Brits are uninterested and uneducated about the metaverse, study shows

UK-based consumers don’t care about the metaverse, with only 37% of respondents saying they would take part in virtual worlds. The study by Gowling WLG, titled “The Immaterial World: Navigating Attitudes to the Metaverse Revolution,” investigated the potential of the virtual ecosystem based on consumer views from around the world.

Researchers wrote that the “interest and excitement about the metaverse in the UK is significantly lower than the other markets surveyed.” Brits are uninterested in the new technology, which means the United Kingdom falls behind its global competitors in the metaverse market.

Unlike other sources, Gowling’s study claims the majority of global consumers (76%) understand what metaverse is. However, in the UK, only 2% have a complete grasp of the concept; two-fifths (41%) have “no understanding whatsoever.” In contrast, only 4% of the respondents in the UAE said the same.

Asian countries seem to be the most positive about the metaverse. A mere 3% of respondents in China and the United Arab Emirates think the metaverse won’t become mainstream. Meanwhile, as many as 22% of Brits and 13% of Canadians don’t believe the metaverse will ever be widely adopted. The research also included French and U.S.-based consumers, of whom 5% and 7%, respectively, didn’t think the metaverse would become mainstream.

“The heavily secure consumer experience in the UK creates a mindset that is less likely to engage with something new or something that many may feel is a novelty. At the moment, UK consumers have seen little about metaverse successes to drive excitement, rather than hesitancy,”

Davey Brennan, the partner and co-chair of Global Tech at Gowling WLG, suggested.

More than half of respondents (52%) in the UAE believe their careers could be enhanced by the metaverse, in comparison with just 15% in the UK. The report argues that the negative attitude of UK-based consumers means that businesses in the country “could lose out to global competitors whose employees see the opportunities within the metaverse for creativity, productivity, and collaboration.”

To get UK consumers more enthusiastic about the virtual world, entities need to raise awareness of the potential of the metaverse and wipe out any possible misconceptions. However, organizations can’t solve every issue, and it’s most likely that the metaverse will become more mainstream over time.