USE OF METAVERSE TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PROCESS OF DIGITALISATION OF TOURISM ACTIVITIES

Abstract

The present study is of particular pertinence in light of the global trend towards the digitalisation of tourism services, which has been particularly accelerated in Ukraine. This transition of market participants to the virtual space has resulted in the creation of a separate, independent system with its own borders, regulatory methods and actors. It is imperative that travel service providers be cognisant of the scope, threats and opportunities of this digital metaverse, as well as the technologies that underpin it. In Ukraine, the transition to the digital metaverse has been accelerating, first during the 2020-2021 pandemic and then the hostilities that began in February 2022 and are still ongoing in almost a third of the country's territory, making it impossible for tourists to physically move around and preserve outstanding tourist attractions. The purpose of the article is to determine the priorities for the development of a digital tourism product in the context of the growth of virtual tourism consumption in Ukraine and as a global trend; and to identify the most common metaverse technologies, i.e. a self-sufficient system of the digital tourism market, given the need to comply with physical security measures. In order to achieve this objective, the following tasks were established and resolved: the priority of designing integrated digital systems based on a human-centred approach, solving the problems of data privacy and security of behaviour in the virtual environment was substantiated; the concept of the metaverse - the infrastructure of the digital market for the consumption of services, including tourism services - was explained; the key technologies of the metaverse, namely extended reality as a combination of all realities, including augmented, virtual and mixed realities, were characterised. The article proposes a basis for a methodological approach that will allow national providers of digital tourism services to identify priority areas, consisting of three stages: 1) determination of the profile and needs of online consumers; 2) assessment of the digital product already existing on the market and its compliance with the needs identified at the first stage; 3) development of a strategy for introducing an existing product into the activities of a travel company or developing its own new services.