The Immersive Wire - 6 February 2022 (Sunday edition)

By Tom FfiskeVR/AR and metaverse analysis every Wednesday and Sunday

// 6 February 2022

Thanks for your support with the book launch! If you have any questions, feel free to reply to this newsletter. Also, I completed Pokemon Legends: Arceus. Love the revamp of the core formula, and hope future games integrate the innovations from this one.

The Metaverse: A Professional Guide

is now out! Get your copy today.

MAIN STORYProtecting users in virtual worlds

Let's talk about harassment in virtual worlds. The discussion came about from a Daily Mail piece that rolled across other publications too, exploring how Nina Jane Patel was harassed in Horizon. My focus last Wednesday was on the media reality of the metaverse, and how it paints a particular picture of spatial computing. The next point is on the issue at hand, and what can be done. The article left an impression. "Within one hour of the article being published, here in the U.K., I received death threats, abusive comments on social media and via email," said Nina Jane Patel in her Medium post. "It seems calling attention to sexual harassment has upset some people... clearly, there are many, many misogynists in this world who think that sexual harassment is acceptable."Such discussions likely expedited Meta's new update for user controls, where they can better protect themselves if necessary. I applaud the fact that it is on by default, to help set new rules. "We are intentionally rolling out Personal Boundary as always on, by default, because we think this will help to set behavioral norms—and that’s important for a relatively new medium like VR," the team said in a blog post. But what I would also like to see is a cultural address on the situation as well. The rollout of new tools should be paired with active discussions and initiatives to improve the culture of virtual worlds and combat harassment. It is like giving teachers the power to force pupils to leave the classroom, but not making any moves to educate the class. Still, important discussions are being had, and Alida Goffinski, UX Researcher for EA, is thankful that it lights up the toxic side of virtual worlds. "Let's be careful not to dismiss or downplay the dystopian potential of the metaverse in order to preserve its utopian reputation as it becomes more mainstream. Instead, let's use stories like the Daily Mail article to validate users' stories and refine our understanding of the myriad UX challenges that we have yet to solve. We can't innovate or solve problems like toxicity and harassment if we debate their legitimacy at the outset. Validating stories like the one illustrated by the Daily Mail article is the first step. Building a metaverse where underrepresented groups feel safe is the next."

Out now! The Metaverse: A Professional Guide sorts the sense from the nonsense, giving experts insights and guidance on how to navigate the burgeoning world of immersive technologies. I am also open to organising corporate orders; if you would like to order a bulk of copies, then send me an email and we can organise a bulk discount. Get your copy today.

Q&ALooking into IP and the metaverse

Jim Gastle, Canadian Patent Agent and co-founder of Terrifio

What is your background?

I’m a Canadian Patent Agent and have worked with tech for the past 30+ years. In that time, I’ve worked with 800+ clients, from multi-national corporates, academics and inventors and entrepreneurs both SMEs and individuals. However, my passion has always been with the inventors/entrepreneurs because I consider myself to be one. After leaving engineering school, my focus was on design, but I then discovered the patent profession and saw the opportunity to be able to protect my own IP by learning about it “from the inside”.

What are you working on, and what’s a key learning that you’ve had from it?

A key learning for me is that entrepreneurs and inventors have incredible drive, and an unshakable belief in what they’re working on, which is usually in the late-night hours after finishing their day job. Yet, while national governments have made considerable headway in reducing red tape, there is simply no cohesive ecosystem for these people to capitalise on their creations, for the benefit of us all. And we need to change this.

At the same time, as an IP Professional, I know how much time and attention it takes to engage with an incoming lead to my firm. While I was able to connect with these entrepreneurs, the time necessary to validate them as a client was quite disruptive to my ongoing commitments to my existing clients. That’s because the IP Profession is driven by critical and overlapping deadlines, requiring equally critical and overlapping workflows to meet them. In short, the time needed to properly validate clients is constantly in conflict with the ongoing pressures of IP practices.

I’m following the metaverse phenomenon, and the shift underway right now, as developers and tech entrepreneurs learn about and deploy the tools of web 3 to deliver greater decentralized control to content creators and internet users alike. A key learning for me is that the metaverse will massively challenge the global IP regime that has underpinned innovation economies in the modern era, as it becomes part of daily life for coming generations.

If you had to give one piece of advice, what would you give?

For the past 20 or so years, the IP system has evolved to help IP professionals be more efficient in coordinating workflows for submissions with the various regulatory authorities. We are now seeing emerging technologies beginning to radically change the ways entrepreneurs and inventors themselves can interface with the processes to protect and exploit Intellectual Property. Entrepreneurs will be more involved, and see greater transparency and control, at less cost. IP Professionals and Regulatory Authorities will be increasingly challenged to support, pilot and integrate these technologies as quickly as possible.

