5G has been looking for the killer ubiquitous application to unleash its potential. The idea of the Metaverse maybe that killer application as we live on our cell phones, outside of the house and converge experiences and maybe services (physical and virtual) through the device, The inherent power of the network and the ability to completely immerse oneself on the cell phone through the cloud will open up whole new service and work experiences that will have to change how we think about boundaries between work and home that do not exist right now, writes MICHAEL GALE.
There is a rolling thunder effect that will come into play for us all. 5G and 6G will create a collision of physical and virtual worlds. Work and home will be permanently connected, and we will see the vast range of diverse groups constantly and hopefully fluidly moving around interacting with each other across these two aspects of the Metaverse.
Covid-19 has triggered a whole new way to think about the world that sets us up better for the potential world of the Metaverse in five specific ways:
· The Metaverse becomes the new digital plumbing for how we live our lives with broadband, mobility, and the cloud.
· Hybrid working worlds are highly effective and some jobs will just be done remotely in the next ten years. So the idea of moving geographies to do a new job will likely be less and less common. This makes the idea of the Metaverse more tangible.
· The decisions we make day to say about idea like the need to get on a plane to be successful or transposing our own domestic situation onto the ways others should run theirs will be radically different and will need to be more empathy based.
· As we peal back physical and virtual layers, we will need to get past metaphorical masks to better reveal our true selves. This will also apply to how we manage our people as the home, work collides in physical and virtual spaces.
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The device becomes our personalized knowledge center. Right now, only 15 per cent-20 per cent have truly ubiquitous connections that enable this idea of the cell phone as a personal knowledge center. Verizon has significant spectrum holdings to drive this idea of the personalized knowledge center to 100 per cent of the population by 2032. Ideas like immersive learning on a campus are still nascent but will be common by 2032 where edge networks will enable students to share and learn complex subject areas in near real time. What we see in an ASU biology faculty now will be customary practice.
Ten years from now these should be common philosophical constructs that help drive a new metaverse experience for companies and employees. In turn this will drive a quite different use of technologies like 5G or 6G or even the types of mobile edge-based services companies subscribe to as we move to a truly ubiquitous 5G and 6G economy.
Every business will leave Covid having to re imagine an entire range of practices for its people, customers, and markets. This is the trigger 5G had needed and the ripple effect on 6G will become increasingly clear as we adjust to the new world of the evolving Metaverse.
Tami Erwin is the Executive Vice President and CEO—Verizon Business. Verizon Business is a global leader in 5G technology serving 97 per cent of Fortune 500 companies. Verizon Business has US$30B+ in annual revenue and has more than 26,000 employees. It would be among the Fortune 100 were it a separate entity. Tami is a brand-builder, known for competitive turnarounds and market-moving strategies. Earlier in her career, she was Chief Marketing Officer of Verizon Wireless and led Verizon Wireless’ west region, taking it from fourth place to first place.
She has a long history of championing engagement and development programmes that help women and people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs) grow their skills and networks. She’s the proud advisor of Verizon’s Veterans employee resource group that provides programs and resources to our more than 10,0000 veterans, active Reservists, National Guard and military families.
- Gale is a Forbes Contributor.
