Emerging digital technologies in the public sector: The case of virtual worlds published by European Commission (2024).
This report examines the policy and regulatory implications of using virtual world technologies in the public sector. It includes an outline of the potential socio-economic benefits of virtual worlds for the public sector, citizens and businesses. Drawing on three different scenarios for the possible development of virtual worlds in the next 10 to 15 years, the report uncovers some social, economic, technical and regulatory challenges related to the deployment of virtual worlds. The primary objective is to look at the EU’s existing regulatory framework and assess it in relation to ongoing and foreseeable developments in virtual world environments. We conclude that, because many virtual-world-enabling technologies are already the subject of regulations such as the Digital Markets Act, the Digital Services Act, the recent Interoperable Europe Act and the AI Act, existing EU legislation is probably enough to align virtual worlds with EU values in the short and medium term. However, as virtual worlds technologies mature, targeted amendments to legislation will likely be necessary. Moreover, the cross-cutting nature of these technologies requires intervention in addition to regulation and calls for a broader socio-technical approach that addresses issues related to people, industry, governance and infrastructure. This report provides recommendations related to those dimensions, as well as areas of future research.
