Decentraland  is a blockchain-based metaverse where users can play, socialise, trade digital real estate, and participate in unique experiences. It runs on the Ethereum blockchain and aims to incentivize people from around the world to do everyday real-life activities in this metaverse.

The platform was initially founded in 2015 and officially launched in 2017 by Ari Meilich and Esteban Ordano. The project, which began as a 2D digital real estate experiment has evolved into an interactive 3D virtual world that’s accessible via 3D headsets. 

Today, Decentaland supports a wide variety of interactive apps, metaverse payments and P2P communication options for users. In this metaverse, players are incentivized to monetize their time using: 

LAND: an NFT that’s used to certify ownership of virtual real estate on the platform. There are 90,000 unique parcels of land in Decentraland. 

MANA: The platform’s native cryptocurrency, which is used to buy or sell LAND, as well as other digital goods and services available in Decentraland.

How does Decentraland work?

For starters, Decentraland’s protocol has three layers:

• Consensus Layer: to track LAND ownership and content via smart contracts.

• LAND Content Layer: this layer uses a decentralised distribution system to render visible content in the metaverse.

• Real-time layer: this layer provides peer-to-peer connections for users to interact with each other.

Decentraland maintains a ledger which keeps a record of land ownership. It also provides a marketplace, as well as a P2P connection for all users to socialize and interact within its metaverse.

It uses a DAO for its governance and strengthening its community. The DAO enables users to have a say in the development of the platform. Participants who own the MANA token are able to vote on policy updates, land auctions and subsidies for new developments.

Content ownership is completely secure and censorship-resistant in Decentraland. No one can change or censor content inside the platform, as it's built on a peer-to-peer network with strong cryptography - this makes it unique.

What can you do in Decentraland?

Trade in the marketplace 

The platform’s decentralized marketplace enables users to manage and exchange LAND tokens, which are priced in MANA. it’s also used to transact or transfer parcels of digital land and other unique in-game items such as clothing.

Build Stuff

Decentraland enables users to build unique structures and experiences within their LAND parcels. This is done using its editing tool, where developers can access customization libraries and payment implementations.

Socialise & Explore

Spending as much time as possible doing everyday things is encouraged on the platforms. There’s ample opportunities to meet people, date, attend concerts, play, and so much more that’s typically done in real life

How to earn in Decentraland

Decentraland users can make profit by selling land they own or even renting to other players on the platform. There are about 90,601 individual pieces of the LAND currently, with some selling for up to 6 figures.

Decentralized games, apps, and other services can also be monetized on Decentraland. Trading of in-game assets, land, and more is done on the marketplace using MANA.

Final Thoughts

It’s important to know that Decentraland is a metaverse, and not “the” metaverse. The metaverse is a collection of interoperable virtual worlds being developed, and Decentraland is already one of the leading virtual worlds available today.

However, if you’re keen to explore a metaverse with fully immersive unique experiences, Decentraland is a great choice.