Companies ranging from ANHEUSER-BUSCH to ZYRTEC have filed to register their marks for virtual goods and services. Doing so will help these companies to protect their trademark rights in the burgeoning virtual frontier known as the “Metaverse.” While the Metaverse raises numerous questions we may not be able to answer for some time (including, among other questions, how even to define it), there are some questions you can answer now to determine whether trademark registration in the Metaverse is right for your company:
1. Do you know what the Metaverse is?
Don’t worry if the answer is “no.” Technically speaking, it doesn’t really exist—not yet at least. In simplest terms, the Metaverse is a (hypothetical) virtual space in which people and objects can interact across different platforms. The Metaverse may also cross over into the real world through “augmented” or “extended” reality, which users may access with special glasses or other devices that display interactive objects or modify the user’s field of vision to present information. In other words, the Metaverse may manifest itself in many ways, including some that have yet to be fully defined.
For more, check out The Metaverse, Explained for People Who Still Don’t Get It from Vice.com.
2. Do you have a website, and is it an important aspect of your business model?
Many consider the Metaverse to be the next step in the evolution of the internet, and if you have an active online presence today, odds are you may be setting up shop in the Metaverse in the not-too-distant future. Securing your rights now can make that transition easier.
3. Do you conduct any business online, such as online retail or software services?
If so, then the Metaverse may be a natural expansion for your business, where virtual shops are opening every day.
