If one had to pick a country that is most likely to ride the wave of the metaverse and its vast opportunities, South Korea would rank high on the list. South Koreans are technologically advanced and open to adopting to new products, where 98% of the people own a smart device and over 10% own at least one form of cryptocurrency.
The South Korean government, knowing the potential of the metaverse and how its citizens positively respond to new technology, made a plan to formally integrate the metaverse to its system. The Ministry of Science of Information and Communication Technologies (MSIT) will head the plan, promote the metaverse, and open thousands of job opportunities for the country to become a global metaverse leader in the future.
The Digital New Deal, which is where the metaverse plan stems from, is South Korea’s wider plan to empower the nation’s economy through better digital adoption. MSIT Minister Lim Hye-sook, one of the focal people of the metaverse strategy, described the digital world as “an uncharted digital continent with indefinite potential,” with the government investing 223.7 billion won ($177.1 million) for the multi-angled strategy.
Aside from the funding, MIST aims to attract and hone the best talents to its metaverse ecosystem by conducting hackathons, a social coding contest that brings programmers and other individuals together to make a new software, program or platform. There would also be community-oriented activities to stimulate the creative minds of enthusiasts.
Seoul’s Metropolitan Government is investing 3.9 billion won in a metaverse platform that allows citizens to access public services virtually. Named “Metaverse Seoul,” the project’s goal is to become the first city to enter the metaverse. In September 2022, Metaverse Seoul’s beta version was released, and an estimated 3,000 residents have already tested it.
Why invest in the metaverse?
Many experts believe that the metaverse will open 1.5 million virtual jobs in the future, producing 40,000 professionals, who will be hired by at least 200 companies. These factors drove South Korea to invest big on the metaverse.
To get such an ambitious ball rolling, South Korea is investing in quality metaverse education and competency development. The ministry aims to train 40,000 students in metaverse-related fields through specialized higher education courses.
The metaverse is currently on its path to become a $10-trillion industry that would produce a diverse, encompassing stream of income. Various sectors like gaming, social media, and marketing and advertising will be able to penetrate more diverse consumer demographics and wider markets.
South Korea, with its huge investment for the metaverse, ambitiously announced to the world its will to be one of the global leaders in this industry. The possibilities that will be made in this virtual world are practically endless, and it takes extreme cooperation from the national government and experts to make it work.
The East Asian nation fully recognizes the benefits it will reap from the metaverse—from enriching the workforce to boosting the economy. And this is crucial to not only making the metaverse into a reality, but also making it flourish in the future.
