According to a statement published on Friday, the move is part of the country’s efforts to meet the various needs of industrial development and industrial management based on the opinions of “relevant” authorities in China.
On Friday, January 19, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the People’s Republic of China (MIIT) revealed the establishment of a metaverse working group dedicated to advancing the creation of the state-owned digital universe known as Yuanverse.
The MIIT said in a statement that the task force is made up of representatives from the government, academia and prominent corporations such as Huawei, Ant Group, Tencent, Baidu, NetEase and Sense Time.
Three-year Action Plan for the creation of the Yuanverse in China
The newly formed group will play an important role in setting standards for Yuanverse. The formation of the metaverse working group comes a few months after the country presented its Three-Year Action Plan for the Innovative Development of the Metaverse Industry in September last year. At the time, the MIIT said the plan was jointly issued by the ministry and other ministries in the country, including the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the National Administration of Radio and Television, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of State Assets. Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council.
The metaverse action plan, designed to last between 2023 and 2025, encourages cultural sites such as museums and art galleries to offer immersive digital experiences to visitors. Additionally, the plan calls on the television and entertainment industries to create digital presenters to improve services for their audiences.
Concerns Over Lack of Ground Rules for the Metaverse
With the establishment of the metaverse working group, the country has taken a significant step towards achieving its three-year action plan. The Chinese government aims to establish industrial standardization for the metaverse market with the working group.
In a document published in September 2023, the MIIT highlighted the importance of formulating basic standards, including metaverse terminology and reference architecture for the metaverse sector, despite the blanket ban on cryptocurrencies in the country. These standards are considered essential to build consensus among stakeholders, reduce redundant investment costs, and foster collaborative efforts to drive industrial development.
The MIIT emphasized the current lack of consensus between academia, industry and research sectors regarding the definition of the metaverse. The ministry also expressed concern over speculative activities in the metaverse market, driven by capital and business, leading to a deviation from practical value. The MIIT said that this divergence, to some extent, hinders the online universe development.
Web3 Adoption Roadmap
China’s adoption of the metaverse is not limited to the federal level. Local governments across the country have also pledged to support the metaverse industry. Sichuan, a province that was once a crypto mining hub, aims to reach a market size of 250 billion yuan ($35.1 billion) in the metaverse industry by 2025.
Similarly, another local government, Shandong province, has set ambitious goals and plans to achieve them. a market size of 150 billion yuan in metaverse-related initiatives next year. Meanwhile,
China has also shown commitment to other aspects of the emerging economy despite its ban on cryptocurrency trading, mining and other activities such as gambling. Last month, MIIT published another document outlining plans to formulate strategic documents to clarify the development path of Web3. In particular, the country actively encourages the development of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and decentralized applications.
By Leonardo Perez
