Com2uS USA CEO Highlights Importance of Transition from Web2 to Web3 Gaming

Renault Korea Establishes Metaverse Space for Car EnthusiastsRenault Korea Motors made an announcement on Friday that it will establish the Renault Korea Hub, an immersive automotive experience located within a metaverse, according to a report by Korean news media Dailian. The company intends to commence operations of this unique venture in the upcoming autumn season.Photo by Richard Horvath on UnsplashThe Sandbox and Korean brandsThe Renault Korea Hub will operate within K-verse, a designated area of Korean brands within The Sandbox, a metaverse platform based on blockchain technology.The Sandbox metaverse has recently announced its latest Korean brand partners, and as part of this development, a land sale event is being organized where their adjacent land will be raffled off. The event is named “Hallyu Rising.” Hallyu or the Korean Wave is a cultural phenomenon that has experienced a significant surge in global popularity since the 1990s, mainly thanks to its pop songs and TV shows.During the land sale event, users have the chance to acquire land adjacent to various prominent brands associated with Korean culture. This will be made possible through raffles and auctions facilitated by the metaverse platform. Other notable partners besides Renault Korea are Channel A, a TV broadcasting network; Netmarble, a game publisher; and CJ ENM, an entertainment company.Unique experiences for car enthusiastsThe Renault Korea Hub, the first of its kind in Korea, will provide a unique space for automobile enthusiasts to indulge in a diverse array of experiences and games. As per the automaker’s announcement, visitors will have the chance to engage in activities like developing their own vehicle designs.Visitors will have the opportunity to experience Renault Korea’s vehicles in voxel form, allowing them to explore the technology, design philosophy, and stories associated with each vehicle. A voxel can be understood as a 3D counterpart to a 2D pixel, representing a value on a regular grid in 3D space.Renault Korea CEO Stéphane Deblaise stated that the carmaker intends to continue its pursuit of diverse Web 3.0-based activities centered around metaverses and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). He said the automaker’s projects aim to establish a connection between customers’ mobility experiences and their digital lives. Deblaise also highlighted that these projects will undergo further development through the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies.Storytelling contestEarlier this month, Renault Korea introduced the storytelling contest titled “create your SM6,” which concludes today. This campaign inspires customers to utilize emerging AI technologies to design their own SM6 vehicles and transform them into NFTs. The SM6, Renault Korea’s midsize sedan, initially debuted in 2016 and has undergone subsequent facelifts to enhance its features and aesthetics.The top ten performers in the storytelling contest, who create captivating renditions and stories featuring the SM6, will be rewarded with utility NFTs and KLAY, the native token of the Klaytn network. The first-place winner will receive a prize package consisting of 1 million KRW ($750) worth of KLAY, along with six SM6 NFTs.The announcement of the winners is scheduled to take place between May 31 and June 9. Following the announcement, the airdrop of rewards will be conducted from June 30 to July 7.

South Korea Advances Crypto Disclosures Bill for LawmakersThe floor leader of the ruling political party in the South Korean Assembly is urging faster implementation of a new bill that will require Korean politicians and senior government officials to make a declaration of any crypto-related holdings.The bill was already in the works but is now picking up speed, and likely to be brought into effect earlier than expected. That’s according to a local report published by Yonhap news agency. The bill is being finalized against the backdrop of a particularly poignant political controversy.Photo by rawkkim on UnsplashPolitical controversyLawmaker and former Democratic Party of Korea opposition party member Kim Nam-kuk is at the center of a political fuss, and with that, intense scrutiny relative to his interaction with crypto-assets. Kim reportedly held 800,000 WEMIX tokens in early 2022, with a value in the region of 6 billion Korean won (around $4.5 million).Existing legislation provides for a need for Korean politicians to disclose their investments and wealth. However, that provision has not caught up with the digital asset era. Virtual assets had been an exception which lawmakers are now rushing to remedy.Once news of Kim’s crypto holding emerged, it led to suspicion and accusations of insider trading. The politician had made a number of crypto trades during the time in which he was actively working on digital asset legislation. As the controversy gathered more attention, it led to the offices of two of the country’s leading crypto exchanges, Bithumb and Upbit, being raided. Records related to Kim’s crypto trading activity were seized.Bringing forward enforcement dateThe bill that will remedy circumstances like the one that has arisen as a result of Kim’s crypto trading activity is being put forward by Yun Jae-ok, the floor leader of the ruling party. It had originally been scheduled to be implemented in December, but Yun is looking to have the bill amended so that the enforcement date of the proposed legislation takes place in two months.“Given the current high level of public interest, especially regarding lawmakers, it’s not appropriate to enforce the law six months later after the promulgation,” Yun told Yonhap news agency. It’s understood that Yun has asked the leader of the Public Administration Committee to put forward the modified version of the law.The legislative process in South Korea requires initial drafting of the bill, followed by the proposed legislation being scrutinized by a number of relevant committees, inclusive of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. An assembly debate follows, and beyond that, it’s expected that there will be a vote on the legislation, which has been scheduled for Friday.Should the bill be carried following the vote, the approved bill then proceeds to the President. So long as it is not vetoed, it is presented to the public and becomes law.On an international basis, financial interest disclosure requirements are common. Taking the US and the UK as examples, both jurisdictions require their politicians to disclose financial holdings. However, it would appear that South Korea is about to enact an advanced form of such legislation comparatively, as currently in both the US and UK, there is no specific provision requiring politicians to disclose crypto holdings.

Korean pro female golfers to compete in WEMIX golf tournament this weekendThe world’s first blockchain-assisted golf tournament, WEMIX Championship 2023, will take place this weekend at the Haeundae Beach Golf and Resort in Busan. 24 female golfers from the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) — including the top 20 who earned the most WEMIX points during the preliminary Race to WEMIX Championship — are set to compete.Photo by Mick De Paola on UnsplashBringing blockchain to sportsNotably, blockchain technology is incorporated into all aspects of the tournament. This includes dynamic Real World Event NFTs that are available via NFT Is Life Evolution (NILE), Wemade’s decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) and NFT platform. These NFTs come in two categories: “ticket NFTs,” which function as admission tickets and food or parking vouchers for spectators, and “prize NFTs,” which contain WEMIX token awards for tournament winners. The total prize budget is one million WEMIX, or approximately KRW 2.4 billion ($1.9 million) as of 4:30 p.m. on Thursday (local time). The first-place winner will receive 250,000 WEMIXThe tournament venue will also have a Gallery Plaza with various activities and showcases for visitors to enjoy, like exhibitions for Volvo’s newest vehicles, photo zones and putting games. The food and beverage zone will serve BAYC-themed burgers from Californian burger brand Bored and Hungry, as well as beverages from Hide Me, Please, a Korean food and beverage NFT membership brand. BAYC is the globally renowned IP from the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection.The competition’s top playersMeanwhile, the subject of many golfing enthusiasts’ interest is Im Jin-hee, the golfer who won the most WEMIX points during the Race to WEMIX Championship with 6,450 points. She secured 90,000 WEMIX for earning the top ranking, adding another personal achievement to her successful season this year. Coming in second and third place were Lee Ye-won and Kim Min-byeol. The final results of the competition were determined based on the golfers’ performances in the Lotte Rent-a-Car’s Ladies Open and the SK Shieldus-SK Telecom Championship.