Zepeto Transforms with Web3 Makeover

South Korean social networking platform Zepeto is getting a Web3 overhaul with a crypto-enabled metaverse version called ZepetoX
 
The company said Tuesday the new platform, which is being built on the Solana blockchain, is a collaboration between Naver-owned Zepeto and Jump Crypto, the cryptocurrency arm of U.S.-based Jump Trading.
 
Zepeto’s pivot is part of a larger trend in South Korea, which is vying to become an incubator for metaverse projects. The government has spent nearly $200 million in grant money into tech startups working on metaverse-related projects in a bid to boost the country’s tech sector and create more jobs.
 
The company’s Web 2 platform, which launched in 2018, already contains elements of a metaverse in its own right. With over 320 million registered users, it’s one of the largest in Asia.
 
In the existing version, users interact through avatars, which they can personalize with virtual accessories. A marketplace called Zepeto Studio allows third parties – from small digital artists to global fashion brands like Gucci and Nike (NKE) – to sell customized virtual accessories. In the four years since Zepeto launched, participants have purchased 2.5 billion of them.


Source: Yahoo Canada