In a surprise announcement back in October, Facebook revealed that the company will be named Meta as part of a major rebrand. The reveal was made during the company’s annual Connect conference where CEO Mark Zuckerberg gave us a first look at the Metaverse. So, here’s all you need to know about Facebook’s Metaverse.
Facebook’s Metaverse is essentially a virtual environment that users can use for work, entertainment, and more. This can be accomplished with the help of virtual reality headsets and other tech gadgets. The Metaverse will let users experience activities such as shopping, attending concerts, and social media.
At its core, Facebook’s Metaverse aims to bring all aspects of life together seamlessly through a virtual space. According to CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the defining quality of the is bringing people together. Meta will still include Facebook’s large family of apps and products but looks to expand further. This will be accomplished by developing new technologies for businesses and communities.
The rebrand and name change have come at the right time as Facebook has been faced with scrutiny for prioritizing profits over the safety of its users. Former Facebook employee Frances Haugen publicly leaked documents showing that Facebook executives were aware of the negative effects of misinformation on their platform. Still, the company did put in the necessary effort to solve this issue.
The parent company will now be called Meta but the social media platform that everyone is familiar with will remain as Facebook.
While the company has already been rebranded as Meta, the transition process is expected to take a few years. According to Nick Clegg, Meta’s vice president of global affairs “we have years until the Metaverse, as we envision, is fully realized. This is the start of the journey”.
The basic steps have already been taken with the “meta.com” domain name and “@meta” Twitter handle now held by the company. In addition, the company will start trading under the new stock ticker “MVRS” on December 1.
The company’s virtual reality division will now be called Reality Labs dedicated to developing VR products. The company will also split its financial results into two operating segments starting Q4 2021. The first will be for the Family of Apps and the second for Reality Labs.
At the moment, not much has changed for end-users of Meta apps such as Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram. However, things may get interesting in the near future once the Metaverse is further developed.
