Meta sparks anger by charging for VR apps

Meta is facing a backlash for the charges imposed on apps created for its virtual reality headsets as developers complain about the commercial terms set around futuristic devices that the company hopes will help create a billion dollar consumer market.

The parent company of Facebook plans to spend $10 billion over the next decade on the Metaverse.

The desire to own the next computing platform and avoid being trapped by rules set by Big Tech rivals is the reason for the investment.

As early as this year, Apple is expected to release a set of augmented reality glasses, while Microsoft is working on a virtual reality headset.

Several developers told the Financial Times of their frustration that Meta insisted on a charging model for its virtual reality app store similar to what exists today in phones. The Meta chief was critical in the past of charging policies on mobile app stores.

Marketing should be used to pick on Apple. It doesn't mean that Meta won't do the same thing. There is no need for them to improve.

The most popular virtual reality headset on the market, the Meta's Quest 2, takes a 30 percent cut from digital purchases and charges a 30 percent subscription fee.

Daniel Sproll, chief executive of Realities.io, a start-up behind the virtual reality game Puzzling Places, believes that there are services provided.

The problem is that it feels like everyone agrees on 30 percent. It doesn't seem like there's any competition The Chinese companies are the same as the ones in the US. They wouldn't change it.

Meta defended its policies, pointing out that it is possible to install apps outside of its official store through a third-party app store, or use App Lab, its less restricted, more experimental app store.

Meta said that they want to encourage choice and competition in the virtual reality industry. Over $1 billion has been spent on games and apps in the Metaquest Store, thanks to our efforts.

The impact of these alternatives is limited, according to developers. According to Sensor Tower, Sidequest has only been downloaded 396,000 times. App Lab still takes a cut of purchases.

In reference to the App Store's approval and curation processes, the founder of Facebook has previously complained of Apple's "monopoly rents" and called out its "unique stranglehold" on what gets on phones.

Meta was accused of hypocrisy by Apple when it was accused of charging a platform fee on top of its tax on digital purchases.

Apple said that they happily take from the creators and small businesses that use their own.

Developers say Meta has the ability to play kingmaker with apps if Apple and others enter the virtual reality market in a more concerted way.

A few of the best titles have been acquired by Meta, including BeatSaber and Supernatural.

Meta has a change of mind on how it will open its virtual reality store.

Chris Pruett, Meta's content ecosystems director, has said that the app store should allow developers to upload their content with relatively few restrictions, or that it should becurated by the company.

According to Pruett, Meta found that too many users were frustrated by low-quality content, so the company decided to play a bigger role in controlling the content on the site. The resulting barriers could be difficult to understand.

The CEO of the Glimpse Group said getting something on the store was painful. It is worse than getting on Apple or the other operating systems.

The same process with Apple took less than two weeks, whereas the same process with Rooom took nine months.

The CEO of a virtual meeting company said he posted questions to the message board for support that went unanswered.

The developer relations at Meta were not good. The hardware platform is fantastic and they are doing great things. Their developer engagement is not good.

The Financial Times is a division of The Financial Times. The rights are not to be redistributed, copied or modified.