The social media network, which is under controversy for spreading false information as well as other issues, stated that the change was part of its gamble on the next frontier of digital technology, dubbed the metaverse.
SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook became famous over the last two decades thanks to some of the most well-known brands with its big blue-and-white letters F.
Don’t wait any longer. This week, the social media giant took a bold step towards an overhaul that included removing Facebook’s name from its brand and redesigning its brand name as Meta. The move was followed by the creation of a new logo for Meta, which was made of an infinity-shaped symbol that appeared slightly off. Facebook and its various apps, including Instagram and WhatsApp will continue to operate as part of Meta. Meta umbrella.
The decision is a signpost to the way Mark Zuckerberg, the company’s chief executive, is planning to focus on his Silicon Valley company on what he believes is the next frontier of digital technology which is the fusion of different digital realms into a Metaverse. However changing the name Facebook could help to distance the company from controversy over social networks it’s dealing with, which includes the way it’s utilized to disseminate false information and hate speech.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about our identity” as we enter this new chapter Zuckerberg said. Zuckerberg said, speaking in a virtual gathering on Thursday, to highlight Facebook’s technological betting on its future. “Over time, I hope we’re seen as a metaverse company.”
In the wake of the shift, the new Mr. Zuckerberg telegraphed that his company was moving beyond the current social networkingthat Facebook has been built upon since its inception seventeen years ago. Being able to use Facebook as its corporate name while the company was now a host of applications and was primarily focused on connecting people was no longer sustainable the CEO said.
It was particularly the case that Zuckerberg said. Zuckerberg said, as Facebook has made a commitment to creating an interconnected universe that blends online virtual and augmented reality that users can effortlessly traverse. He has suggested that this idea, also known by the term metaverse will be the next big social platform, and that numerous tech companies will develop it over the next 10+ years. This past Monday Facebook announced its intention to become a major market player by dissolving its virtual and augmented reality businesses into a separate division called Facebook Reality Labs.
But transforming Facebook to a company that is a metaverse will require time as the idea is purely theoretical and could require years to realize. Facebook and its apps are also a huge business, earning over $86 billion of annual revenues and serving over 3.5 billion users around the world.
The time for the change in name offers two advantages. Facebook has faced many of its most severe criticism throughout its history in recent months. The public and legislators have expressed displeasure with the Instagram photo-sharing app , claiming it has hurt teens’ self-esteem, as well as the firm has been dragged through criticism for its role in spreading false information and in generating unrest by distributing inflamatory content.
The controversy reached a high level after Frances Haugen, an ex- Facebook employee, released internal documents that revealed the extent to which the company knew about the harm it caused. The findings of the documents of Ms. Haugen’s papers were first made public in The Wall Street Journal and later by other media outlets which included The New York Times.
The revelations have prompted numerous congressional hearings, as being a heightened regulatory and legal scrutiny. On Monday she. Haugen spoke to British lawmakers in the House of Commons and urged to control Facebook. In the Tuesday session, Facebook told its employees to “preserve internal documents and communications since 2016” which pertain to their businesses since governments and legislative bodies had begun investigations into its activities.
Rebranding for corporate purposes is not common, but they have precedent. They are typically used to signify the restructuring of a business or to shield a company from negative reputations.
As of 2015 Google changed its structureunder an entirely new parent company called Alphabet and split itself into separate entities to differentiate its web search business from gambles it made across other sectors. It was in 2011, that Netflix revealed plans to divide the video division into two segments and then rename its DVD-by-mail division as Qwikster.
Following the Verge revealed the previous week that Facebook may modify its logo, social networks went into a frenzy with less than desirable comparisons. A few people remembered how Philip Morris, the tobacco giant, changed its name as Altria Group in 2001 after several years of public relations damage in relation to health issues and negative effects of tobacco on American people.
Nicholas Clegg, Facebook’s vice head of international policy, communications and policies has dismissed the comparisons calling the comparisons “extremely misleading.”
The Facebook name change is largely an aesthetic change. The company will start trading under the ticker MVRS starting on December. 1. The company is also planning to rebrand some of its virtual-reality offerings under the name Meta moving away from the company name, which was Oculus.
It was never restructuring and there were no changes to the executive team made public. Mr. Zuckerberg remains the chairman and chief executive. He is the sole vote-holder over any change that may influence the future direction of the company.
“No matter what Mark Zuckerberg calls it, it will remain Zuckerberg Inc. until he relinquishes some power and yields to functional corporate governance,” said Jennifer Grygiel, an associate professor and researcher in social media in Syracuse University.
For the past few months, Facebook has been building anticipation for the metaverse announcement. The company announced last year its latest virtual-reality headsets that include Oculus Quest 2. Oculus Quest 2. In August, it launched a the virtual reality service Horizon Workrooms, an online meeting space where users of the virtual-reality headsets can meet like they are in a live work session. In September, it unveiled the launch of a new line glasses that comes with Ray-Ban which is able to create videos.
All of these products are part of the metaverse, something that is what Mr. Zuckerberg acknowledged on Thursday it sounded as if “science fiction.”
Andrew Bosworth, Facebook’s chief technology officer, has declared that the metaverse will require significant technological advancements in order to succeed and Facebook was currently making different versions of the virtual and augmented reality equipment to reduce the size, be cheaper and more immersive.
However the Facebook founder Zuckerberg is a big fan. Zuckerberg on Thursday talked about the idea as “the successor to the mobile internet” and stated that mobile devices will no longer be the main focus. The foundations for the metaverse were in place, he claimed. In a live demonstration where he displayed a digital self-portrait that took him to various digital realms as he spoke to family and friends regardless of where they were located on earth.
“You’re really going to feel like you’re there with other people,” said the actor. “You’re not going to be locked into one world or platform.”
Zuckerberg. Zuckerberg said creating the metaverse will require cooperation between various tech companies, and would require new governance models and other components that will not appear in the short time frame. He did however outline a few areas where the metaverse could be useful, including video gaming, fitness , and work.
The Mr. Zuckerberg showed Horizon Workrooms the virtual conference room application which allows colleagues to work online on various projects they may have previously worked on in the office. He also talked about a range of game titles that are immersive. He also demonstrated Horizon Worlds, a virtual real-world social network that allows families and friends can come together and communicate.
The success of the app will be contingent on the ability of others to develop new programs and apps that operate inside the virtual world. Similar to the app economy for mobile devices it is more likely for users to be a part of new ecosystems of computing if there are apps and software that they can use.
In the end the founder. Zuckerberg said he would continue to offer free or low-cost services to developers as well as seek to attract more developers via the creation fund and other capital-injections. In addition, Facebook has earmarked $150 million to developers who develop new types of learning applications that are immersive and programs.
“We are fully committed to this,” he added. “It is the next chapter of our work.”