Chinese government increases focus on “metaverse,” eyes regulations

During China’s annual “Two Sessions,” the authorities discussed “metaverse” at a national level for the first time, with delegates calling for regulation to ensure data security and the eradication of speculation within the industry.

Since China successfully curbed the growth of crypto within its jurisdiction, the metaverse has emerged as a new frontier for many tech companies in the country. 

Some of the biggest firms like Baidu, Tencent, NetEase, and ByteDance have already applied for patents within the sector with some like Alibaba releasing NFTs based on the idea.

Delegates call for metaverse regulation

But delegates in the Two Sessions believe that the nascent industry still has a lot of room for growth, which can best happen with regulations.

According to Kong Falong, a deputy to the National People’s Congress, establishing a national research institute for metaverse can help spur its growth.

Falong continued that with more investments in the industry to nurture talents and support development, China could become the leading country in the metaverse space.

But he also added that such developments would come with issues such as information protection, data security, and speculation. 

Thus, it is essential that firms operating within the space are regulated.

Another delegate and member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), Zhang Ying, stated that the current metaverse space in China focuses too much on the entertainment experience. 

Aside from that, he also pointed out that speculation is rife in the current space and concluded that the government needed to regulate the industry to ensure its growth in terms of technological development.

Available information shows that district governments of Shanghai’s Hongkou and Beijing’s Tongzhou are eyeing opportunities available for them in the metaverse.

China’s regulation first posture

While many countries around the world are just waking up to the need to regulate the crypto industry properly, the Chinese government, since 2013, has maintained a hostile stance towards the industry and has successfully curbed the growth of the space within its jurisdiction.

According to a recent CryptoSlate report, the country successfully reduced its domination of Bitcoin transactions and mining as its share dropped from 90% to 10%.

With the new revelations coming from the recent “Two Sessions,” the Asian country could also be looking to regulate the growth of the metaverse space within the country.

Presently, the industry’s lack of regulation has led to an influx of companies. According to the Chinese National Intellectual Property Administration, it has received at least 16,000 trademark applications containing the word “metaverse.” 

However, it should be noted that this does not necessarily mean that all of the projects are metaverse-related.