Facebook's Meta Will Devote 20% of Costs To Metaverse Next Year – Slashdot

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Let them throw 20% of all their expenditures down a rathole. The world will be better for it.
Yes it will but not for the reason you seem to imply.
That and advance the most promising track for the future of computing and computing interfaces.
you forgot to use the critical term in your reason, “anal probe”

you forgot to use the critical term in your reason, “anal probe”
Is that you, Hans Niemann? [ladbible.com]
I think you have a great future in comedy.
The main problem would be that if this was successful, the most promising track for the future of computing would be held hostage by a company that wants to hold your data hostage.
Nah, they just want to exploit it for profit. Companies like Apple and Microsoft want to hold it hostage.
The difference is that open technology can still be on the table since they can openly sit as MITM. FB is mostly open tech as well. So my hope is a lot of advancement for tech and a new generation of open standards and interoperability in VR like we saw for the internet, operating systems, etc. I actually don’t think anything can hit critical mass without that. If FB succeeds is injecting themselves as
Not likely.
Look at it this way. At the current pace even though there is no basis in reality for their for their rapid crashing (other then the cutbacks they had to make BECAUSE of the rapid crashing) they’ll probably develop a ton of amazing things for VR before their price becomes so juicy that some other company buys them up anyway.
…they’ll probably develop a ton of amazing things for VR before their price becomes so juicy that some other company buys them up anyway.
Do you yourself realistically see that much of a demand for VR in the coming years?
Honest question….
VR is one of those things like 3D TV that every 20-30 years a new generation if marketing types who havent read any history think is a Really Good Idea. Then it bombs. Again. Rinse and repeat in 2040.
I’m with you here. But I don’t see the walled garden winning in the end, nor do I see avoiding the spying as realistic.
My realistic expectation is that artificial scarcity and attempts to keep things closed from meta and anyone else are inevitable failures which maybe produce some advancements in their path to failure. What we’ll really end up with an open but totally spying platform that is hopefully at least otherwise unobtrusive. Also, hopefully there are a class of more technically sophisticated users w
Yes I see the demand continuing to do nothing but grow.
I see VR/AR overtaking essentially all computing in the 10-20yr range.
AR tech alone, just as it sits (or as it could sit with existing tech) renders the Samsung and IPhone devices obsolete or as mere processing accessories and VR does to physical spaces what MP3’s did to CD’s.
Another guy who replied to you hit on what is blinding people to this… He likens it to 3D TV. I’d argue that is one example in that 3D video will eventually be the standard and n
We’ll see I suppose.
Actually no, they added substantial AR features alongside the VR features in the new ‘pro’ headset. They enabled some measure of that on the existing quest 2 but it has crappy B&W cameras.
Probably just as useful is blending the two. For instance you can define real objects to be visible and persistent within VR. Probably the earliest example of this was your keyboard for virtual office experiences but it can also be other things including people.
How does it compare with something like a magicleap? I’d s
Hmmm and since it IS a thing maybe we should kick off a venture for virtual live private box rentals for sportsball events and VR bowling. Great option for companies that want to have team building events despite having teams filled with remote and disconnected workers.
In certain metro areas it could be worthwhile to even have a sports bar that can cater and handle drinks orders for private box rentals just like the real thing and a few remote team members can still join from afar. Plus there is no limit t
I do…
Sure, today’s VR is quite primate and seems only suited for entertainment purpose but the second a “VR meetup” can be used instead of physical travel it will be adopted by the business world. Once that happens it’ll snowball. The internet of the 80s/90s have a lot in common with current VR…
It was clunky to operate and pretty much only the folks building it really knew how use it effectively. If you listened to those folks talk about its potential you could easily hear them describe most of the mode
Sure, today’s VR is quite primate and seems only suited for entertainment purpose but the second a “VR meetup” can be used instead of physical travel it will be adopted by the business world.
An interesting view, but post pandemic, with WFH and all….it seems we’ve shown with current tech that people don’t need to meet up physically or travel already.
Not sure what a VR meeting will give you as far as increased benefits over just teleconferences today.
I mean, with my work places over the past few years..
Yes, plenty of work can be done strictly by voice communication but there are tons of fields where having a physical component has benefits. Architecture and real estate are two obvious fields that would benefit from such tools.
I’m not an auto mechanic but if you give me a decent Youtube video walking through a repair process i can do a fair bit. But even sometimes hard to find components or make judgement calls on when to deviate. However, if I’m taking direction from a mechanic who is physically present a
Generally, anyone hyping a stock buy is either doing so in order to increase the value of their own holding, or they’re a crazy uncle.
Talking to myself out loud really. Do you honestly think there is much point to trying to increase the value of your holding by hyping it on slashdot?
What, really? Company making product A and succeeding but then floundering and behind in product B that everyone else does better, the best bet is to have them focus on A and ignore B. Take lessons from Google who keep cancelling most of their side projects. Or Microsoft’s phone, and their current focus on ignoring the enterprise and trying to make Windows dumbed down for the touch screen.
The metaverse is just gaming. It’s not going to be the new social media hub, just look at how Second Life failed mis
You are both missing the mark by a long shot.
Stop and think for a moment. With a slightly lighter weight headband with decent battery life and the ability to use cameras to track your hand motions like the quest pro is doing… now toss in 5G and remind me what purpose a samsung or iphone with those shitty cell phone human interfaces serve again? Now pair it to a remote processing unit the size of a small tablet in your coat pocket and remember you can place screens and a keyboard wherever you like and remi