This won’t change the fact that each business case is unique. Entrepreneurs, it’s well worth your time, before getting started, to really learn about the kinds of IP that could be important to you. Doing so will point toward greater preparedness, while allowing your IP Professionals to help you set the critical steps and deadlines involved for your unique project. In the meantime, the metaverse’s time on the horizon will be remarkably short, and its potential disruption epic.

If you would like to learn more about their work, check them out here.

Jobs boardNEW - DISTRIBUTION AND TOURING PRODUCER. Marshmallow Laser Feast is looking for someone to join our team as a Distribution & Touring Producer. You will have a desire to work at the bleeding edge of immersive storytelling and help shape how that work is distributed globally. We see the development and distribution of MLF’s own work as key to the future success of the business, a key revenue stream and integral in building global brand awareness. This new role will be a vital part of the core team that formulates and realises this ambitious vision. Learn more. RENDERING AND C++ ENGINEER, Wikitude, a Qualcomm company. Qualcomm is a company of inventors that unlocked 5G ushering in an age of rapid acceleration in connectivity. Under this dynamic umbrella, Wikitude, a Qualcomm company, shapes the future of augmented reality by empowering businesses and developers. We are looking for the XR Software Engineer Design to design, test, and implement core parts of the Wikitude XR toolkit – particularly rendering pipelines for XR systems. Do you have a high affinity for real-time rendering pipelines and optimizing code to fit 16ms (or less)? Learn more and apply! SENIOR COMPUTER SCIENCE and SOFTWARE DEVELOPER (3D, Linear Algebra, C++). MetaVRse is a web-based 3D game engine for building immersive experiences without needing to code. We are looking for a unicorn computer scientist from anywhere in the world who can help us improve the core rendering technology that will serve creators to build custom products in training, marketing, sales, retail and learning in photorealistic, real-time 3D delivered on any device in a browser. Working with our Head of R&D, you will be responsible for creating and implementing new 3D graphics solutions to push the limits of our technology stack. Solid understanding of Real-time 3D libraries (OpenGL, Vulkan), Linear Algebra, C++ and 3D rendering and game engine technologies. Apply Here.XR SOFTWARE ENGINEER NETWORKING, Wikitude, a Qualcomm company. Qualcomm is a company of inventors that unlocked 5G ushering in an age of rapid acceleration in connectivity. Under this dynamic umbrella, Wikitude, a Qualcomm company, shapes the future of augmented reality by empowering businesses and developers. We are looking for an experienced XR Software Engineer Networking to drive the architecture, development, and deployment of core parts of our XR toolkit. A successful candidate has extensive experience in multiplayer streaming and can apply it to XR experiences. Do you have a solid technical background, a passion for the XR industry, and enjoy working with engineering teams? Apply hereXR CONTENT DIRECTOR, Pixo VR. The VR marketplace is exploding, and PIXO is leading the way in on-demand generation and adoption in our industry. With our groundbreaking PIXO ApexTM platform, we provide comprehensive, end-to-end VR content, distribution, and management solutions for enterprise. PIXO VR is searching for an XR Content Director to join our team. Reporting to the COO, the Content Director will manage the overall production, procurement and growth strategy for our XR content library. Working with a team of offshore and onshore designers, engineers, artists, marketers, and 3rd party content developers, the Content Director will ensure PIXO is delivering an exceptional content experience to all our end users. Check out further details here. SDK TECHNICAL ENGINEER, Pico Interactive Europe. As SDK Technical Engineer you will be responsible for investigating/troubleshooting issues reported, and collecting/consolidating customer requirements back to the Beijing DevSupport team. Through this role you will be the technical liaison between Pico Interactive Europe customers and Pico product teams to ensure Europe region's commercial success. In Europe, Pico is one of the premier enterprise hardware companies in the rapidly growing VR market. Click here for more.TECHNICAL PROJECT MANAGER, Pico Interactive Europe. As Technical Project Manager you will be responsible for evaluating improvements to the devices, services, logistics, and operations to continue the high growth business of Pico Interactive Europe. In Europe, Pico is one of the premier enterprise hardware companies in the rapidly growing VR market. The Pico Europe business is responsible for all business opportunities in Europe, Israel, Russian Federation and India. Click here for more.  Display your vacancy in front of thousands of talented VR/AR professionals in just a few clicks. Click here for more info.

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