Facebook Pay is changing its name. From now on, the payment solution is called Meta Pay. This name change heralds the transformation of the service into a true digital wallet for the metaverse. It will be possible to store virtual clothes, works of art or even videos.
In a Facebook post, Mark Zuckerberg announced the Facebook Pay name change, the group’s mobile payment solution. From now on, the service will be called Meta Pay. This change follows Facebook’s transformation to Meta late last year.
As the founder of Facebook points out, the main features of the solution won’t change. “It will remain easy to shop, send money and donate to the causes you care about on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger and everywhere else you pay,” reassures Mark Zuckerberg. Note that the appellation had already appeared in 5 filings at the United States Patent and Trademark Office in May 2022.
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A digital wallet to hold NFTs?
By abandoning the name Facebook for Meta, the Silicon Valley giant is emphasizing its hobbyhorse: the metaverse. According to Zuckerberg, Meta Pay is indeed designed as the future “wallet of the metaverse”. Thanks to this digital wallet, Internet users who navigate in virtual or augmented reality will be able to manage their identity, their possessions and their means of payment “in complete security”.
Still under development, Meta’s wallet will allow for storing “proof of ownership” of virtual items. Mark Zuckerberg takes the example of digital clothes, works of art, videos or music. Moreover, Meta recently opened a virtual clothing store intended to dress the avatars of Internet users. Several popular brands, including Prada, already offer digital clothing.
The functionalities of Meta Pay promise to be close to those ofa blockchain digital wallet, such as Metamask and Trust Wallet. These wallets allow you to hold cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFT). However, the founder of Facebook is careful not to mention NFTs or the blockchain in his press release.
Nevertheless, the operation of the wallet and the evocation of proof of ownership leave no doubt about the intentions of the company. Clothing and virtual items that will be stored on Meta Pay will likely be NFTs.
Moreover, it will be recalled that Meta has already shown its interest in non-fungible tokens. The Californian group has also started the deployment of NFTs on Instagram. Meta has been allowing certain content creators to offer digital works for sale on the Ethereum and Polygon blockchains for a few weeks. The company says that NFTs will also be integrated into Facebook in the near future.
In the metaverse of Meta, all objects (clothing for avatar, video, music, events…) will obviously be non-fungible tokens.
Meta Platforms Inc. (ie Facebook) has filed 5 new trademark applications for:
“META PAY”
The filings indicate that @Meta plans to launch a payment platform called “META PAY” for users to exchange old-fashioned regular money and cryptocurrencies.#Meta $FB#Metaverse pic.twitter.com/W2ObxgAWfl
—Josh Gerben (@JoshGerben) May 18, 2022
In trademark applications filed with the patent office, Meta openly refers to the inclusion of cryptocurrencies within Meta Pay. Mention of cryptocurrencies, blockchain and digital assets can be found in the documents, reports Josh Gerben, a lawyer specializing in trademark law, on his Twitter account. Despite the failure of the Diem project, Mark Zuckerberg seems determined to integrate crypto-assets into his social networks.
An interoperable solution for an open metaverse
The creator of Facebook specifies that it will be possible to transfer digital items purchased on Meta Pay within other departments. The functionality will not be limited to Meta Group networks. Virtual goods may be used in other digital worlds.
“Ideally, you should be able to log into any metaverse experience and whatever you’ve purchased should be right there,” says Mark Zuckerberg.
All companies will therefore have to ensure that their virtual universes are compatible with each other. The billionaire is aware of the technical challenge of interoperability between the worlds of the metaverse. He also assures that there is still “a long way” to go to get there.
“The easier you can transact, the greater the opportunity for creators should be,” argues the Facebook founder.
In order to support the development of an open and interoperable metaverse, Meta has joined the Metaverse Standards Forum. It is a coalition of companies that want to define the future of the metaverse by setting consistent and interoperable standards. Firms like Microsoft, Adobe and Epic Games are part of the initiative. This is also the case for several consortia, including the World Wide Web Consortium.
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