Tencent’s metaverse move is a big step, expert says

Chinese tech giant Tencent’s recent move to establish an ‘extended reality’ unit targeting a deep dive into the metaverse is a very significant one, Marcus Sotiriou, an analyst at digital asset platform GlobalBlock says.

Tencent is reportedly eyeing a metaverse-focused division, with an all-in-one unit that would cut across all the aspects of the technology, including hardware and software.

The Chinese firm’s plan to have over 300 employees in the division clearly signals the intent to be a big player in the sector.

Sotiriou said in comments shared on Tuesday:

“I think this move from Tencent towards the metaverse is significant as they are one of the highest grossing multimedia companies in the world based on revenue, as they turned over $86 billion in 2021. In addition, this move coincides with Tencent executing cost-cutting measures and slowing down hiring efforts due to the macroeconomic environment – the founder of Tencent is allegedly passionate about integrating the metaverse into their company.”

BigTech steps up metaverse push

Tencent is unmistakably stepping up its metaverse push, with the unit’s creation and reported focus coming on the back of massive investments in the sector.

It also adds to the flurry of activity across the space within China, with the firm’s 100+ trademark filings part of over 1300 that had been filed by the end of last year.

Other major metaverse players from the Chinese tech industry are e-commerce giant Alibaba and video-sharing app TikTok.

And with other tech behemoths like Meta Platforms, Apple Inc., Google and Microsoft all ramping up efforts, the push to make a reality of the metaverse world seems to have got impetus from another key angle following Tencent’s move.