As explained in a report by The Verge, Facebook plans to change its name this week to represent its focus on the metaverse better. At Facebook’s annual Connect conference on Oct. 28, CEO Mark Zuckerberg planned to explain the social media giant’s rebranding.
However, according to The Verge, an announcement may be made sooner, which cited an anonymous person with firsthand knowledge of the subject. A renamed Facebook, like Google’s parent Alphabet in 2015, is expected to form an umbrella corporation that manages the Facebook app and Instagram, WhatsApp, and Oculus, among others. Since Facebook bought virtual reality headset manufacturer Oculus in 2014, it has discussed the notion of a metaverse. In this computer-generated world, individuals may interact via AR, VR, and other technologies. Developers compare the metaverse to the internet in terms of openness and interoperability, and many big IT corporations are interested in helping to build it out. Some people are against Facebook running a metaverse. In reaction to a post that questioned Zuckerberg’s aspirations, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey said the concept was dystopian on Tuesday.
It was revealed that the firm plans to rebrand after announcing in a blog post that it plans to hire 10,000 individuals from the EU to work on Horizon Worlds, a 3D virtual play environment, over the next five years in highly skilled positions. In addition, it has sparked internet discussion regarding the company’s potential new name. Some have offered names like Facebook or Horizon, but Meta appears to be the frontrunner.
Facebook declined to comment on the story, stating that the company does not discuss rumours or conjecture.
