Decentraland is the digital real estate everyone is talking about and investing in. Here’s everything you need to know about it.
The world has come a long way from The Sims, a life simulation video game that was first released in the year 2000 and allowed players to interact with the gaming environment their digital selves. However, it was still a game like many others of its time.
Until 2021, we have people living an alternate version of themselves in the virtual world. They trade cryptocurrency as a real form of money, buy digital dresses and collect digital art in the form of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). So, the virtual real estate platform Decentraland was only a matter of time.
On November 25, New York Post It reported that Metaverse Group, the NFT-based metaverse real estate firm, a subsidiary of Tokens.com, has purchased a plot of land in Decentraland for US$2.43 million. This amount is more than double the previous record for largest acquisition of metaverse land.
According to a company statement, the group purchased “116 plots of land in the heart of the Fashion Street district.” The company said the purchase will help its entry into digital fashion.
“The Metaverse Group is also planning partnerships with several existing fashion brands looking to connect with new audiences and expand their e-commerce offerings within the metaverse,” the statement said.
That’s not all. On November 15, Coindesk reported that Barbados signed an agreement with Decentraland to establish its virtual embassy on the platform in January 2022, becoming the first country to do so.
All you need to know about Decentraland
What is Dicentraland?
What started as a 2D pixelated grid where users can buy pixels has grown into an experience where everything is 3D.
Decentraland is built on the Ethereum blockchain, a decentralized virtual world program where virtual plots of land can be bought and sold. People can create their own mini worlds using trees, virtual planes, and more.
To put it simply, Decentraland is very similar to VR video games but more comprehensive and “real” because it has assets. From digital skyscrapers and rapid transit systems to movie theaters and hotels, anything available in the physical world can be found here.
Decentraland got a huge boost in popularity after Facebook changed the company’s name to Meta. Facebook’s decision greatly increased the concept of what is commonly referred to as the ‘metaverse’.
What is a plot of land in the Decentraland?
There are 90,601 individual virtual plots on the system. Each is in an NFT format known as LAND. Thus, land trade is an NFT transaction.
Once a plot of land is purchased, the user can use it to create an entire virtual city.
Multiple plots of land can be managed by the LAND Estates feature in Decentraland. Groups of land that share a similar theme can be grouped as regions. This allows different users, who have a common interest, to form a community. A voting system known as Agora allows users to gain more control over developments in their areas.
How it works?
LAND can be purchased in Decentraland using a cryptocurrency known as MANA, which itself is completely decentralized.
In fact, all transactions in this virtual world are done using MANA. Trading occurs within its range the shop – One-stop shop for land, real estate, avatars and items that users need to build their world.
Land ownership is tracked via the Ethereum blockchain and users are required to keep their MANA tokens in an Ethereum wallet. At the time of writing, one MANA is trading at $5.09.
The platform allows designers to build their world with animations and interactions.
There are three broad layers created with Ethereum smart contracts. Ownership of the ledger tracking of land purchases is maintained at the consensus layer. The content layer controls the distribution of parcels and displays content such as audio, video, and voice chat. Finally, all peer-to-peer communication, such as social interactions, takes place within decentralization through the real-time layer.
What about investment?
The purchase of a plot of land in Decentraland should be done very carefully. The world is steadily and rapidly evolving into the metaverse, but these are early stages.
There will be extremes of upside and downside in the markets. Eventually, booms and busts can occur in the short term.
(Featured Images: Decentraland)
This story first appeared in Lifestyle Asia Singapore.
