How Web3 Technology Is Changing Fashion Today

Written by Tirsa Parrish

 

The internet began in the 1960s as a way for government researchers to more easily communicate. Fast forward to January 1, 1983, the official birthday of “the internet.” This is when a new communications protocol (TCP/IP) was established and standardized across all online networks. Networks could now communicate with a single universal language.

 

Previously, connecting to different networks required different computer programs or languages. Imagine traveling the world and only speaking Portuguese. Your network might be able to talk at each other, but most wouldn’t understand what was being said and therefore couldn’t connect. TCP/IP made it possible for all networks to understand and connect with each other because they now all communicated in the same language. 

 

Image via blog.chain.link

Web 1.0 Begins

Thus began the age of Web 1.0, where individuals could have personal websites. The internet changed from a tool that allowed academics to share research into a place where anyone could have their own website and email address.

 

Websites were static and truly boring by today’s standard. They were written in HTML (a programming language) which may as well have been hieroglyphics to most. There were severe limitations to the users ability to interact with content.

 

The only way for a visitor to communicate was to leave a message in a ‘guestbook’ which was a separate page like a guestbook at a bed & breakfast. There was no interaction between user and content and the primary function was information sharing.

 

The information posted was owned by the host. Web 1.0 is also known as the Read-Only Web because you could only read the information posted and not comment or alter it like a read-only version of a file.

Web 2.0 Connects

Website capabilities evolved to allow user generated content, usability, and interoperability (the ability of computer systems or software to exchange and make use of information) for end users - the public. Enter Web 2.0. Wikipedia, with its content editable by any user, was the first big website based on Web 2.0 technology.

 

Companies offered website hosting and building capabilities for everyday users. Drag and drop layouts became the norm so almost anyone could build a personal or professional website with interactive features.

 

Interaction and collaboration with other users and websites was achieved with Web 2.0 technology and social media was born. Web 2.0 applications are web pages that users can add to or change.

 

MySpace was the first king of social media and launched nearly 20 year ago. Given this new ability for people to interact with websites and other users, blogging became a popular way to share content and interact with friends and followers.

 

The downside was that all the information is stored on another company’s platform (FaceBook, Instagram, Tik Tok, etc.). Those companies have the ability to block your access to “your” content and there’s very little you can do about it.

Web3 Is Decentralized and Secure

Today we are experiencing the emergence of Web 3.0 technology. Web 3.0, also called Web3, is being built on a foundation consisting of the core ideas of decentralization, openness, and more excellent user utility.

 

Decentralization is the distribution of dependency and control of decision-making from a centralized point of contact to the respective network nodes. With Web 2.0 apps, your data is saved to your computer, a server, ‘the cloud’, and/or another third party’s server. Your Instagram account with all your posts and followers is all owned by Meta, the parent company, and it is stored centrally on their system.

 

Remember when Meta ‘went down’ in October 2021 and no one could log into their FaceBook or Instagram accounts? That was because the single centralized system was down. With a decentralized system, your information - and everyone else’s - is stored in many locations at once. 

 

Imagine your favorite pair of shoes. You have the only ‘copy”’ of the shoes. You could lend the shoes to a friend, then they would have the only ‘copy’. If something happens and the shoes are scuffed or a heel breaks off, they would be ruined. This is what happens with Web 2.0 technology. Data in one place can be damaged or attacked.

In Web3, however, you have access to your shoes at any time, but there are identical, immutable (unable to be changed) copies stored at various nodes around the system. The location of the copies is always changing.

 

It’s like having your shoes on your feet, and at the exact same time they are also physically in your closet and in some of your friend’s closets. If you break a heel or someone tries to damage the shoes while you’re wearing them, you can just replace them with the exact same pair stored at your friend’s house.

 

It’s not a brand new pair of shoes stored in many locations, it’s the shoes you have now. Broken in a bit and exactly the same in every closet. The many pairs of backup shoes move from closet to closet all around the world so they are always safe, always owned by you, and accessible in case the pair you’re wearing is damaged.

 

Web3 refers to the evolution of web utilization and interaction which includes changing the web into a database with the integration of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT).

 

A Distributed Ledger is a digital database stored across multiple networks, locally or globally. Users own their data (shoes) wherever it is stored. No central authority (third-party company or platform) owns or has control over your data.

 

Distributed Ledger is a digital database that runs on a distributed network. It is spread over diverse locations, networks, and beyond boundaries. The main idea behind Distributed Ledger is that any central authority does not control it and hence offers transparency. Transparency makes it harder to hack.

 

 

Blockchain is an example of DLT. Using this technology, data isn’t owned but instead shared like in the shoe example above. Web3 will allow users to digitally interact while maintaining absolute ownership of their data and how it is used. 

 

Web3 moves users away from centralized platforms like Facebook, Google, or Twitter and towards decentralized, nearly anonymous platforms. This will ultimately let users interact, exchange information, and securely conduct financial transactions without a centralized authority or coordinator because your information (shoes) are immutable and constantly being replicated and moved around the network and world.

 

You own your shoes no matter where the copies are temporarily stored. As a result, each user becomes a content owner instead of just a content user. Immersion is the goal. The lack of one central authority (like a single server holding all your data) means there cannot be a single point of failure as when Meta ‘went down.' No one can block access to your content or deny service as can happen with Web 2.0 apps.

