It's called ALTERSIDE and it's the new gateway to the metaverse for brands and companies. The Metaverse Agency was designed to help companies and marketing managers to discover the opportunities offered by the virtual world. It works with an end-to-end approach in extended reality, both immersive (VR) and augmented (AR).
ALTERSIDE comes on the market with a large range of servicesincluding:
- brand positioning strategy;
- creation of locations and immersive tours;
- digital twins and NFT;
- events and education;
- e-commerce and virtual stores;
- meeting rooms and workspaces;
- videogames and experiences;
- setup of physical spaces for the safe use of virtual reality.
A new story that comes from far away
La startup nasce dall’esperienza imprenditoriale di Roberto Esposito, già founder e CEO di DeRev e di Giffoni Innovation Hub, la cui exit strategy è stata completata con successo nel 2020. “Ho scommesso sui social media – ha ricordato Roberto Esposito – quando tutti si chiedevano a cosa servissero le community o perché bisognasse aprire una pagina Facebook. E ho scommesso sul crowdfunding quando nessuno sapeva cosa fosse. In questi anni il settore digital è cambiato tantissimo, le tecnologie e le idee innovative si sono susseguite a ritmi forsennati, ma il metaverso merita tutta la nostra attenzione. Non sarà una rivoluzione, ma un’evoluzione; non sostituirà il digitale, ma will add a third dimension, it will not deprive us of what we love in everyday physical life, but it will broaden our opportunities for discovery, encounter and connection".
Services for brands in the metaverse
ALTERSIDE proposes itself as a gateway for brands to the metaverse that starts from the positioning of the brand and the development of technology to create creative projects, virtual worlds and strategies for the sale of products and services, entertainment or interaction with users. The service model perfected over years of digital activity is therefore replicated, placing the Metaverse Agency as a control room capable of taking care of all aspects of the path at 360 degrees. There are many sectors that can think of their presence in virtual worlds, where many practical applications are already available, such as the possibility of having an office, a branch or a shop, selling or exhibiting services and products, working on prototypes or training staff, involve users or cultivate links with communities. The startup works in both 2D and immersive metaverses.
ALTERSIDE Academy
In addition to business services, ALTERSIDE was born accompanied by anAcademy where educators and researchers, experts and technicians will be called upon to train anyone who wants to discover, know or deepen the metaverse from multiple points of view. “Whenever we find ourselves in a situation of rising trend we need a strong commitment in the diffusion of skills - explained Roberto Esposito -. From the 30 years of the Internet, we should have learned that some gaps tend to radicalize, excluding large segments of the population and the productive world from the benefits offered by technological progress. ALTERSIDE therefore makes its debut with a dual mission: on the one hand to accompany companies, on the other to prepare the ground for anyone to acquire the necessary awareness to keep up".
The educational offer
The ALTERSIDE Academy will start with four training proposals, one of which is a school orientation dedicated to upper secondary school students who will be able to discover the professional opportunities in the sector and the most suitable degree courses for use in the metaverse. Also in the field of education, there are modules specifically designed for university students that will be activated in collaboration with the universities. Two courses will reveal the metaverse with immersive lessons in VR: one for anyone who wants to learn more and immediately seize the opportunities; the other for brands and marketing managers who want to discover practical applications useful for the company. Finally, a fourth practical course will teach how to design and build digital worlds and objects.