Walmart Is Preparing To Move Into The Metaverse – Walmart appears to be moving into the metaverse, with plans to launch its own cryptocurrency and NFT collection. The big-box store filed numerous new trademarks late this month, signaling its ambition to manufacture and sell virtual items like home decor, electronics, personal care products, toys, and sporting goods.
In a second filing, the company makes it clear that they will make available for customers both a virtual currency and NFTs. On December 30th, 2021, Walmart filed the applications – according to the US Patent and Trademark Office.
A total of seven different applications have been submitted. Walmart stated that it is “continually studying how emerging technologies may affect future shopping experiences” in a statement. It did not respond to a request for comment on the trademark filings in question.
“We are constantly testing new concepts,” they stated further. “Some ideas turn into services or products which reaches the customers. We iterate, test, and also learn from some of them.”
A trademark attorney, Josh Gerben, described them as “very severe.” “There’s a lot of language in these that suggests there’s a lot of preparation happening behind the scenes about when they’re going to deal with bitcoin, the metaverse, and the virtual world which appears to be coming or is already here.”
According to Gerben, businesses have been hurrying to find out how they would fit into a virtual world since Facebook declear it was changing its corporate name to Meta, reflecting its ambitions beyond social media.
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Gerben said more retailers will want to create their own system around the metaverse as well as items stored on the blockchain.
According to Frank Chaparro, director of crypto information services firm The Block, many firms are still reeling from being late to e-commerce, and they don’t want to miss out on any opportunities in the metaverse.
According to Lin Dai, CEO of music NFT platform OneOf, “2022 is the year that major brands will embrace NFTs in a big way.” The Quincy Jones-backed start-up is behind a nearly $1 million auction for an NFT of a never-before-heard Whitney Houston song, as well as an exclusive Grammy Awards relationship with The Recording Academy.