The Metaverse and immersive technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) are becoming increasingly relevant in consumers’ everyday lives. At the same time, they entail new types of risks — for example with regard to data protection, mental health, or social participation. Against this background, ConPolicy, on behalf of the DIN Consumer Council, examined the opportunities and risks of the Metaverse from a consumer perspective and developed corresponding recommendations for action. The final report has now been published by the DIN Consumer Council and is available here.
The findings show that Metaverse users are comparatively young, well-educated, and generally have a positive attitude toward the Metaverse. At the same time, they often underestimate existing risks such as harassment, data protection issues, and particularly the potential for addiction. In addition, existing legal provisions often prove insufficient, are not tailored to the specific risk situations of the Metaverse, and are difficult to enforce due to the international structures of platform providers. Therefore, in addition to strengthening awareness-raising and media literacy among users, the study primarily recommends a clearer specification and stronger implementation of consumer protection, data protection, and youth protection through legislation and consumer-oriented standardization.
The study followed a mixed-methods approach: In addition to a comprehensive review of the literature and legal framework, focus groups were conducted with users and their relatives, and two online surveys with 200 participants each were carried out. The results were then discussed in an interdisciplinary expert workshop. On this basis, recommendations for legislation and standardization were developed with the aim of shaping the Metaverse in a more consumer-friendly way.
Further information about the project can be found here.