Oxford University has opened voting to the public for the first time, and voting will end on December 2.
The Oxford University Press, which publishes the Oxford English Dictionary, is holding a contest to choose the Oxford “Word of the Year.” “Metaverse” is one of three words in the running.
On November 22, OUP announced the start of the competition and the three finalist words for 2022. This is the first year that the general public can vote for the WOTY.
The words “#IStandWith” and “Goblin Mode” will compete with “Metaverse.”
For the first time in its history, we're opening up Oxford Word of the Year to you.
— Oxford University Press (@OxUniPress) November 22, 2022
Are you ready to choose the word you feel reflects 2022 best?
Take a look at the #OxfordWOTY finalists and vote below
In its video pitch for the Metaverse, OUP called it a made-up virtual reality environment in which users interact in an immersive way with each other’s avatars and their surroundings.
“The term dates back to the 1990s, with the first recorded use in the Oxford English Dictionary in 1992 in the science fiction novel Snow Crash by Neil Stephenson,” the video stated.
Oxford noticed that the number of times “Metaverse” was used in October 2022 was four times higher than in October 2021. The video said that more lifestyle and work-related activities taking place in virtual reality environments could lead to more debates over the ethics and practicality of an entirely online future.
The other two WOTY candidates are “#IStandWith” and “Goblin Mode.” “#IStandWith” has become a popular way to show political support, and “Goblin Mode” is a post-COVID-19 lockdown concept in which people refuse to “get back to normal” and instead do whatever they want.
As for how the three phrases were chosen, OUP said that a language data system was used to analyze the candidates and narrow them down to three. Voters must go to Oxford Languages’ website to vote for “Metaverse” or either of the other two candidates.
Over 237,000 votes have already been cast, with voting expected to conclude on December 2. Oxford did not provide a date for the announcement of the winning word.
At the time of writing, a Twitter poll conducted by OUP revealed that 63% of 929 voters chose “Goblin Mode,” followed by “Metaverse” with 22% and “#IStandWith” with 15%:
3⃣Goblin Mode
— Oxford University Press (@OxUniPress) November 22, 2022
A phrase used to reject returning 'back to normal' as we emerged from worldwide #lockdowns. pic.twitter.com/VKlTJ50hid
A recent assessment by the international consulting firm McKinsey estimates the value of Metaverse-related technologies to reach $5 trillion by 2030, regardless of the results of the referendum.
According to the investment bank Citi, the total addressable market for the Metaverse economy may vary from $8 to $13 trillion over the same time span.
The blockchain and cryptocurrency industry has had the greatest impact on the understanding of the Metaverse, combined with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s rebranding of Facebook to Meta in October 2021 and Reality Labs’ latest improvements on its Metaverse products.
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