Abstract
Blockchain and the metaverse are believed to be the most disruptive technologies that would transform the current tourism and hospitality landscape. Although publications on the metaverse and blockchain have emerged in recent years, most are conceptual and speculative, with little discussion on how a destination adopts such innovative technologies and develops blockchain-empowered metaverse tourism. This study adopts a sociological lens to explore what and how various institutional forces affect stakeholders’ technology adoption on blockchain and the metaverse and the impact of such behaviors on a destination’s blockchain-empowered metaverse tourism development by drawing upon the institutional theory. In the case of Macau, this study found that multiple stakeholders’ perceptions and adoption of blockchain and the metaverse are increasingly homogeneous under similar coercive, mimetic, and normative forces in the destination, leading to institutional isomorphism and stakeholder collaboration. These results promote mutual understanding, information exchange, and technology acceptance in the destination, thereby contributing to the destination’s blockchain-empowered metaverse tourism development. The main contribution of this study lies in its novel attempt to reveal how blockchain-empowered metaverse tourism germinates in a tourism destination with empirical evidence. The findings of this study provide practical references for tourism stakeholders who hope to embrace the imperative digital trend and harness the power of state-of-the-art technologies to remain competitive and raise the awareness of academia on the new paradigm of tourism destination development.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data availability
Interview data are available upon request.
References
Buhalis D, Leung D, Lin M (2023) Metaverse as a disruptive technology revolutionising tourism management and marketing. Tour Manag 97:104724. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2023.104724
Buonincontri P, Micera R (2016) The experience co-creation in smart tourism destinations: a multiple case analysis of European destinations. Inf Technol Tour 16:285–315. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40558-016-0060-5
Butler RW (2006) The concept of a tourist area cycle of evolution: implications for management of resources. In: Butler RW (ed) The tourism area life cycle: applications and modifications. Channel View Publications, Clevedon, pp 3–12
Crosby M, Pattanayak P, Verma S, Kalyanaraman V (2016) Blockchain technology: beyond Bitcoin. Appl Innov Rev 2:6–10
DiMaggio PJ, Powell WW (1983) The iron cage revisited: institutional isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields. Am Sociol Rev 48(2):147160. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0742-3322(00)17011-1
Dwivedi YK, Hughes L, Baabdullah AM et al (2022) Metaverse beyond the hype: multidisciplinary perspectives on emerging challenges, opportunities, and agenda for research, practice and policy. Int J Inf Manag 66:102542. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2022.102542
Erol I, Neuhofer IO, Dogru T, Oztel A, Searcy C, Yorulmaz AC (2022) Improving sustainability in the tourism industry through blockchain technology: challenges and opportunities. Tour Manag 93:104628. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2022.104628
Feng C (2020) Blockchain allowed 17 million people to travel between Guangdong, Macau amid coronavirus pandemic. South China Morning Post. https://www.scmp.com/tech/blockchain/article/3106636/blockchain-allowed-17-million-people-travel-between-guangdong-macau. Accessed 8 Feb 2023
Yahoo Finance (2022) MIAM debuts Macau’s first NFT exhibition with HK$1 million Macau-exclusive sandbox creator’s grant fund. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/miam-debuts-macaus-first-nft-142000962. Accessed 1 Aug 2022
Glaser B, Strauss A (1967) The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. Aldine, New York
Gretzel U (2021) Conceptualizing the smart tourism mindset: fostering utopian thinking in smart tourism development. J Smart Tour 1(1):3–8
Gretzel U, Mendes-Filho L, Lobianco M, Vazquez MA, Mistilis N (2017) Technology adoption by tourism operators in Australia and Brazil: an institutional theory perspective. e-Rev Tour Res 8:1–5
Gursoy D, Malodia S, Dhir A (2022) The metaverse in the hospitality and tourism industry: an overview of current trends and future research directions. J Hosp Mark Manag 31(5):527–534. https://doi.org/10.1080/19368623.2022.2072504
Hannan A, Hussain A, Tab MA (2023) Towards a more general theory of blockchain technology adoption—investigating the role of mass media, social media and technophilia. Technol Soc 73:102225
Koo C, Kwon J, Chung N, Kim J (2022) Metaverse tourism: conceptual framework and research propositions. Curr Issues Tour. https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2022.2122781
Kurasaki KS (2000) Intercoder reliability for validating conclusions drawn from open-ended interview data. Field Methods 12(3):179–194
Law R, Leung D, Chan ICC (2020) Progression and development of information and communication technology research in hospitality and tourism: a state-of-the-art review. Int J Contemp Hosp Manag 32(2):511–534. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-07-2018-0586
Lin D, Simmons D (2017) Structured inter-network collaboration: public participation in tourism planning in Southern China. Tour Manag 63:315–328. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2017.06.024
Liu C, Lin Y (2022) Macau’s sustainability and diversification. Bus Econ. https://doi.org/10.1057/s11369-022-00260-9
