Metaverse technologies have been applied across various fields to enhance user experiences during interactions with digital environments. Various fields have benefited from these technologies like healthcare, gaming, and social interaction. Among all these fields, one of the prominent uses of metaverses is towards branding and marketing. Brands, particularly in the luxury fashion industry, are increasingly leveraging the market’s commercial potential. Consumers now perceive digital goods as extensions of their identities, with virtual assets sometimes surpassing the price of their physical counterparts. For example, a Gucci handbag sold on Roblox for USD 4,115, exceeding its physical retail price of USD 3,400.
Market projections estimate that the virtual luxury goods industry could reach USD 56 billion by 2030. Major brands such as Prada, Louis Vuitton, and Ralph Lauren have launched digital collections, often authenticated by NFTs, further reinforcing the metaverse as a medium for social engagement, brand storytelling, and digital asset ownership. Metaverse marketing offers deeper consumer engagement than traditional digital marketing by incorporating AI-driven personalization, spatial computing, and virtual commerce. Companies are developing virtual stores, 3D advertising, and blockchain-based loyalty programs to enhance customer experiences.
However, this transformation raises ethical concerns related to privacy, transparency, and consumer autonomy. Unlike traditional online marketing, metaverse platforms collect extensive biometric and behavioral data, including eye movement and neural responses, to optimize personalized advertising. This unprecedented data collection heightens risks surrounding informed consent and consumer manipulation, particularly among vulnerable groups such as minors.
Existing regulations, including the EU General Data Protection Regulation, AI Act, Digital Marketing Act, Digital Services act, and the USA Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, attempt to address these challenges, but rapid technological advancements often outperform legal frameworks.
As an AGORA MSCA Fellow, Irfan is investigating how the evolving landscape of metaverse technologies calls for a critical reassessment of marketing ethics and the development of regulatory frameworks specifically designed for these immersive environments. His research focuses on emerging ethical concerns such as invisible data collection, storage, and processing without user awareness; emotionally targeted advertising powered by advanced AI; and avatar-based profiling. These practices challenge core ethical principles like informed consent, non-discrimination, and fairness. Current regulations and existing advertising standards provide limited guidance in virtual spaces where distinctions between identity, experience, and marketing are increasingly blurred. To address these regulatory gaps, Irfan examines whether updates to existing frameworks are sufficient or whether entirely new, metaverse-specific regulations are required.