MetaLives: Technology Mimicking Life
As individuals spend more time online, daily habits, from the mindful to the mundane, are being transplanted into the digital realm, giving rise to extended selves and lifestyles. As much of our lives can now be replicated in the virtual world, we are acquiring virtual possessions and seeking relationships, health and wellbeing in the metaverse. What might “metaliving” look like?
Wunderman Thompson Intelligence (WTI) published a report which identifies ways that individuals are extending their identities and daily lives into the digital realm.[1]
Virtual Possessions
As individuals spend more time online, they are acquiring virtual goods that mirror their physical world possessions. Examples include digital clothing for their avatars and even virtual real estate.
Companies are taking note and creating these virtual possessions. Digital fashion house The Fabricant is already creating virtual-only clothing and accessories, including a $9,500 digital dress. The company has also worked with mass-market brands, such as Adidas, Puma, and Tommy Hilfiger, to create digital fashion items. High-end fashion brands are also creating virtual fashion items. A digital-only Gucci bag sold on the gaming platform Roblox for over $4,000.
WTI notes that, on average, consumers would pay $76,000 for a digital house, $9,000 for digital art, and $2,900 for a digital handbag.
Why would people pay so much money for items that only exist virtually? Possessions, including clothing, are often a form of self-expression and status. Individuals are merely mirroring their physical lives in digital space.
It’s not just clothing, either. Luxury car makers like Maserati, Aston Martin, Rolls Royce, and Tesla have launched virtual models of their vehicles for online gaming.
Virtual Wellbeing
Virtual reality (VR) technology is being studied for its possible use in improving both the physical and mental health of individuals. A prescription-strength video game was approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration to help treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children. VR games are also being evaluated as a treatment for COVID-19 patients experiencing brain fog.
Further applications for VR video games being studied include their use in curing insomnia and boosting memory in senior citizens. Other studies have found it useful in lowering blood pressure, treating eating disorders, combating anxiety, and curing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
In the future, we may see VR pharmacies staffed with virtualists administering doses of VR, or techceuticals, to treat specific maladies.
Digital Relationships
Social media forged the path for people to connect through technology. VR will likely expand and intensify that link.
Games are increasingly becoming key places to meet people. They are incorporating elements to increase personal connections and even to encourage acts of kindness.
Some digital platforms are even incorporating haptic technology to simulate physical touch, deepening the social aspect of metaverse technology.
The Metaverse May Become Party of Daily Life
Metaverse technology may likely become interwoven into the fabric of our daily lives. As such, companies that create and adopt such technologies may be poised to benefit from these trends.
How may individuals gain exposure to metaverse-related companies?
The Fount Metaverse ETF (MTVR)
The Fount Metaverse ETF seeks to provide investment results that, before fees and expenses, generally correspond to the performance of the Fount Metaverse Index. The index was designed to measure the performance of companies that develop, manufacture, distribute, or sell products related to metaverse technology.
MTVR may be an attractive vehicle to gain exposure to metaverse-related companies.
For a full list of MTVR holdings, please click here.
[1] All data sourced from: Into the Metaverse, Wunderman Thompson Intelligence, 9/14/21
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Risk Disclosure:
Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. There is no guarantee the Funds will achieve their stated objectives. In addition to the normal risks associated with investing, international investments may involve the risk of capital loss from unfavorable fluctuation in currency values, differences in generally accepted accounting principles, or social, economic, or political instability in other nations. Emerging markets involve heightened risks related to the same factors, as well as increased volatility and lower trading volume.
The Funds’ concentration in an industry or sector can increase the impact of, and potential losses associated with, the risks from investing in those industries/sectors. For MTVR, the Fund may be concentrated in the entertainment and interactive media & services industries. The entertainment industry is highly competitive and relies on consumer spending and the availability of disposable income for success, which may cause the prices of the securities of companies to fluctuate widely. The prices of the securities of companies in the interactive media & services industry are closely tied to the overall economy's performance. Changes in general economic growth, consumer confidence, and consumer spending may affect them. MTVR may also be subject to the specific risks associated with metaverse companies. These risks include but are not limited to small or limited markets, changes in business cycles, world economic growth, technological progress, rapid obsolescence, and government regulation. Smaller, start-up companies tend to be more volatile than securities of companies that do not rely heavily on technology. Metaverse Companies may rely on a combination of patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secret laws to establish and protect their proprietary rights. There can be no assurance that these steps will be adequate to prevent the misappropriation of their technology or that competitors will not develop technologies that are equivalent or superior to such companies’ technology.
For SUBS, the Fund may be concentrated in the software industry. Technological changes, pricing, retaining skilled employees, changes in demand, research & development, and product obsolescence can affect the profitability of software companies causing fluctuations in the market price of company securities.
Both Funds are subject to communication services sector risk, which can involve the same risks as being concentrated in the software industry. Network security breaches, potential proprietary or consumer information theft, or service disruption can negatively affect companies’ stock prices.
The Funds are non-diversified. The Funds are new and have limited operating histories for investors to evaluate. New and smaller funds may not attract sufficient assets to achieve investment and trading efficiencies. In addition to the normal risks associated with investing, investments in smaller companies typically exhibit higher volatility.
