Decentraland was founded in 2017, with a unique premise: provide users with an entirely virtual world that they own, operate, and trade. Decentraland is based on a blockchain architecture, using virtual reality (VR) and open-source technologies to gradually expand and keep empowering its users.
Decentraland is backed by a total funding amount of $25.5 million. Among its many differentiators, Decentraland doesn’t have a singular real-world address; it is based out of the Genesis Building in the Metaverse, which is a VR real estate built by the company and its users.
What are the Key Features of Decentraland?
As the name suggests, Decentraland seeks to recreate a free market economy in a virtual space using blockchain. For example, it contains Decentral Games, a metaverse casino that is owned and monetised by users. This VR world’s economy is based on a cryptocurrency called MANA, owned and fully tradeable by its users.
Avatars
Decentraland features fully customisable avatars, with hundreds of free outfits and accessories. Each avatar is assigned a passcode that allows it to explore the VR world and buy/trade with other users. The avatar’s passport is connected to a crypto-wallet – but keep in mind that you cannot upload your custom 3D models as avatars on Decentraland.
Builder
Another key feature of Decentraland is the ability to build scenes and entire environments. The platform comes with a pre-built Scene Pool, contributed by its many users, thanks to the underlying open-source technology. There are hundreds of scenes to choose from, ranging from basic rough drafts to full-fledged villas, forests, etc.
Marketplace
The marketplace offers different wearables (outfits) for your avatars as well as blocks of real estate. In fact, tradeable real estate was among the primary use cases for launching Decentraland. All items in the market are perishable, with a pre-assigned expiry date. Interestingly, avatar names are also purchasable in the market, if you are looking to monetise using brand names (Burberry, Versace, etc.) or common keywords (theatre, cybersecurity, etc.).
Decentralised autonomous organisations (DAO)
DAO further reinforces the free market structure of Decentraland, introducing a governance system to enable community funding, grant proposals, and community voting. Decentraland DAO started with 222 million MANA, in February of 2020 to be gradually vested over the next ten years. The DAO interface is currently being overhauled for greater ease of use and off-blockchain voting support.
What are the Benefits of Using Decentraland?
The implications of a fully virtual universe like Decentraland are immense. It makes it possible to create, inhabit, and earn from VR assets and services offered in VR. The platform also features a number of interesting events such as game launch parties, casino nights, virtual gallery launches, etc.
Can Enterprises Use Decentraland?
Decentraland is scalable via P2P connections and multiple servers, making it ideal for enterprise use. In-game advertising, property allocation and monetisation, and in-word events hold a lot of promise for companies looking to simulate real-world communication dynamics in a virtual space, particularly if you are in e-commerce, AEC, or a 3D product business.
