Virtual mall a hit, thanks to Covid-19 restrictions

When Thailand’s malls and retail markets stayed closed due to Covid-19 curbs last year, the country’s largest mobile operator Advanced Info Services (AIS) took the leap into the metaverse by opening a virtual shopping mall, V-Avenue.

The immersive shopping experience lets users browse over 200 shops and drew some two million unique visitors.

Accessing V-Avenue through a Web browser, users land in a virtual shopping district rendered in 3D, and enter buildings that can also be explored in 360°.

Users can “walk” through the buildings such as department store Emporium and browse through the brand counters and products.

They can also collect coupons that can be used for purchases at bricks-and-mortar retailers such as electronics shop Power Buy.

In October last year, AIS, whose parent company Intouch is backed by Singtel, introduced Thailand’s first metaverse influencer AI-Ailynn, its brand ambassador.

“We believe that the metaverse will be the next big thing,” said AIS chief consumer business officer Pratthana Leelapanang.

“As a telecoms provider that has many partners and networks, we believe that we can develop the metaverse world with the right tech and costs.”

Over the past year, several conglomerates and start-ups in Thailand have similarly ventured into metaverse initiatives, either by building their own virtual worlds or hosting virtual shops or events. — The Straits Times/ANN