For weeks we have been hearing rumors about Facebook's wholesale rebranding. But now, it has finally happened.
Facebook changed its name to Meta with the goal of introducing the next generation of internet, known as the metaverse. It encompasses virtual reality (VR), AR, and digital infrastructure that is backed up by decentralized technologies like cryptocurrency and blockchain.
Are you still confused? It's okay. These are the Facebook-Meta queries people are asking.
Wait, does this mean Facebook is dead?!
Yes, but also non. As a social networking platform, the actual website and mobile application Facebook will continue to exist. Meta will include all other Meta-owned properties, such as Instagram and WhatsApp Messenger. Meta will be acquiring the Oculus virtual reality brand, which is understandable as Meta incorporates the Oculus virtual realities such as the Quest 2 VR headset in its goal to create the metaverse.
Meta already has a Twitter account, and a Facebook page explaining the details of the changes.
It's similar to what Google did when it created Alphabet, which was meant to cover the bigger goals of the company beyond Google Search.
What is the metaverse?
This term is relatively new and was popularized in the sci-fi novel Snow Crash. The dystopian world described in the book is where humans are forced to live in virtual reality and leave the real world. Mark Zuckerberg said that the future of the internet was in the metaverse, according to The Verge. Zuckerberg envisions a future in which we can interact with 3D avatars and interact with others via smartphones, tablets, desktops, and desktops.
You would be right if you think that sounds similar to Ready Player One, a popular sci-fi movie and novel. As in Snow Crash, Ready Player One's characters interact in the OASIS. This virtual reality allows them to do almost anything and be anybody they want. The OASIS allows you to conduct business, go to school, and even marry completely.
Mark Zuckerberg and Meta, the new company Meta, seem to want to bring the concept of social networking to its logical end. This will allow people to create fully digital versions of their selves in a virtual utopia. Epic Games has used this concept in Fortnite with greater success than any other.
However, the metaverse's full expression will not be possible in virtual reality. It also includes the idea of the digital interfacing with the physical in an natural way.
What is Meta's plan for doing this?
Meta is developing a platform called Horizon on the software side. It is described by The Verge as a mix of Roblox and Minecraft, with a collaborative tool built in. This makes sense, considering Roblox and Minecraft are both sandbox-type games which allow users to build anything (even a functioning smartphone) within Minecraft.
Hardware-wise Meta will use a mix of AR and VR devices. The announcement video states that Project Cambria is the company's new headset. This was announced by Zuckerberg during the name change announcement. This headset overlays virtual elements onto the real world. The headset will have full eye tracking and face recognition to help you better understand your avatar's expressions.
Meta is also developing AR glasses called Nazar, along with Project Cambria. This is Zuckerberg's vision of what will become as common as smartphones today. Nazar will be more similar to regular glasses and display digital overlays onto real life. This will also be similar to the AR glasses Apple is rumored building.
A single account will be used to unify all accounts, including the Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram. If you don't want to use Facebook, there won't be any requirement to create one to log in to the metaverse. Technically, you don't need to sign up for Facebook in order to use Oculus devices. This was an issue in the past.
Are Facebook really trying to distance themselves from negative press?
This conclusion will be reached by the more cynical of us, but it is not unreasonable. In an interview with The Verge, Zuckerberg tried to distance the rebranding from current news cycles.
Zuckerberg claimed that the process of rebranding began long before the current cycle was bad news. He said that it was absurd to draw that connection and that this is not the environment you would like to launch a brand in.
Despite this, the Meta CEO will have to deal with the current criticisms surrounding its influence in public space. The creation of a digital universe that allows users to sell and buy anonymously while also allowing them to interact with 3D avatars could actually increase the influence of the current Facebook.
We are only in the beginning stages of Metas' goal to create a metaverse that replaces the current internet. The company has rebranded to try to create a cutting-edge future and to remove the tainted past. It will be fascinating to see how Meta can leverage new technologies like cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFT), to create its future.
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