 

Web 3.0 is just starting to trickle into our lives. NFTs, Blockchain, Distributed Ledgers, Siri, and Alexa are also Web 3.0 technology. Advances in these technologies will further help your brand connect to your community.

 

Video games highlight some of the most cutting edge Web3 technology. In-game Avatars that can be designed, dressed, and given other attributes chosen by the user are commonplace.

Web3 and Fashion

In July, Burberry teamed up with Roblox for a limited release of virtual designer bags. Burberry x Roblox introduced their signature Lola bag to the gaming world through five limited-edition virtual designs and emotes (an action players can perform while in the game).

 

These bags are accessories for player’s avatars. Avatars will become more popular in all online interactions. In a few years, many of the most progressive adopters will have their avatar that fully represents them not just in video games but in the digital realm. Will that be you? NFTs (non-fungible tokens) will allow people to customize every aspect of their avatar.

 

Bitmoji of Fashion Index co-founder Marge Pietrera wearing authentic Adidas apparel

 

NFTs made headlines when many believed they were the investment opportunity of a lifetime. These unique data packs are a record on a blockchain associated with a specific digital or physical asset.

 

An NFT is distinct and securely mapped with distributed ledger technology so that only the owner can access it. NFTs can easily be sold or traded. It’s important to remember that the NFT isn’t the artwork or digital image themselves. It’s more accurate to say they are tokens that act as certificates of ownership for the image. 

 

Bitmojis are Web 2.0 technology that are the precursor to Web3 avatars. Even though bitmoji profiles are now 3D and becoming ever more advanced, the technology is currently owned by Snap, Inc., parent company of SnapChat. This means Snap can track users through keystrokes.

 

Apps using these virtual keyboards have “full access” permission to record every keystroke when the app is enabled. So the safety of bitmojis is bound by how much you trust Snap, Inc. This doesn’t necessarily mean that everything you type is recorded, as Bitmoji is a non-character keyboard. It all comes down to trusting Bitmoji and its promise not to use your data.  Web3 avatars will run on DLT with no company gaining access to your information.

 

As people spend more of their lives online, they will create a digital version of their physical lives. In the metaverse, avatars will own digital real estate, artwork, and need clothing and accessories.

 

NFTs will be proof of ownership of this property. You will want your digital presence to be as unique as you are. You will want your avatar dressed in fashion that reflects you as an individual. Digital accessories will add pop and flare just as they do in the physical world. 

 

Fashion Index co-founder, Marge Pietrera’s bitmoji in the Ralph Lauren NFT store

 

Welcome to getting dressed in the metaverse! Big brands are creating NFTs and partnering with companies like Roblox to incorporate their branding into gaming and all areas of digital life.

 

A huge benefit of NFTs comes from the encrypted nature of the blockchain. This can be easily used to prove provenance for artwork as well as fashion, and even prove your avatar is the true digital version of you. Consumers will be able to tell if they are buying original pieces, if their digital clothing comes from a specific company or designer, or if it’s a knock-off!

 

Image courtesy Digitech Design

 

Web3 is about community. If you own a brand, you know that your community is the backbone of your brand. This technology is the new way to connect with your community. You can join or create a community, but this is all about people supporting people.

 

Small businesses are extremely nimble and able to take a forward thinking concept like Web3 and incorporate it in their brand immediately. In the digital world you can have as many outfits, shoes, and accessories as you want. In the physical world, you can still be socially responsible by keeping your purchases to a manageable level and consider sustainability.

 

You can work with the 3D designers on Fashion Index and create and sell your digital designs alongside your physical designs (IRL). Ellie from Digitech Design is a patternmaker that creates avatars and can put your apparel on the avatars.

 

We are all becoming more familiar with QR (Quick Response) codes. QR codes are the pixelated squares you scan to get information about a product or to pay for items. While also Web 2.0 technology, it can be added to your product line immediately to give you a marketing edge and excellent customer experiences.

 

QR technology can be added to your garments on the label or incorporated right into the fabric print! When a customer is shopping and wants to know about your sustainable manufacturing processes or to see videos of workers earning a living wage making the garments they can scan the QR code on the label (your imagination is the only limitation). That sends them to your website to get all the information in an interactive and visual way that cannot be done with text on a label.

 

This technology can also be used to verify the authenticity of your product. Unique QR codes in your garment can link to product information including product and serial numbers on your website to prove authenticity. 

 

QR codes contained in the fabric print can be used for other customer outreach. These codes could link back to coupons for future purchases, a game or puzzle you set up, or new information about the company including the next season’s designs. The information you link back to can change weekly, monthly, or seasonally.

 

The code can direct them to different social media accounts for even more customer interaction abilities. Utilizing this technology is a way to create conversations and additional buzz around your brand and incentivize customer loyalty.

 

Economists project the digital world to dwarf the physical apparel world in the next decade. The bottom line is that many of us are already spending most of our lives online. That will quickly transition to living most of our lives in the metaverse. Fashion is an expression of who we are. Web3 technology will enable us to bring our personal and professional aesthetic into our growing digital lives. Fashion Index is here to help!