Loi KI, Lei WS, Lourenco F (2021) Understanding the reactions of government and gaming concessionaires on COVID-19 through the neo-institutional theory—the case of Macau. Int J Hosp Manag 94:102755. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2020.102755
Macau Post Daily (2020) IC launches Macau Museum’s virtual tour app. https://www.macaupostdaily.com/article8179.html. Accessed 12 Feb 2023
Macau Statistics and Census Service [DSEC] (2003) Yearbook of Statistics. https://www.dsec.gov.mo/getAttachment/30953c38-d94f-4466-b7f8-dcc87e50ece6/C_AE_PUB_2003_Y.aspx. Accessed 18 Feb 2023
Macau Statistics and Census Service [DSEC] (2021) Yearbook of statistics. https://www.dsec.gov.mo/getAttachment/bb168b81-5dee-4f45-8f75-1087aba614d9/C_AE_PUB_2021_Y.aspx. Accessed 18 Feb 2023
Lisboeta Macau (2023) Prosperous year of arts. https://www.lisboetamacau.com/en/promotions/shop/prosperous-new-year-celebration/prosperous-year-of-arts/. Access 18 Feb 2023
Matias JC (2022) Extensive non-gaming plans required for tender bidders. Macau Business. https://www.macaubusiness.com/extensive-non-gaming-plans-required-for-tender-bidders/. Accessed 12 Feb 2023
Meneses JP (2023) Special report—a technology-driven market. Macau Business. https://www.macaubusiness.com/special-report-a-technology-driven-market/. Accessed 12 Feb 2023
Meyer J, Rowan B (1991) Institutionalized organizations: formal structure as myth and ceremony. In: Powell W, DiMaggio P (eds) The new institutionalism in organizations analysis. The University of Chicago Press, London
Moghaddam A (2006) Coding issues in grounded theory. Issues Educ Res 16(1):52–66
Nam K, Dutt CS, Chathoth P, Khan MS (2021) Blockchain technology for smart city and smart tourism: latest trends and challenges. Asia Pac J Tour Res 26(4):454–468. https://doi.org/10.1080/10941665.2019.1585376
Nunkoo R (2017) Governance and sustainable tourism: what is the role of trust, power and social capital? J Destin Mark Manag 6(4):277–285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdmm.2017.10.003
Pencarelli T (2020) The digital revolution in the travel and tourism industry. Inf Technol Tour 22:455–476. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40558-019-00160-3
Rashideh W (2020) Blockchain technology framework: current and future perspectives for the tourism industry. Tour Manag 80:104125. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2020.104125
Scott WR (2001) Institutions and organizations. Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks
Serravalle F, Ferraris A, Vrontis D, Thrassou A, Christofi M (2019) Augmented reality in the tourism industry: a multi-stakeholder analysis of museums. Tour Manag Perspect 32:100549. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tmp.2019.07.002
Sheng M, Gu C (2018) Economic growth and development in Macau (1999–2016): the role of the booming gaming industry. Cities 75:72–80. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2018.01.003
Soares ALV, Mendes-Filho L, Gretzel U (2021) Technology adoption in hotels: applying institutional theory to tourism. Tour Rev 76(3):669–680. https://doi.org/10.1108/TR-05-2019-0153
Soares JC, Ruiz TCD, Baidal JAI (2022) Smart destinations: a new planning and management approach? Curr Issues Tour 25(17):2717–2732. https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2021.1991897
Strauss C, Corbin JM (1998) Basics of qualitative research: techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory, 2nd edn. Sage, Thousand Oaks
Swan M (2015) Blockchain: blueprint for a new economy. O’Reilly, Sebastopol
Treiblmaier H, Leung D, Kwok AO, Tham A (2020) Cryptocurrency adoption in travel and tourism—an exploratory study of Asia Pacific travellers. Curr Issues Tour 24(22):3165–3181. https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2020.1863928
Valeri M, Baggio R (2021) A critical reflection on the adoption of blockchain in tourism. Inf Technol Tour 23:121–132. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40558-020-00183-1
Wan YKP (2013) A comparison of the governance of tourism planning in the two Special Administrative Regions (SARs) of China—Hong Kong and Macau. Tour Manag 36:164–177. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2012.12.005
Wan YKP, Li X, Lau VMC, Dioko L (2022) Destination governance in times of crisis and the role of public-private partnerships in tourism recovery from Covid-19: the case of Macau. J Hosp Tour Manag 51:218–228. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhtm.2022.03.012
Xu M, Chen X, Kou G (2019) A systematic review of blockchain. Financ Innov 5:27. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40854-019-0147-z
Yang IM, French JA, Lee LMQ, Shrestha KM (2021) An institutional isomorphism perspective of tourism impact. Ann Tour Res 86:102921. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annals.2020.102921
Ye H, Sun S, Law R (2021) An investigation of developing smart tourism from the perspective of stakeholders. Asia Pac J Tour Res 26:1156–1170. https://doi.org/10.1080/10941665.2021.1953086
Yin RK (2009) Case study research: design and methods. Sage, Thousand Oaks
Acknowledgements
This research was partly supported by a research grant funded by the University of Macau.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors report there are no conflict of interests to declare.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Supplementary Information
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Lin, K.J., Ye, H. & Law, R. Understanding the development of blockchain-empowered metaverse tourism: an institutional perspective. Inf Technol Tourism 25, 585–603 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40558-023-00262-z
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40558-023-00262-z