In a landmark transaction, global consultancy firm Pricewatercoopers (PwC) announced on Tuesday it had purchased a plot of virtual real estate on Metaverse platform The Sandbox.
According to reports, PwC purchased the digital land for over $10,000 USD as a non-fungible token (NFT) using The Sandbox’s SAND cryptocurrency.
In a statement to Consultancy UK, William Gee, Partner at PwC Hong Kong, claimed the firm would use emerging Metaverse solutions to “leverage our expertise to advise clients.”
Additionally, Sebastien Borget, Chief Operating Officer of The Sandbox, said that the platform enables new “ways for brands to connect with customers.”
Virtual Land and Real Estate
The Sandbox incorporates a community-based monetisation system that enables individuals or firms to participate in eCommerce, NFT, and cryptocurrency purchases. The virtual space also works across virtual reality (VR) headsets, web browsers, and smartphone devices.
The platform uses ERC-20 Ethereum blockchain technology to enable digital transactions with its exclusive SAND tokens.
The major sale comes just after US Hip Hop recording artist Snoop Dogg and music producer Deadmau5 partnered with The Sandbox in December to launch the sale of 122 LANDs, 67 premium LANDs plots, and three OpenSea 3×3 ESTATES.
You know me and @KevinHart4Real are always keepin it real. 😂😂 I even gave him some game on the Metaverse!!! Stream #2021andDone on @PeacockTV now pic.twitter.com/sHI6w63wlX
— Snoop Dogg (@SnoopDogg) December 28, 2021
The Sandbox is not the only Metaverse platform encouraging virtual real estate sales. For example, in November of last year, the popular extended reality (XR) remote meeting platform Spatial auctioned The Meeting Room, an immersive collaboration environment sold as an NFT.
Similarly, Croatian XR developers Delta Reality listed an entire Metaverse platform as an NFT in early October 2021.
In the closing months of 2021, many digital real estate deals have emerged due to the increasing interest in NFTs and blockchain technology. In November of last year, a pair of transactions across Decentraland and Axie Infinity totalled around $5 million USD.
The Decentraland purchase was worth roughly $2.43 million USD, breaking previous Metaverse real-estate records of $900,000 USD.
Additionally, global brands such as Nike have stepped up efforts to increase their digital footprint by building emerging eCommerce platforms on the Metaverse.
