Recognizing Legal Challenges of Businesses in Metaverse Using Delphi Method

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Mohsen Lal Alizadeh ¹

Zahra Mohamadzadeh ²

¹ Assistant Professor, Department of Law, Faculty of Social Sciences, Payam noor University, Tehran, Iran.

² Assistant Professor, Department business management, Binaloud institute of higher education, MAshhad, Iran

https://doi.org/10.22067/tmj.2023.85022.1499

Abstract

 
1- INTRODUCTION
Metaverse is a virtual space where users can interact and trade with digital assets. However, the legal challenges of businesses in the Metaverse are still evolving and new dimensions are being added every day. Metaverse will affect businesses fundamentally both in terms of content and in terms of the processes of implementing activities. Since all economic and managerial activities are administered on a legal basis, managing in the Metaverse also follows the same rule and we must know the legal requirements of working in this space. Some recent metaverse Challenges, such as intellectual property infringement, show that the field is in urgent need of commercial legal foundations. Therefore, it is necessary to identify the legal challenges of businesses in this growing environment. The purpose of this research is to examine the legal challenges related to Metaverse in the business environment and to identify and provide some potential solutions to address those challenges.
                                                                       
2- THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
Studying various prior researches, six basic challenges of the business for users and companies active in Metaverse have been identified, including intellectual property, privacy, legal jurisdiction, virtual identity, cybercrimes and terms of service.
 
3- METHODOLOGY
The research method is analytic and survey. The statistical population is academic business and law experts who are familiar with Metaverse. Sampling was based on by judgmental or purposeful method. The aforementioned experts were asked to participate in research on the legal challenges of businesses in Metaverse using the Delphi method. Delphi is used for prospective studies and identification of unknown dimensions and indicators of a situation. 15 experts took part in 3 round of Delphi method. After three rounds of surveys in the form of a questionnaire, the viewpoints of experts were analyzed using in SPSS software. In the final stage, the Kendall coefficient was calculated as 0.763, which shows that the members of the Delphi panel have reached a relative agreement.
 
 
4- RESULTS & DISCUSSION
The results of the surveys indicate that the main challenges identified in the field of business law in Metaverse, in order of importance, include intellectual property rights, privacy, jurisdiction, cybercrimes, terms of service, and virtual identity. The most important challenge for businesses in Metaverse was identified as intellectual property rights. Propertis are created every moment on Metaverse, many of which are created by users of these platforms. These assets are sometimes much more valuable than assets in the physical world. The question is that who will be the main owner of these assets? The second challenge was the privacy problem. Since the data of users and customers is published in the public space of Metaverse, a distinction should be made between the data that the user publishes knowingly and the data that is published unintentionally by the platform or other users, and policies should be set to protect user privacy. The third challenge is the jurisdiction of disputes and the application of laws. Considering the global nature of the Metaverse, which country's laws should be used to apply the laws is a problem that needs to be thought about. The fourth identified challenge is determining the terms of service provided by companies and platform providers to users. Determining the terms of providing services to users is a kind of contract that informs both users and administrators about the conditions of presence and use of the platform. The last Challenge is the virtual identity of users. These identities, known as avatars, can live in the Metaverse, own and shop, travel, interact with other virtual identities, and even commit crimes. These virtual users and customers must accept responsibility for their actions
 
5- CONCLUSIONS & SUGGESTIONS
In the business world, considering the metaverse and virtual worlds, there should be more specific international laws regarding the rights of different stakeholders, because this world is a relatively new concept and technology that mankind has not had any experience with so far. However, some current laws and regulations in the business space, such as intellectual property laws, data privacy laws, and online conduct laws, may also apply to activities in the Metaverse domain. An important suggestion is to create new rules and regulations that suit the unique characteristics of the metaverse, such as virtual property ownership rules, intellectual property rights, and user privacy in the metaverse. In the recommendations section, also the need for taking an interdisciplinary approach to understand the legal challenges of the metaverse and the importance of creating specific laws, regulations, and policies that balance the competing interests of various stakeholders are emphasizes. Another suggestion is the cooperation of various business organizations and stakeholders in developing standards and best practices for Metaverse, which promotes stability and fairness in various virtual environments and builds trust. Also, it is suggested that education and awareness should be pursued seriously to help users and beneficiaries understand their rights and responsibilities in this new environment.

Keywords

Metaverse

Intellectual Property

Privacy

Legal and Judicial jurisdiction

Business law

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©2024 The author(s). This is an open access article distributed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0)

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