The regulation of the Metaverse world

by Ahmed Khaouja

Regulating a common good such as the metaverse corresponds to the search for well-being by avoiding the abuses by certain actors and users at the expense of others. Metaverse will also be a common good that needs to be protected by setting up a good framework, so that it does not become a place of anarchy and insecurity on a global scale. This framework is more justified than ever because, with the metaverse, we will certainly have a second life and a second professional activity.

A study by the American firm Gartner even predicts that by 2026, one out of four people will spend at least one hour a day in the metaverse to shop, educate themselves or to work. Which is why it is important now to set the rules in this virtual world. This is also the will of several regulatory institutions such as the European Commission in Brussels. Metaverse is in a development stage and all technical issues are not resolved yet.

Therefore, in order to be able to motivate users and investors to go into the metaverse, it is important to think about securing and regulating it now. Asma Mhalla, professor of law at the Political Science Department in Paris, claims for example, that it is important and urgent to work on the status of avatars. Therefore, it is the case that has been reported recently on the metaverse. During a test of Facebook’s virtual reality platform, a user explained that one minute after logging in, she was virtually assaulted. They raped her avatar. Thus, the legal arsenal will have to be adapted to these new practices, to avoid the repetition of this kind of behaviors. Moreover, after this incident, Meta has just added a function in its virtual worlds to force avatars to keep a safe distance in the virtual world. Some countries seem to be taking the lead in this area.
For example, China is in the process of creating its own metaverse and the United Arab Emirates is already looking into how to punish the perpetrators of crimes committed by their avatars in the Metaverse.

Meaningful regulation of the metaverse is never easy to achieve as there is a need to strike a balance between regulation and promoting innovation. How can this be achieved when we are already struggling to regulate the internet in its current state. While the metaverse will be an extension of the social networks we use today. Several experts claim that the invasion of privacy will be more accentuated on the metaverse than with current social networks.
Regulating metaverse is necessary because without regulation in the metaverse we will end up in an artificial world that seems natural. Whereas behind this virtual world, major digital players will certainly manipulate us for commercial use in particular. The metaverse will not limit itself to knowing where we click, but it will further to track us, what we watch and where we go. Thanks to artificial intelligence (AI), the metaverse will also follow the different human physical expressions to go way far in predicting the emotional states of the metaverse’s users. The Metaverse will move away from current marketing methods, such as pop-ups ads and promotional videos, to target us in a much more natural way, injecting our world with promotional items and activities that feel real.

Ahmed Khaouja