Lethbridge College is now a Principal Member of the Metaverse Standards Forum.
Founded in June 2022, the forum provides a venue for collaboration among companies and leading standards organizations around the world. The goal is to foster the development of interoperability standards for an open and inclusive metaverse. While the industry-wide forum is not responsible for creating metaverse standards, member organizations will cooperate to encourage their evolution and adoption.
“Just as standards were developed to allow various devices to access the Internet and websites to connect to each other, the metaverse – as it evolves – requires a similar approach,” says Dr. Kenny Corscadden, Lethbridge College Vice President – Research and Partnerships. “As a proven leader in the field of virtual and augmented reality, we are excited to be part of this organization and look forward to playing an important role in the progression of metaverse standards.”
The Metaverse Standards Forum is open to any company, standards organization or post-secondary institution at no cost. The group of 37 founding members includes several recognizable names such as Microsoft, Unity, IKEA and the World Wide Web Consortium. Since launching in June, membership has grown to include over 1,800 organizations.
As a Principal Member, Lethbridge College will play an active role in forum management – offering oversight and supporting forum projects.
“Joining the Metaverse Standards Forum is a huge step forward for the college,” says Mike McCready, Program Research Chair, Spatial Technologies Applied Research and Training (START) Centre. “It demonstrates our continued leadership and commitment in the world of spatial and immersive technologies.”
More detailed information on the newly created Metaverse Standards Forum can be found at metaverse-standards.org.
Lethbridge College is a leader in the virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) space. Research projects at the college are facilitated through the Spatial Technologies Applied Research and Training Centre (START), while the college also offers a one-year Virtual and Augmented Reality certificate program.