WPP partners with Epic Games to boost metaverse offering

Dive Brief:

• WPP and Fortnite developer Epic Games have partnered to help deliver digital experiences for brands in the metaverse, according to a press release.
• The partnership includes a training program that seeks to upskill WPP creatives and technologists on how to create custom brand experiences in Fortnite and how to use Epic’s Unreal Engine for real-time 3D creation and virtual production. The curriculum includes separate tracks for executives, creatives and media strategists.
• In addition, WPP will work with Epic Games company SuperAwesome to better understand online safety and privacy as it seeks to engage younger audiences, a growing priority for agencies and brands looking to activate in the nascent area.

Dive Insight:

The partnership between WPP and Epic Games comes as both companies work to build out capabilities and offerings around the metaverse, the catch-all term for experiences that bridge the digital-analog divide in a way that has captured the attention of the marketing world.

For WPP, the metaverse curriculum will help its employees learn how to better leverage Epic’s Unreal Engine, a 3D creation tool that is used across games, film, architecture, fashion, automotive, music and live events, as well as Fortnite, a popular online game that has been a frequent testing ground for brands looking to activate around gaming and the metaverse.

The partnership will help Epic Games connect with the agency’s brand clients as it looks to build out the architecture and standards of the metaverse. The developer recently raised $2 billion from Sony Group Corporation and Kirkbi, the investment company behind The Lego Group, as part of its metaverse plans.

WPP will also work with Epic subsidiary SuperAwesome on safety and privacy in the metaverse, which could be the next frontier of brand safety as younger consumers flock to a digital landscape that is a virtual Wild West. Some partnerships, like the recent one between Lego Group and Epic Games, have looked to create a safe place for children to explore the metaverse. Previously, WPP worked with SuperAwesome on an Adidas activation in Fortnite.

The partnership comes on the heels of WPP’s Hogarth launching The Metaverse Foundry, a global team of more than 700 creatives that will be available to the holding company’s agencies and clients globally. The offering is a recent example of how agencies of all sizes are preparing for the next digital age.