend many of these events in person in 2020.To overcome this obstacle,Organizers and attendees flock to virtual world

, to discuss important issues in the industry. These events push the boundaries of electronic interaction—people move from utilizing third-party messaging services to interacting in a fully digital space.

According to Madding, established social structures are gradually opening up to the digital: "Over time, the large social events that we see in Epic Games' Fortnite will definitely become more common, and we hope to Be ahead of the curve and let these amazing social spaces sprout in our Metaverse."

Meanwhile, the appeal of virtual real estate has been growing for Somnium Space founder and CEO Artur Sychov, telling Cointelegraph:

“We do see a growing interest in Somnium Land Parcels (PARCEL) as more and more people realize the real uses they can deploy and use these parcels for. For example, talk shows, galleries, movie theaters, health clubs , crypto exchanges, etc., have all appeared in our virtual reality world.”