The metaverse seems to be on everybody’s lips – and yet, very few people can actually explain what it means or why it is important. This book aims to fill the gap from an interdisciplinary perspective informed by law and media and communications studies. Going beyond the optimism emanating from technology companies and venture capitalists, the authors critically evaluate the antecedents and the building blocks of the metaverse, the design and regulatory challenges that need to be solved, and commercial opportunities that are yet to be fully realised. While the metaverse is poised to open new possibilities and perspectives, it will also be a dangerous place – one ripe with threats ranging from disinformation to intellectual property theft to sexual harassment. Hence, the book offers a useful guide to the legal and political governance issues ahead while also contextualising them within the broader domain of governance and regulation of digital technologies.

This open access book examines regulating an environment that has no jurisdiction, is fully anonymous and infinitely vast? Welcome to the Metaverse, an online virtual reality that is expected to add billions to the global economy. The Metaverse offers a new type of virtual economy with practically endless business opportunities. The question is how to prevent these opportunities from being abused to commit money laundering and finance terrorism (MLFT). This book explores the current European Union legislation designed to prevent MLFT in connection with the Metaverse. It analyses the legislation in relation to the three traditional stages of MLFT: placement, layering and integration. Furthermore, some additional risks specific to the Metaverse are discussed, such as Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) and the high level of anonymity. The book concludes that the current legislation is not suitable for facing the new challenges of the Metaverse. In turn, the book puts forward a novel approach to regulating and enforcing MLFT legislation: using a system of smart assets equipped with AI to prevent and detect MLFT. In addition, it makes recommendations on how to improve the legal framework with regard to the new challenges arising from the Metaverse. Particular attention is given to creating a legal framework that incorporates the use of smart assets and the Internet of Things, in order to provide a safe environment for potential users and society. With a solid background in financial law and technology, the author successfully creates a novel system of regulation and enforcement that is based on the use of automatic enforcement, whilst keeping sufficient legal safeguards in place for potential Metaverse users. This book will be of interest to anyone interested in the Metaverse. Whether you want to regulate it or open your own virtual business, it’s a must-read!

This Research Handbook analyses the role of law in a universe fractured by new disruptive technologies such as metaverse platforms. Contributing authors explore how the law will adapt as new dimensions of the metaverse are introduced to issues such as intellectual property rights, e-commerce, NFTs and cryptocurrencies, data privacy, contract law, as well as human rights, consumer law and criminal law. The abuse and manipulation of users is studied in several contributions.

Regulating Digital Industries is the first book to address the tech backlash within a coherent policy framework. It treats competition, privacy and free speech as objectives that must be pursued in a coordinated fashion by a dedicated industry regulator. It contains detailed discussions of current policy controversies involving social media companies, search engines, electronic commerce platforms and mobile apps. It argues for new laws and regulations to promote competition, privacy and free speech in tech and outlines the structure and powers of a regulatory agency able to develop, implement and enforce digital rules for the twenty-first century. Deeply informed by the history of regulation and antitrust in the United States, it brings to bear insights from the breakup of AT&T and the Microsoft case and from broadcasting and financial services regulation to enrich the discussion of remedies to the failure of tech competition, the massive invasion of privacy by digital firms and the information disorder perpetuated by social media platforms. It offers a comprehensive summary of regulatory reform efforts in the United States and abroad and shows how accomplishing the goals of these reform efforts requires the establishment of a single digital agency with jurisdiction to reconcile and balance the complementary and conflicting goals of promoting competition, protecting privacy, and preserving free speech in digital industries. It discusses in detail how a digital regulatory agency would be structured and the powers it would need to have. It confronts head on some of the challenges in establishing a strong digital regulator including the First Amendment roadblock that limits government authority over digital speech and the judicial opposition to the expansion of the administrative state. It is essential reading for policymakers, public interest advocates, industry representatives, academic researchers and the general public interested in a coherent policy approach to today’s tech industry discontents.

This book explores the burgeoning realm of the Metaverse, where virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), blockchain, and artificial intelligence (AI) converge. Its primary purpose is to provide readers with a comprehensive understanding of the Metaverse's potential, challenges, and ethical considerations. The Metaverse is a rapidly evolving digital landscape, and this book is needed to serve as a guide through its complexities. It employs a multidisciplinary approach, drawing insights from technology, ethics, sociology, and economics. Methodologically, it combines in-depth research, case studies, and expert perspectives to provide a holistic view of the subject. Key findings include the transformative power of the Metaverse in diverse fields, such as education, healthcare, and commerce, but also the need for responsible development to address privacy, security, and inclusivity concerns. In short, the book provides practical insights for industry professionals seeking to navigate this new digital frontier, ensuring the Metaverse benefits society while minimizing its risks.

This two volume proceedings, LNCS 13445 and 13446, constitutes the refereed proceedings of the First International Conference on Extended Reality, XR Salento 2022, held in Lecce, Italy, during July 6–8, 2022. Due to COVID-19 pandemic the conference was held as a hybrid conference. The 42 full and 16 short papers were carefully reviewed and selected from 84 submissions. The papers discuss key issues, approaches, ideas, open problems, innovative applications and trends in virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality, applications in cultural heritage, in medicine, in education, and in industry.