The Impact of Meta-Universes on Business Development in Digital Economy

The article systematizes approaches to the definition of meta-universe essence as multi-dimensional spaces, which integrate multitude of virtual words, where digital copies of the real world (including business) are made, where participants can interact with each other and with surrounding objects. It was found out that meta-universes form a key trend in economy development in Russia in general and its certain branches and industries, which could foster productivity improvement and business-process optimization in the digital world. The authors analyzed examples of mixed reality (VR/AR-technologies), blockchain and crypto-currencies in Russia and abroad. Factors affecting the development of meta-universes, such as normative and legal, economic, technological, social were identified. The article enumerates risks and restrictions connected with the development of meta-universe technologies: cyberthreats and risks of big data protection, risks of the absence of common cash unit in meta-universes or rules of converting exchange means in meta-universes in usual exchange means, complexity of financing of developing technological projects due to prolonged market entering, insufficient number of experts in the field of virtual, augmented and mixed reality, blockchain, crypto-currencies, etc. The authors identified specific impact of metauniverses on the development of business in the digital environment (in virtual multi-dimensional spaces of metauniverses the pass-over to new economy of impressions speeds up and new possibilities for distance interaction are formed, the format of training and developing employees is transformed, digital doubles are built by developing accurate virtual copies of business-organizations and others). Final conclusions and recommendations were formulated concerning the necessity of taking into account the impact of normative and legal, economic, technological and social factors on business development in virtual spaces in meta-universes, as well as effective and potential threats and hazards connected with the development of economic activity in virtual spaces in order to realize potential of business in the field of new technological phenomenon of meta-universes.