Article (Périodiques scientifiques)
The Metaverse’s Thirtieth Anniversary: From a Science-Fictional Concept to the “Connect Wallet” Prompt
SMETHURST, Reilly; BARBEREAU, Tom Josua; Nilsson, Johan
2023In Philosophy and Technology, 36
Peer reviewed vérifié par ORBi
 

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Mots-clés :
Techno-capitalism; Simulation; Science fiction; Digital wallet; Blockchain; Avatar
Résumé :
[en] The metaverse is equivocal. It is a science-fictional concept from the past; it is the present’s rough implementations; and it is the Promised Cyberland, expected to manifest some time in the future. The metaverse first emerged as a techno-capitalist network in a 1992 science fiction novel by Neal Stephenson. Our article thus marks the metaverse’s thirtieth anniversary. We revisit Stephenson’s original concept plus three sophisticated antecedents from 1972 to 1984: Jean Baudrillard’s simulation, Sherry Turkle’s networked identities, and Jacques Lacan’s schema of suggestible consumers hooked up to a Matrix-like capitalist network. We gauge the relevance of these three antecedents following Meta’s recent promise to deliver a metaverse for the mainstream and the emergence of blockchain-oriented metaverse projects. We examine empirical data from 2021 and 2022, sourced from journalistic and social media (BuzzSumo, Google Trends, Reddit, and Twitter) as well as the United States Patent and Trademark Office. This latest chapter of the metaverse’s convoluted history reveals a focus not on virtual reality goggles but rather on techno-capitalist notions like digital wallets, crypto-assets, and targeted advertisements. The metaverse’s wallet-holders collect status symbols like limited-edition profile pictures, fashion items for avatars, tradable pets and companions, and real estate. Motivated by the metaverse’s sophisticated antecedents and our empirical findings, we propose a subtle conceptual re-orientation that respects the metaverse’s equivocal nature and rejects sanitised solutionism. Do not let the phantasmagorical goggles distract you too much: Big Meta is watching you, and it expects you to become a wallet-holder. Blockchain proponents want this as well.
Centre de recherche :
Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SnT) > FINATRAX - Digital Financial Services and Cross-organizational Digital Transformations
Disciplines :
Philosophie & éthique
Communication & médias
Gestion des systèmes d’information
Auteur, co-auteur :
SMETHURST, Reilly ;  University of Luxembourg > Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SNT) > FINATRAX
BARBEREAU, Tom Josua  ;  University of Luxembourg > Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SNT) > FINATRAX
Nilsson, Johan;  Stockholm School of Economics > Centre for Market Studies, SSE Institute for Research
Co-auteurs externes :
yes
Langue du document :
Anglais
Titre :
The Metaverse’s Thirtieth Anniversary: From a Science-Fictional Concept to the “Connect Wallet” Prompt
Date de publication/diffusion :
22 juillet 2023
Titre du périodique :
Philosophy and Technology
ISSN :
2210-5433
eISSN :
2210-5441
Maison d'édition :
Springer
Volume/Tome :
36
Peer reviewed :
Peer reviewed vérifié par ORBi
Focus Area :
Security, Reliability and Trust
Projet FnR :
FNR13342933 - Paypal-fnr Pearl Chair In Digital Financial Services, 2019 (01/01/2020-31/12/2024) - Gilbert Fridgen
Organisme subsidiant :
FNR - Fonds National de la Recherche
Disponible sur ORBilu :
depuis le 04 septembre 2023

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