Meta lost $2.8 billion on its virtual reality ambitions during Q2

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, speaks during the virtual Facebook Connect event, where the company announced its rebranding as Meta, in New York on Oct. 28, 2021.

During the quarter ending in June, Meta lost $2.81 billion on $452 million in revenue from its virtual reality division, as it forecast a second consecutive quarter of declining revenue on Wednesday.

The substantial sum is the latest sign that CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Meta continues to spend heavily to pivot the social media giant to developing virtual reality and augmented reality products and the so-called "Metaverse."

A company that earned $8.36 billion in operating income on $28.82 billion in total sales during the quarter can afford it.

Meta leaders believe that virtual and augmented reality headsets will be the major next- generation computing platform and are willing to spend a lot of money on technologies that are years out and prototypes that aren't ready to be released.

The market for virtual reality headsets is small, but Meta's Quest 2 headset is the most popular. The price will be raised from $299 to $400.

Meta plans to release more advanced goggles later this year that will use cameras on the front of the device to see the real world.

Meta has spent a lot of money to acquire companies that develop headsets. The FTC sued them on Wednesday to stop them from buying the maker of the popular virtual reality app Supernatural.