Despite the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) warning about metaverse and non-fungible (NFT) tokens in November, more than a thousand Chinese companies have filed thousands of metaverse-related trademark applications.
At a summit in November, Gou Wenjun, Director of the PBOC’s AML and Analysis Center, warned of the dangers of digital assets. According to Gou, Because virtual assets have no physical basis, they can be used for illegal financial activities. Gou cited activities such as “illegal fundraising, pyramid schemes and fraud.”
But nevertheless, Ignoring the PBOC’s warnings, Chinese companies rushed to register metaverse-related trademarks such as “metaverse satellite” and “metaverse exposure”. According to the South China Morning Post, more than 1,360 Chinese companies filed 8,534 metaverse-related trademark applications as of Sunday.
Tencent said to sharpen focus on metaverse-like developments with advanced new gaming studio https://t.co/0CpQbrzxd8
– South China Morning Post (@SCMPNews) October 20, 2021
Tencent said it will sharpen the focus on developments similar to metaverses with a new advanced game studio.
Most of the companies that applied for trademark registrations are technology companies. This includes large companies like Huawei and Hisense. The first applied for the registration of “Meta OS”, while the second applied for various trademarks in various areas such as social services, advertising and science.. Gaming and tech giant Tencent also joined, having registered nearly a hundred brand-name apps related to the metaverse, including “QQ Metaverse,” “QQ Music Metaverse,” and “Kings Metaverse.”
Aside from the PBOC warning, People’s Daily, the official newspaper of the Communist Party of China, also issued a metaverse warning on December 9. The newspaper warned people who are engaged in the purchase of digital assets, that the sale of properties within the metaverses carries high risks of volatility.
Trademark applications came as no surprise to many as demand for NFT is on the rise. According to the NFT Crypto Slam sales tracker, NFT sales in the last seven days alone amount to $ 580.7 million. According to research by Cointelegraph Consulting, NFT sales are expected to exceed $ 17.7 billion in 2021.
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