The House of Mouse Could Be Headed for the Metaverse

There is a chance that the metaverse will head to a Disney theme park.

A recently surfaced filing with the U.S. Patent Office shows that Disney received approval for a patent before the new year. The technology would be used to project 3-D images on real-world objects to create interactive guest experiences without the need for a mobile device. The bridge between the physical world and the virtual one is called the metaverse. Silicon Valley has a new buzzword.

Disney uses augmented reality technology to bring its cast of characters to life on storefronts, waterfalls, and other real-world structures. This new technology would have a much larger scale, and it would track individual park visitors to personalize the projections they see on nearby objects and walls. A family can see Mickey Mouse greet them as they walk by a store.

The House of Mouse probably won't include the metaverse in its parks in the near future. Disney officials told the Los Angeles Times that the company has no immediate plans to use the technology outlined in its patent.

There are no current plans to introduce this technology into an upcoming experience according to a Disney spokesman. Disney files hundreds of patents each year as they explore developing technologies.

Insider points out that Disney wants to tell stories through a three-dimensional canvas, and that incorporating the metaverse into its theme parks would fit in. Disney CEO Bob Chapek talked about his vision on the fourth-quarter earnings call.

We will be able to connect the physical and digital worlds even more closely in the future, allowing for stories without boundaries in our own Disney metaverse.

Disney has a history of securing patents to keep competitors from getting their first, which may be the case here.

Ed Khalili, a patent attorney with the LA Times, said in an interview that he believed the invention was going to be commercially viable.