Decentraland Claims 8,000 Daily Active Users, Working to Widen Tracking
Decentraland, a Web3 “metaverse” built on selling 90,000 plots of virtual land, claims to have around 8,000 daily active users after an article claimed that it had less than 40. The company is now working with DappRadar to widen its tracking to include additional smart contracts and transaction types to get a more accurate picture of user activity.
Some have derided the “virtual real estate” plan as a pyramid scheme, like Indiana University Bloomington media professor Edward Castronova, who told CNBC, “The Metaverse is El Dorado for internet startups. They chase it into the jungle because there’s so much hype about it.”
But Decentraland appears to be moving forward with its plans, and its work with DappRadar will give us a better idea of just how popular the metaverse is.
What is Decentraland?
Decentraland is a Web3 “metaverse” built on selling 90,000 plots of virtual land. The company raised $17 million in an initial coin offering (ICO) in August 2017. The goal of the platform is to create a decentralized virtual world where users can buy and sell digital property and services.
The metaverse is essentially a virtual world that exists on the internet. It is made up of many different 3D environments that people can explore. These environments can be anything from games to educational simulations.
Decentraland’s approach is unique in that it allows users to own virtual land in the form of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). These NFTs are stored on the Ethereum blockchain and can be bought and sold like any other crypto asset.
The company has drawn media coverage from outlets like the New York Times, which quoted one investor saying, “Why don’t we go in and buy the parcels of land in these metaverses, and then we can become the landlords?”
However, Decentraland has also faced criticism from some who see the project as a pyramid scheme. For example, Indiana University Bloomington media professor Edward Castronova told CNBC, “The Metaverse is El Dorado for internet startups. They chase it into the jungle because there’s so much hype about it.”
What is DappRadar?
DappRadar is a platform that tracks activity on Ethereum dapps (decentralized applications). The platform provides data on things like user volume, transaction volume, and gas usage. This data can be used to assess the popularity of dapps and compare their usage.
DappRadar recently announced that it would begin tracking activity on Decentraland. This will help give us a better idea of just how popular the metaverse really is. You can read more about this partnership here.
It remains to be seen whether Decentraland will be able to deliver on its promises or if it will ultimately end up being seen as a pyramid scheme. However, the company’s work with DappRadar will help us better understand its popularity and development over time.
