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Ask HN: Why is metaverse land valuable?

13 points by ketanip ↗ HN
I'm seeing people buying land in metaverse as they think that what they are buying would be a prime location which is not as anyone can go from one place to another in fraction of seconds as demonstrated by Zuckerberg himself ( in metaverse promotional video ) so why the people are buying into the idea that their virtual land will rise in value.

The only place I can think of with land with rising value is some sort of metaverse mall which would mostly be controlled by some sort of centralized entity.

Am I missing something ?

Also, including NFT and blockchain in metaverse is a tac-tik to say to the government that we are not a monopoly people own their stuff on blockchain and we have nothing to do with it or something in the same way ?

18 comments

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chinathrow
> I'm seeing people buying land in metaverse

What are you talking about?

ketanip
I am seeing it on twitter, youtube and more general on social media that people are saying that they are buying virtual plots of land on blockchain in virtual reality world, as they are planning to flip those plots for profits.
rceDia
"Monetize it and they will spend!"
pingsl
I believe the apparent reason is the metaverse land price is going up right now. They are just looking for a trading opportunity。

I don't understand why they sell "land" in the metaverse. It is a new universe by definition. So why don't they sell "star" or "space"?

If people keep mapping the concepts from the real world into the metaverse, the metaverse might become the replica of this world. What's the meaning of this?

ksaj
Considering that we surf the web in cyberspace, the whole Internet is a jumble of mixed metaphor. It's not going to stop when there is no consensus on what metaphor will represent the Internet for everyone that uses it.
hooby
The whole idea of trading and prices going up, only works for rivalrous goods[1].

Digital property (including but not limited to metaverse land) is inherently non-rivalrous - and therefore not really suited for this kind of profiteering. But through the blockchain, people try to impose artificial limitations onto digital property, in order to achieve scarcity, and thus create rivalrous goods (or even veblen goods) from something that's inherently non-rivalrous. This scarcity can then be exploited for financial gain.

The irony is, that the usage of blockchain technology itself is actually anti-rivalrous. The more blockchain is being used, the better for everyone who already uses blockchains.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rivalry_(economics)

sharemywin
block chains that limits nodes create artificial scarcity also. and if the governance isn't managed in a way the keeps costs down then the network is basically just another centralized network.

although I could see chains competing for users so they need to keep costs down. and since the code is open source it seems like it's easy enough to run a competing network.

h2odragon
Around a century ago, land in Florida was being traded at high values too. Others have also made comparisons between these two events.

A great way to make money then would've been to open a new "land registry" and just soft-talk the fact that you weren't, you know, legally capable of recording or transferring actual, legal land ownership.

Today, start a blockchain, and never mention that your transaction ledger never really meant anything and you've no intention of maintaining it for long.

muzani
Often I question why actual land is valuable. Why would you buy an office in a tower in the middle of traffic jam central? Housing around it is expensive. Food is expensive there too. Why not make offices in some out of town area with good rail access?

They make offices downtown because it's next to other major offices. There's an element of wasteful pride, the kind that comes with buying a Ferrari.

hooby
Real land derives it's value from multiple sources.

First of all, there's only so much surface area on the Earth - thus there's only a finite amount of land available. Limited supply.

Secondly, people need a place to live, companies need a place for business, and farmers need fertile soil for farming, etc. - thus there is a real demand for land.

Thirdly, value of land varies based on a whole number of factors - like where it's located, law restrictions and taxes, accessibility (traffic connection), desirability of the neighborhood, available services and utilities, air quality, noise pollution, existing real estate, etc.

And lastly, speculation has of course an influence on prices as well.

me_me_mu_mu
It’s a way for some people to generate USD without being the fed. It’s a way for some suckers to feel good about FOMO after watching a YT short about how they’re gonna be poor.
angryasian
just google the "earth2 scam" and you can see why its all bs.

There is a reality where some service will win the mindshare of people to use AR to enhance your experiences as you walk around your city. Its very likely whomever owns those plots of lands on so called service will be able to do what they want to monetize. Its also possibly for whatever FOMO or hype is built around so called metaverse land that there will be money to be made by the buying and selling of metaverse land.

As of now its all a scam until there is evidence that this AR or MMO appears and will be successful, its all in the minds of people that are buying and selling.

zaphar
Value is a human construct. I'm guessing the people who buy this land in the metaverse believe they can tell a convincing story around it's value and if enough people buy into that story it will indeed have that value.