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I’m skeptical the Facebook would bother to invest so many billions into VR just for the chance of being part of the competitive game console market. It makes se

I’m skeptical the Facebook would bother to invest so many billions into VR just for the chance of being part of the competitive game console market. It makes sense to think about how it fits into the long-term strategy for their main cash cow, ads. If there’s a future where internet/app usage hours shift toward VR, Facebook doesn’t want to be left in the dust like Myspace when users switch to a new social network. Even if they can keep users on a Facebook-owned VR app, they don’t want to wind up paying a 30% tax to some platform owner.

wlesieutre 6y ago
I hope that the platform as a whole don't start stuffing ads everywhere, but I'd be shocked if there weren't some monitization plan for Facebook Horizon
jayd16 6y ago
> being part of the competitive game console market You mean being part of the many billion dollar game industry by controlling the highest growth sector in that industry with vendor lock in and rent seeking for any game sold in that new market? Yeah...who would want that...
- shajznnckfke 6y ago
  Sure, but that would also apply to other companies who could have bought Oculus. I think the way it fits into Facebook’s overall company strategy explains why they would bid the most.
  - jayd16 6y ago
    Hmm, who would have bid more? Google has its own tech and doesn't like making content. Apple doesn't like making content and only recently got into original video content. Microsoft has its own tech. I don't _think_ Facebook had a lot of computer vision expertise at the time and it makes sense they'd want to buy into that. Amazon was a choice I guess?
    - shajznnckfke 6y ago
      Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Apple all have launched gaming platforms, to varying degrees of success. I think any of them could have bought Oculus. While they all also have some degree of AR and/or VR tech, none of them have an Oculus-like product.
      - jayd16 6y ago
        They could have but again, why? Each of those companies already have bigger hardware and software platforms and none of them are really behind Oculus in computer vision, so what would Oculus give those other companies? Google (with Lenovo and the Mirage Solo) and Microsoft (with Hololens) had stand alone headsets before the Quest.
- luckydata 6y ago
  not to mention that VR is a completely new type of media, so not just games but virtual environmental presence which is gonna be a big deal in a world where carbon footprint and pandemics will make things like traveling for a festival become more expensive or impossible. Again, why would FB want be the company that does that?
bentcorner 6y ago
My guess: The simple answer is they want to be the VR platform of the future so they can show ads on it, however that may look. Selling ads in VR apps/games/homescreen is obvious - selling AR ads is probably on the horizon (so, if you look at your fridge in the Oculus Quest 5 AR you'll see an ad asking you to upgrade to the latest Samsung Fridge). I kind of doubt we have anything to worry about now, but there is a terrifying future on the horizon where everything you look at, everything you do, is measured and any value is extracted and sent to ~~our new overlords~~ FB.
technotony 6y ago
Zuckerbery has talked about the strategy here for ages. It's not about VR, it's about AR. The tech to build realtime, always on AR is just a more advanced VR tech. AR will be all about the ads as facebook can serve them everywhere you go. That's where they will make $100BN in ad revenue.
- sharkweek 6y ago
  I wonder what adblockers will look like in this dystopian hellscape you describe.
  - VRay 6y ago
    Adblockers will require you to "jailbreak" your device and their installation/use will be against numerous terms of service agreements. Maybe they won't be illegal though, who knows
    - shajznnckfke 6y ago
      There could be some kind of lawsuit or legislation mandating that AR or VR platform owners provide access to third-party software (like how Microsoft was forced to offer other browsers back in the day).
    - bserge 6y ago
      A firewall with deep packet inspection and a shared database among people who block ads would be easier.
  - luckydata 6y ago
    take your glasses off
kmonsen 6y ago
I think they were sad they missed the boat on mobile and wanted to get in early on VR in case it gets big. Although a massive investment, for Facebook it was not that big a deal.
KaiserPro 6y ago
Because they need their own platform. They are currently piggybacking on top of either android or ios. Which means they are at the whim of other powers. With a platform they are much more in control, and able to tap into a much bigger revenue stream.

wlesieutre 6y ago

I hope that the platform as a whole don't start stuffing ads everywhere, but I'd be shocked if there weren't some monitization plan for Facebook Horizon

jayd16 6y ago

> being part of the competitive game console market You mean being part of the many billion dollar game industry by controlling the highest growth sector in that industry with vendor lock in and rent seeking for any game sold in that new market? Yeah...who would want that...

shajznnckfke 6y ago
Sure, but that would also apply to other companies who could have bought Oculus. I think the way it fits into Facebook’s overall company strategy explains why they would bid the most.
- jayd16 6y ago
  Hmm, who would have bid more? Google has its own tech and doesn't like making content. Apple doesn't like making content and only recently got into original video content. Microsoft has its own tech. I don't _think_ Facebook had a lot of computer vision expertise at the time and it makes sense they'd want to buy into that. Amazon was a choice I guess?
  - shajznnckfke 6y ago
    Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Apple all have launched gaming platforms, to varying degrees of success. I think any of them could have bought Oculus. While they all also have some degree of AR and/or VR tech, none of them have an Oculus-like product.
    - jayd16 6y ago
      They could have but again, why? Each of those companies already have bigger hardware and software platforms and none of them are really behind Oculus in computer vision, so what would Oculus give those other companies? Google (with Lenovo and the Mirage Solo) and Microsoft (with Hololens) had stand alone headsets before the Quest.
luckydata 6y ago
not to mention that VR is a completely new type of media, so not just games but virtual environmental presence which is gonna be a big deal in a world where carbon footprint and pandemics will make things like traveling for a festival become more expensive or impossible. Again, why would FB want be the company that does that?

bentcorner 6y ago

My guess: The simple answer is they want to be the VR platform of the future so they can show ads on it, however that may look. Selling ads in VR apps/games/homescreen is obvious - selling AR ads is probably on the horizon (so, if you look at your fridge in the Oculus Quest 5 AR you'll see an ad asking you to upgrade to the latest Samsung Fridge). I kind of doubt we have anything to worry about now, but there is a terrifying future on the horizon where everything you look at, everything you do, is measured and any value is extracted and sent to ~~our new overlords~~ FB.

technotony 6y ago

Zuckerbery has talked about the strategy here for ages. It's not about VR, it's about AR. The tech to build realtime, always on AR is just a more advanced VR tech. AR will be all about the ads as facebook can serve them everywhere you go. That's where they will make $100BN in ad revenue.

sharkweek 6y ago
I wonder what adblockers will look like in this dystopian hellscape you describe.
- VRay 6y ago
  Adblockers will require you to "jailbreak" your device and their installation/use will be against numerous terms of service agreements. Maybe they won't be illegal though, who knows
  - shajznnckfke 6y ago
    There could be some kind of lawsuit or legislation mandating that AR or VR platform owners provide access to third-party software (like how Microsoft was forced to offer other browsers back in the day).
  - bserge 6y ago
    A firewall with deep packet inspection and a shared database among people who block ads would be easier.
- luckydata 6y ago
  take your glasses off

kmonsen 6y ago

I think they were sad they missed the boat on mobile and wanted to get in early on VR in case it gets big. Although a massive investment, for Facebook it was not that big a deal.

KaiserPro 6y ago

Because they need their own platform. They are currently piggybacking on top of either android or ios. Which means they are at the whim of other powers. With a platform they are much more in control, and able to tap into a much bigger revenue stream.