Entertainment

Facebook risks meta flop, metaverse developers say pointing to shift in user behavior

Facebook risks missing the point of metaverse — and a coming shift in consumers’ behavior — if it fails to permit digital ownership, according to some of the virtual world’s pioneers.
The social media giant made waves last month by changing its name to Meta Platforms and announcing a focus on the buzzy “metaverse.”

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However, with few details beyond the rebrand, metaverse participants doubt it is ready to embrace the spirit driving creativity and profit in the space.
“What Facebook is doing with meta…is a ‘fake metaverse,’ unless they actually have a real description as to how we can truly own it,” said Yat Siu, chairman and co-founder of Animoca Brands, an investor in and builder of metaverse platforms, speaking on a panel at the Reuters Next conference.
“Until then, it’s just Disneyland. It’s a beautiful place to be, but we probably don’t want to really live there. It’s not the kind of place that we can actually build a business.”
The metaverse refers to an array of shared spaces accessed via the internet. Some use augmented reality, via smart glasses, though current platforms often look more like the inside of a video game than real life.
Serious money is sloshing around in there, with a patch of “real estate” in an online world called Decentraland changing hands for the equivalent of $2.4 million last week.
Such plots and other virtual objects typically transact blockchain-based assets called non-fungible tokens (NFTs), sales of which topped $10 billion in the September quarter, according to market tracker DappRadar.
Facebook’s entry has further turbocharged interest in the space. It had no immediate response to an emailed request for comment on Wednesday, and has not previously responded directly to criticisms of its metaverse plans.
But Siu said ownership is the bedrock for improvements and new paths for products and commerce, much like car ownership gave rise to baby car seat makers or how home ownership drives demand for furniture and businesses like Ikea.

Same, same, but different

For fellow metaverse pioneer Benoit Pagotto, co-founder of virtual sneaker company RTFKT, digital ownership makes room to change the roles of brands and consumers.
“It’s a huge shift in (the way) the relationship between business, creativity and consumerism is working,” he said at the Reuters Next conference. “A product is not a one-off thing. You need to think of how you can continue to update it,” he said.
“It’s very, very much more fluid. I think the real world will soon be overwhelmed by that because the possibilities of interaction in a digital world are so much deeper.”
In the meantime, there has been a scramble to catch up, both by brands wanting a slice of the action and lawyers trying to pin down what digital ownership really is.
NFTs are largely unregulated and fraudsters lurk. Anybody can create and sell an NFT and there is no guarantee of its value.
“It is causing a little bit of headaches to people in the legal profession trying to reconcile the vocabulary with what’s happening in fact,” said Sophie Goossens, a partner specializing in technology and media law at Reed Smith in London.
“Ownership in legal terms means something…(generally) a monopoly over a resource that is enforced by the state,” she said. “The type of rights that you are being granted on digital ownership of an NFT are slightly different. You may not have the right to control fully the asset that you own as an NFT.”
Still, that does not appear to be holding back the metaverse’s reach into the mainstream, especially for young people who are already video game or fashion consumers.
“I think we’re going to see a blend of digital assets seamlessly fitting into our real environment,” said Natalie Johnson, founder of Neuno, a forthcoming marketplace for fashion brand NFTs, as tech firms launch augmented-reality glasses.
“You don’t need to be a hardcore gamer to be embracing and playing with this new technology. It’s going to be for everyone.”

Entertainment

Accused of rape, British comedian Russell Brand speaks of ‘distressing’ week

British comedian and actor Russell Brand on Friday spoke of an “extraordinary and distressing week” in his first public comments since rape and assault allegations were aired against him, but did not address the claims.
“Obviously it’s been an extraordinary and distressing week and I thank you very much for your support and for questioning the information you are being presented with,” he said on a video posted to his YouTube channel, which has 6.64 million subscribers.
“I need your support now more than ever, more than I ever imagined I would,” he added.
But he did not comment on the joint investigation by The Times, Sunday Times and Channel 4 television in which four women made claims of rape, sexual assaults and emotional abuse against him.
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Then on Thursday, a woman accused Brand of exposing himself to her in 2008.
Brand criticized the British government for asking tech companies to take action against him.
Denouncing what he described as “deep state and corporate collusion” and “media corruption and censorship,” he said he would post a longer video on Monday.
In a video released last week, just before the story broke, Brand, 48, denied the allegations against him, which are said to have taken place between 2006 and 2013.
He said his relationships had always been “consensual,” even during a period when he admitted he was “very, very promiscuous.”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s official spokesman called the allegations “very serious and concerning.”
Sunak “has been clear there should never be any space for harassment, regardless of where it is found,” he added.
Brand’s publisher Bluebird announced that “all future publishing” with the comedian had been put on hold.
Video-sharing platform YouTube has also demonetized his content.

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Entertainment

Talks between striking Hollywood writers, studios fail for second day

Negotiators for Hollywood's major studios and striking film and television writers failed to reach an agreement to end a months-long stalemate after meeting for a second straight day on Thursday, CNN reported.

Representatives of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) talked for more than 10 hours, CNN said. It is unclear when they will convene again.

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Spokespeople for the WGA and the AMPTP did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

To help spark a deal, sessions on Wednesday and Thursday were attended by Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos, Comcast's NBCUniversal Studio Group Chairman Donna Langley and Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav, according to a source close to the studios.

Roughly 11,500 WGA members walked off the job in May to protest pay and working conditions in the streaming TV era.

The SAG-AFTRA actors union went on strike in July, putting Hollywood in the midst of two simultaneous work stoppages for the first time in 63 years.

Striking Hollywood writers, studios to resume negotiations next week

Hollywood studios release terms of new proposal to striking writers

Entertainment

Striking writers, Hollywood studios to meet again to resolve five-month standoff

Negotiators for the striking Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Hollywood studios will meet again on Thursday to try to resolve a nearly five-month standoff that has disrupted film and television production.

The WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represents Walt Disney, Netflix and other media companies, held talks for the first time in about a month on Wednesday.

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Early on Wednesday evening, the two sides issued a joint statement saying simply: “The WGA and AMPTP met for bargaining today and will meet again tomorrow.”

To help spark a deal, Wednesday’s meeting was attended by Disney CEO Bob Iger, Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos, Comcast’s NBCUniversal Studio Group Chairman Donna Langley and Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav, according to a source close to the studios.

People in the room described the session as “encouraging,” the source said, and the four executives are expected to return to the talks on Thursday.

CNBC, citing people close to the negotiations, said writers and producers were near an agreement and hoped to reach a deal on Thursday. But if a deal is not reached the strike could last through the end of the year, CNBC reported.

The WGA went on strike in May after negotiations reached an impasse over compensation, minimum staffing of writers’ rooms and the role of artificial intelligence (AI), among other issues.

The SAG-AFTRA actors union called a work stoppage in July, putting Hollywood in the midst of two simultaneous strikes for the first time in 63 years. No talks are currently scheduled between the actors and the studios.

Hollywood studios release terms of new proposal to striking writers