The pandemic acted as a catalyst for acceleration of the metaverse, as increased remote working, studying and the need for remote healthcare provision have increased consumer acceptance of online interactions and created demand for those interactions to be more “life-like.” At the same time, rapidly developing technology and infrastructure is creating the opportunity to perform more activities virtually. The exploration of this new realm may not necessarily be smooth sailing. New challenges may arise in relation to data protection and cybersecurity. Familiar considerations like compliance with regulatory regimes or IP protection may give rise to complexities that are otherwise not apparent at first glance. Parallel trade also continues to generate disputes between IP owners and parallel importers, and our report highlights some recent developments. Baker McKenzie’s trends report provides a summary of some of the key issues to consider from a trademark perspective.