Data is the new oil. In the new and upcoming space of AR and VR technologies, ownership of the relevant content and data to the appropriate user has always been a grey area. In a report titled “The Battle Against Access to Data,” Deloitte explains how real estate service providers have two options in order to legitimately claim their right to data, one being owning and managing the appropriate technological systems themselves, which is a heavy investment to bear. Deloitte suggests the most appropriate solution would be to intensify the collaboration between AR service providers and REALTORS®. They propose that an appropriate infrastructure must be in place to hand over data rights to the relevant space owners.
At the moment, it’s very hard for REALTORS® to own their data and host their 3D virtual tours on their own servers. GeoCV, a company democratizing reality capture through smartphones with depth cameras, is changing that. They have established an alternate structure in relation to who owns the data and content. By operating on an Open Architecture system, companies and real estate service providers can own their data, white-label and host tours on their own servers to fully customize it to their needs. An article by Venture Beat proves how this is particularly important in terms of AR advertising. REALTORS® and other clients who do not own data and content of their spaces shot will be susceptible to their data being sold to third-party companies when there are AR overlays on their private properties. An open platform helps prevent that, and allows the owner to take ownership of these AR overlays and prevent data from reaching the AR digital ad inventory itself.
Edward Chatterton, a partner at DLA Piper, talks about addressing issues regarding AR/VR service providers with license agreements. He proposes that brand owners or clients must push for ownership of content and their data in the licensing agreements with their service providers.
While there is a rapidly growing amount of AR and VR content being created and published today, there is no established search engine on the internet in place. According to DLA Piper, this makes the search and monitoring of such data and infringing activities extremely challenging at this time. They propose that it is imperative that companies, now more than before, must bolster protection of their intellectual property and their clients to meet the added level of risks that AR/VR may introduce.
A company named Verses is, however, trying to upturn the problem of an unestablished search engine for AR and VR content. The firm has launched a protocol service for AR and VR content in order to help people establish ownership of virtual real estate, 3D space and other goods in the virtual world. The company’s vision is to create a structure for ownership of spaces within the virtual world as Web 3.0.
Just as websites have their own proprietary address, Verses is employing blockchain technology to identify appropriate 3D spaces in augmented reality. This enables individuals to own parts of this augmented world, or a Metaverse, if you will. The company is making it possible for developers to turn any location into a smart space, transform any product into a smart asset, and to enable cryptocurrency transactions across the real and virtual worlds.
This all gets back to the question of who owns AR data and content. Whether it’s a shared AR cloud or a proprietary one, Venture Beat suggests there will likely be a centralized authority to define and enforce ownership rights, something akin to a web-like force (e.g., ICANN and DNS) that will be founded on blockchain principles, helping create transparency and appropriate ownership rights to the relevant owners.
For more information, please visit GeoCV.
