By Gary Symons
TLL Editor in Chief
ITV Studios has granted exclusive rights in the metaverse for its hit show The Voice to the Virtual Brand Group.
The Voice is currently the world’s number one talent show, and has radically changed the way stars are created by masking the competitors’ appearance.
The show’s creators have now decided it’s time to take The Voice into the metaverse, and have chosen one of the top companies in the space to help make that transition.
Virtual Brand Group (VBG) is a young company, but has already racked up plenty of global acclaim for its innovative approach to building immersive experiences and communities.
Among other collaborations, VBG was the first metaverse company to win a Licensing International Award. The company was honored along with partners Roblox and Forever 21 with the Best Licensed Product in the category of Digital: Apps, Software, Video Games, NFTs for a licensing activation on the Roblox platform (see details in story link below).
Virtual Brand Group First Metaverse Company Nominated for Licensing Awards
VBG will now collaborate with ITV to develop, build and operate The Voice in the metaverse for the first time.
Voice fans from across the world will get the opportunity to engage with the show— anytime, anywhere—in an environment built for them and be part of their own musical journey in ways never dreamed of before.
“Collaborating with ITV to deliver The Voice metaverse will redefine virtual music experiences beyond passive concerts centered just on popstars and give power to a billion people to become stars anywhere on the planet,” said VBG CEO and founder Justin Hochberg. “The Voice metaverse experience will create a new, connected musical fan journey that only web3 can deliver—not real life, not TV, and not static Internet.
“Fans will be rewarded no matter how they engage—whether watching, sharing, purchasing, playing, or attending an event. For VBG, this represents the next iteration in our rapid growth leading entertainment onto a range of new platforms.”
The partners say say elements of the collaboration will include:
- Building boundless virtual experiences and social games, including persistent worlds and events where fans and friends can enjoy unique content, showcase skills, and challenge each other in creative musical play;
- Creating a web3 loyalty program and fan journey that connects and rewards them for the time across all their interactions from social media to watching the show to buying virtual or physical merchandise;
- Working to develop a new form of truly metaverse global competition that goes far beyond the real-life version, offering new opportunities to drive global viewership of The Voice.
The photo at top shows an artist’s rendition of what the metaverse version of the The Voice may look like.
Lucie Stoffers, Head of Brand & Licensing at ITV Studios, says the team believes The Voice is a natural fit for a metaverse experience, because the show provides the same anonymity as a metaverse avatar, but in real life.
“That’s why we say The Voice was, in many ways, an early version of the Metaverse where anonymity and being whoever you want rule. Today we come full circle,” Stoffers said. “VBG is the perfect partner for us because together, we can enable a one-stop activation for all our territories and broadcasting partners around the world and give fans a year-round experience with games, giveaways, and virtual items all inspired by The Voice.”
#TheVoice superfans can already sign up to get early access to metaverse games and virtual drops and be the first to unlock new experiences and rewards at TheVoiceVIPSuperverse.com
As, users on the site can earn legendary fan status by finding the “Easter egg”, a three-digit hidden number in the image at the top of this story, and submitting their guess.