THE METAVERSE

Whatever happened to Africa’s magical Metaverse?

By our African Marketing Confederation News Team | 2024

Touted as the next big thing, Africa’s Metaverse mania appears to have died down. Is it yesterday’s news, or quietly evolving?

Apple and Meta are betting that the Metaverse still has a future, and are introducing new-technology mixed-reality headsets for Metaverse users.

Photo by Tara Winstead from Pexels

In Africa, while some remain bullish about the Metaverse as a marketing tool, others have left the fold. 

 

Hussein Hashish, who was at one stage Chief Metaverse Officer at Athens DAO, a community of crypto investors, has since founded Likwid, a blockchain-powered platform that helps businesses launch customised, branded loyalty programmes.  

 

Cairo-based Hashish says he has not used his mixed-reality (MR) headset for a year. “I’m one of many people who haven’t bought into the idea of having a headset strapped to their head for hours at a time to consume content,” he points out. “Also, the Metaverse was supposed to hold the key to the future of remote work, but that hasn’t really happened.”  

 

Hashish says the latest trend is to embed anything to do with AI in existing products and applications, which makes life so much easier for non-tech people, allowing them to build apps without having to hire developers or subject-matter experts”. 

 

Metaverse landscape is evolving slowly 

 

For African marketers, it’s important to understand that the Metaverse landscape is evolving slowly, emphasises Hashish.  

 

“I’m keeping an eye on Metaverse trends, but I’m currently more focused on using AI tools to help me scale my business,” he says. “I think it’s too soon to capitalise on the Metaverse, which is still going to evolve. In the meantime, I’m going to watch where young customers are going.”  

 

In Africa, this may mean finding them on their mobile phones, rather than expensive imported headsets. Meta is hoping to offer access to the Metaverse through smartphone apps, and its 2Africa submarine internet cable could help to reduce costs and improve connectivity on the continent, but this will take time. 

 

Find out about the Metaverse in Africa, and much more, in the current issue (Issue 3 2024) of Strategic Marketing for Africa – the voice of African marketing and the official publication of the African Marketing Confederation (AMC). Read the Digital Edition online here.   

A Print Edition of the magazine is also available. 

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    Dr Kin Kariisa

    Group CEO - Next Media

    Dr. Kin Kariisa is an extraordinary force at the helm of Next Media Services, a conglomerate encompassing NBS TV, Nile Post, Sanyuka TV, Next Radio, Salam TV, Next Communication, Next Productions, and an array of other influential enterprises. His dynamic role as Chief Executive Officer exemplifies his unwavering commitment to shaping media, business, and community landscapes.
    With an esteemed academic journey, Dr. Kariisa’s accolades include an Honorary PhD in exemplary community service from the United Graduate College inTexas, an MBA from United States International University in Nairobi, Kenya, a Master’s degree in Computer Engineering from Huazong University in China, and a Bachelor’s degree in Statistics from Makerere University.
    Dr. Kariisa pursued PhD research in Computer Security and Identity Management at Security of Systems Group, Radboud University in Nijmegen, Netherlands. As a dynamic educator, he has shared his expertise as a lecturer of e-Government and Information Security at both Makerere University and Radboud University.

    Dr Kin did his PhD research in Computer Security and Identity Management at Security of Systems Group, Radbond University in Nigmegen, Netherlands. He previously served as a lecturer of e-Government and Information Security at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda and Radbond University in Netherlands.

    Dr Kin did his postgraduate courses in Strategic Business Management, Strategic Leadership Communication and Strategies for Leading Successful Change Initiatives at Harvard University, Boston USA.

    • Other current and previous roles played by Dr Kin Kariisa:
    • Lecturer of e-Government and Information Security to graduate students at Makerere University, Kampala and Radbond University in the Netherlands
    • Director of Eco Bank Uganda Limited, one of the largest banks in Africa
    • Chairman of the National Association of Broadcasters, an umbrella industry association for all Television, Radio and online broadcasters in Uganda.
    • Chairman of Board of Directors of Nile Hotel International, that owns the leading hotel in Uganda, Kampala Serena Hotel.
    • Chairman of Board of Directors of Soliton Telmec Uganda, the leading telecom company in Optic fibre business managing over 80% of optic fibre in Uganda.