Metaverse should be renamed because Zuckerberg's Meta doesn’t own it, says will.i.am

Facebook changed its company name to ‘Meta’ last year to reflect the company’s focus on virtual reality

The metaverse should be renamed because Facebook owner Meta does not own the world of virtual reality, popstar will.i.am has said.

The Black Eyed Peas singer and owner of tech start-up I.am+ said that it could be renamed ‘omniverse’ or ‘ultraverse’ during a session held at Dubai’s World Government Summit on Wednesday.

The metaverse is a virtual world where users can interact with each other as avatars, buy real estate and assets and make purchases using cryptocurrencies. It can also include augmented reality that combines aspects of the digital and physical worlds.

Metaverse – I don’t really like that name … I just don’t think one company should own the name 'meta'

In October, chief executive Mark Zuckerberg announced that Facebook would change its company name to ‘Meta’ to reflect the company’s focus on building the metaverse.

“Metaverse – I don’t really like that name … I just don’t think one company should own the name 'meta'," will.i.am told an audience in a session hosted by Mina Al-Oraibi, Editor-in-Chief of The National.

He said Zuckerberg's Meta already "own everything else" and suggested they should not, in effect, have naming rights for the metaverse.

The metaverse market is expected to reach $800 billion in value by 2024.

Azucena Arbeleche, left, Uruguay’s Minister of Economy and Finance, is presented with the Best Minister award by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai. Antonie Robertson / The National

will. i.am, founder and chief executive of FYI, speaking at the World Government Summit in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National

Delegates chat at the World Government Summit at Dubai Exhibition Centre. Pawan Singh / The National

Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, speaks at the event. Pawan Singh / The National

The World Government Summit this year is being held at the Expo 2020 Dubai site. Pawan Singh / The National

Delegates from many countries have assembled. Pawan Singh / The National

Mariam Al Mheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, and Gilbert Houngbo, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development, speak during a session at the World Government Summit. Pawan Singh / The National

Robinah Nabbanja, Prime Minister of Uganda, speaks on ‘The Rise of Africa: Strategies and Dynamics’ at the World Government Summit. Pawan Singh / The National

Abdulrahman Al Owais, Minister of Health and Prevention, delivers a speech on ‘The Future Readiness of Health’ at the summit. Antonie Robertson / The National

From left, Irakli Beridze, head of the UN’s Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, Iain Drennan, executive director of WeProtect Global Alliance and Dana Humaid Al Marzooqi, general director of the International Affairs Bureau, at the summit. Pawan Singh / The National

Brent Harris, vice president of Governance of Meta Platforms Inc speaking during the session on ‘Paving the Way to the Metaverse’ at the World Government Summit. Pawan Singh / The National

Other companies also trying to build virtual worlds include the online gaming platform Roblox and entertainment giant Disney.

These digital worlds can be accessed using virtual reality headsets. Some set-ups support Meta’s Oculus headsets but others can be engaged through equipment made by other companies such as Microsoft and HTC.

However, it is not necessarily required that these worlds be exclusively entered through virtual reality or augmented reality.

“Roblox is awesome, Disney is great, and they work great with children’s privacy,” will.i.am said.

"We really have to be careful with what we call this thing as it's growing and business practices that undermine people's civil liberties and privacy, especially the children."

Brent Harris, vice president of governance at Meta Platforms, said that the company was not building the metaverse alone.

“Meta is not the only player in the building. We are building it alongside other players in the industry. You're seeing that we are building with Microsoft and we're going to start to see what Apple is going to do in the metaverse,” he said.

“So Meta is going to be one part of the metaverse that is going to get built. Through that, from a governance side, we're building with industry partners and setting standards.

“What I think you're going to find is this isn't like a single application. This is much more like a new era ... that will be built with multiple partners together.”