Think of what it would be like if Microsoft were called “Windows”, or Apple were called “Mac”. Facebook has realized that their main product does not appeal to everyone, and attaching the “Facebook” name to everything they do is not a great way forward. That’s why the Facebook name didn’t take over the Instagram or WhatsApp brands.
Let's don't fool ourselves: the only reason to change the name of the company is because "Facebook" name has many negative (and fairly earned) connotations. Every time "Facebook" (the company) launched a new product there were concerns about the privacy and invasion they do (and to me their were justified).
They want to reduce that by being able to say "Meta just created X" instead of "Facebook just created X". Let's see how far it goes...
1) much cheaper price
2) portability
3) seamless onboarding experience
I love my index but there is no way that it can currently beat oculus because of these things.
Also, Oculus is well aware of these features. At least Carmack is.
The highlight of connect for me was the Carmack keynote. I suggest all techies watch it:
Valve, with their already existing VR ecosystem, is probably the best positioned to compete in the space.
It's... literally a ceremony... and not a small one.
This segment of users is probably not what "Meta" is concerned with.
Mainly, I think this is a push from a company who's idea pool has desiccated.
What is the end goal to have people in a headset talking to each other? That will happen irregardless of whatever platform it exists on, and unless FB is giving away unlocked headsets perpetually, I don't think people will pick their "Metaverse" over any other.
They might have an edge if they started as a peripherals company.
Say what you like about metabook, but at least its currently optional on your phone/device. Google and the myriad of shitness that is the android OEM manufacturer security is hard to escape.
Sure, you can use custom roms, but you can do this with oculus as well.
I posted the video somewhere else in the thread and I think there is an not-so-active submission of the video on HN here:
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29032872
But the man is sharp and straight to the point and I just love listening to his insight.
I have lost a lot of respect for Carmack with how nonchalant he's been towards working with somebody as dubious as Zuckerberg
I mean the way people talk about Zuck, you'd think he's a mass murderer. But I'm not sure what he actually did other than brag about having passwords back in college and making ruthless business decisions.
Oculus is too associated with gaming. Facebook wants VR for telepresence, they don't want the gamers market, they want the facebook market.
I think VR sucks and I hate it, but if Zuck convinces my mum to strap on a headset, there won't be much I can do about it. And he has powerful means to convince people...
Most Facebook users will never even know about this renaming.
