Meta: Facebook's Desperate Attempt at Redemption or the Next Big Thing?
Zuckerberg, Metaverse & the Future of the Internet
October 22, I started putting thoughts to paper when I first heard talks that Mark Zuckerberg wants to change the name of Facebook to something else. Something not social media. But the problem with writing about Zuckerberg, the metaverse he wants to create and the future of the internet is that... You guessed it: it poses too many topics and angles to unravel in a single article. But this is exactly the kind of thing I set out to do when I started this SubStack. So, let's get right into it. I promise not to bore you.
Oh, wait.
Before we get started, I think you should know that there are two sides to this whole issue. On the one hand, we have the ever-evolving internet. And on the other hand, we have Facebook. So, hold those two separately. We'll link them at the very end of this article.
The Right Hand: The Evolution of the Internet
When Tim Berner Lee created the Web 32 years ago, it was a simple way to share documents across the internet. The first version of the internet created, now called Web 1.0, was just a system that links documents together. And those that adopted the internet back then merely used it as a glorified noticeboard with linked pages. Companies like Amazon used it to post and list their products. By the end of the 90s and early 00s, however, Web 2.0 has emerged. For the first time, users can now create content on websites and pages that is not their own. You get to INTERACT with whichever platform you are using. Social media sites like MySpace and of course, Facebook; Blog-service providers (CMS) like WordPress and Blogspot, and countless forums and wikis were the gift of this version of the world wide web. But innovation continued and we are now at the threshold of Web 3.0.
To be fair, quite a lot of websites are not adopting the features and functionalities of Web 3.0 yet, but I’m pretty sure you’ve used an app or visited a website that uses it. Remember the last time you watched a Netflix show or a YouTube video. There is always that “recommended for you” and “because you love this video, we think you might like this other one” feature. Right, that annoying algorithm is what characterizes Web3.0. It is the ability of a website or app to make informed PREDICTIONS and RECOMMENDATIONS based on your previous activities.
While Web3.0 is fairly a new occurrence, there’s already a lot of chatter about what the next frontier of connectivity innovation would be. Some have argued that it will be quantum computers, others have argued that it will be blockchain technology. Some think the future will be virtual reality and/or augmented reality. And then, there’s Mark Zuckerberg who believes it’s a concoction of AR/VR, blockchain and several other technologies.
He believes the future of the internet is headed towards a metaverse.
What is a Metaverse?
Have you seen the Matrix or Ready Player One??? If no, stop this and go watch one, you caveperson! For the rest of us that have seen one or both, then you have an idea of what a metaverse is. In an interview with The Verge in July, Zuckerberg said, “you can think about the metaverse as an embodied internet, where instead of just viewing content — you are in it.” He believes people want to continue to interact more with content in ways that seem more intuitive. Instead of hurting your eyes by stirring at a screen or watching your favourite sport from a distance, Zuckerberg wants to create a more immersive experience where you and the content can interact more intimately.
What has Facebook done so far?
One of Facebook's subsidiaries, Oculus, sells virtual reality (VR) headsets. Through Oculus, Facebook controls 28.3% of the VR market with gaming, software development and hardware (the VR headset itself) cementing Facebook's place second only to Sony with 36.7% of the market share as at 2019. More recently, Facebook partnered with Ray-Ban to make a pair of video-capturing augmented reality (AR) glasses. Learn more about the difference between AR and VR, if you find those two terms confusing. Just last month, with the Ray-Ban glasses, Facebook introduced Ray-Ban Stories, a smart way to reply messages, take pictures and call without touching your phone. Of course, it will take more than smart glasses to change the way people consume and interact with the internet. But Facebook isn't new to this market or technology.
Why is Facebook pivoting?
On the surface, one reason that anyone interested simply in the business of Facebook would give for this pivot is that since content is king, Facebook wants to reposition itself as the kingmaker of the future. The same way Google's PlayStore and Apple's App Store are the gatekeepers of mobile applications today. In fact, both Google and Apple rake in at least $111 billion in 2020 in fees paid by apps owners. Currently, the only means Facebook makes money is through advertising and with increasing scrutiny on how it gathers data for advertisers, it is important for Facebook not only to look for another source of revenue like Oculus and Workspace but to change its main source of income from Facebook ads. Perhaps, to a Metaverse platform fee.
But does Facebook need to change its name to do this? Besides the fact that Meta Platforms is a much cooler name than Facebook Technologies, is it possible that Zuckerberg may have another objective for changing the name of Facebook to Meta.
Well, yeah!
The name Facebook has become synonymous with all things wrong with the internet: privacy issues, child pornography, fake news, identity theft, internet-addictive disorder, and a truckload of several other issues. In 2018, different media outlets exposed social engineering being orchestrated by Cambridge Analytica. Facebook allowed the politicking company to use data of up to 87million people and directly affected the United States presidential election that saw Donald Trump become president. It same tactics were also employed in 2015 Nigerian Presidential election, and 2013 and 2017 campaigns that saw Uhuru Kenyatta emerged as president of Kenya. It was also linked to the Brexit campaign, Australia election, Indian national election and Mexico.
As if meddling with democratic practices isn't enough for Facebook, the company has also been accused of inciting the Rohingy genocide in Myanmar which saw more than 6.700 people dead and 700,000 forced to flee their homes. Facebook is also notorious for being a safe haven for child pornography with the company claiming to have removed 11.2million child porn content in the 3rd quarter of 2019 alone. According to one of Zuckerberg's testimony at a Senate hearing, Facebook accounts for more than 90% of child porn reported on the internet. Recently, a former project manager at Facebook testified on Congress floor that Zuckerberg's Facebook is aware of all this issues and more but would rather make money from them than fix these problems.
Of course, that's not even half-way through the many issues facing Facebook so, with Meta, it does seem to have a chance at a clean slate. Not only that, since Facebook is increasingly losing its appeal to the younger generation, who prefers apps like Snapchat and TikTok, with its focus on virtual reality and immerse communication, Meta may succeed in getting the much needed users Facebook could not. And maybe become a positive-vibe company like Tesla and Apple along the way.
“Meta may succeed in getting the much needed users Facebook could not. And maybe become a positive-vibe company like Tesla and Apple along the way,” he wrote, like a true Zuck fan boy.
I may need to read this like 3 times more. But for now, I totally understand the business side of things.
If we remove the fear of "Play", I'm sure one can find some worthwhile value with keying into what they have to offer through the metaverse.
Thank you for this enlightening read.
P.S, I'm that cave person! Lols