Beijing announces two-year Metaverse development and innovation plan (2022 – 2024)

On August 23, the Beijing city government announced a plan to innovate and develop the Metaverse for a period of two years, from 2022 to 2024. The plan requires all districts to follow the guidelines of the exchange program. New Web3 was released recently.

Metaverse Innovation and Development Plan

The plan identifies the development focus as Metaverse – a new generation of information technology integration and innovation that aims to accelerate the development of the Web3-oriented Internet.

In addition, the plan also emphasizes on promoting the development of Metaverse-related industries, making Beijing a leading city in the digital economy.

City districts are responsible for developing technology infrastructure and promoting its application in various fields, including education and tourism.

The plan mentions that one of the Beijing government’s Metaverse goals is:

Promote digital education scenarios, support in-depth cooperation between Metaverse-related technology companies and educational institutions, expand intelligent and interactive online education models, and while developing industry-wide digital teaching platforms.

The development program will see the integration of technical means such as 3D visualization and geographic information systems (GIS) in the development plan of a visual urban spatial digital platform. Besides, it also sets the stage for effective and efficient construction of digital native smart infrastructure layouts.

The Beijing Metaverse Development and Innovation Plan also requires counties and cities to provide financial and human support to build virtual reality spaces. The city government also instructs districts to monitor non-fungible token technology (NFT) trends and explore regulatory programs to aid in innovation.

China’s View of the Metaverse

China is a typical country in prohibiting all acts of individuals or organizations related to cryptocurrencies. However, the country has shown interest in the Metaverse since early 2021.

The COVID-19 pandemic brings virtual world technology closer to China, thanks to it, people can socialize, exchange and do business without physical boundaries.

Existing parallel to the real world, Metaverse also opens up many new opportunities in the fields of work, education, travel, shopping and entertainment, thanks to tools such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR).

The giants in the Chinese market are well aware of the potential of virtual reality technology and are ready to jump on the Metaverse racetrack. In 2021 alone, more than 1,000 Chinese companies, including well-known names like Alibaba and Tencent, have registered about 10,000 trademarks related to Metaverse.

Before Beijing, Shanghai also included Metaverse in its 5-year development plan in December 2021. The city government encourages the application of virtual reality technology in areas such as business offices, public services, etc.

The provinces of China wish to develop their own version of the Metaverse, in accordance with their economic systems. In April 2022, the Huangpu District of Guangzhou Province and the Guangzhou Development Zone issued a policy to support Metaverse focusing on innovation and Metaverse development. Zhejiang, Wuxi and other provinces and cities are also included in the relevant industrial planning.