remind me what purpose a samsung or iphone with those shitty cell phone human interfaces serve again?
Not sure why you think the interface is shitty, but the phones fit in your pocket.

the size of a small tablet in your coat pocket
Now you’re just trying too hard. If people wanted this, they’d already have tablets in their pocket. No one walks around with a tablet today.

remind me what a laptop is doing for you again?
processing power and local storage, usb accessory compatibility. You seem to be asking why PCs still exist.

Even if we go to a baseball game together, in person, we’ll still both be seeing the scoreboard and stats for the current batter via our AR interface and we’ll be hooked up to the hot dog guy via the stadium app and wifi.
Pocket sized cell phones already do this. Why wear an ugly headband? Only introverts don’t care about fashion and vanity. Everyone else started carrying around pocket computers becau
“No one walks around with a tablet today.”
You seem to be in denial of the tablet market and completely missing the point of the device being nothing but a processing accessory.
“processing power and local storage, usb accessory compatibility. You seem to be asking why PCs still exist.”
I already know why PC’s still exist and those aren’t the reasons. User interface is the reason.
“Not sure why you think the interface is shitty”
Okay, you are DEFINITELY in denial if you don’t think Phones have a shitty micro int

With a slightly lighter weight headband with decent battery life and the ability to use cameras to track your hand motions…
That sounds awful.
I would pay money to avoid that.
“behind in product B that everyone else does better, the best bet is to have them focus on A and ignore B”
That is a bit much on the code but I’m assuming you are implying that A is social media efforts and B is their VR work? Well they aren’t really floundering on A… they essentially own all social media aside from Tiktok. People still can’t help but think of FB as being the FB website when in reality FB is virtually all major social media apps and they’ll win by default when tiktok gets banned. There als

Remember, all those cyberpunk novels that Zuckerberg is trying to emulate were about dystopias.
Oh wow, great point. Maybe Zuckerberg identifies with the villains in those stories.

Sounds like a great time to buy META.
Are you actually doing that with any significant amount of your total net worth, or are you just giving free advice?
Both? I entered a META position after posting that but posted it merely to share my thoughts. I’m not under the impression that sharing my opinion on a mostly dead old tech news platform is going to have much impact on any particular market. Especially on a one off basis.
I wasn’t implying that you were trying to influence the price of meta. I was implying to that investment advice without skin in the game is less than impressive. As you you’re eating your own dog food so to speak, best of luck!
because they have billions—and sooner or later they realize that for all their hand wringing, they can’t take it with them.
I believe it is because they got their fortunes by doing things almost everyone thought wouldn’t succeed. Like every other wildly successful entrepreneur. And 99/100 of people like them with similarly good ideas and good execution don’t succeed, and 99.999% of them don’t succeed as much as these billionaires. They then conflate the luck they had in their success with an ability to have continued success in unrelated fields. And they assume they will be that lucky again, often because they don’t acknowledge how much luck was involved in their initial success.
Then there is simply the fact that they don’t need to be as successful anymore, and are willing to do things which may never have a positive ROI. If Musk makes Twitter better (in his opinion) and it costs him $20 billion from his overvaluation, who cares? He is still a billionaire.

I believe it is because they got their fortunes by doing things almost everyone thought wouldn’t succeed
That doesn’t sound right at all, did a majority of people think an internet payment system (Musk) an online shop (Bezos) and social network (Zuck) wouldn’t succeed, There where plenty trying they happen to be the ones that that succeeded, but that is selection bias. Thinking back I never thought those where silly ideas. Virtual reality as a social network just sounds dumb, although it has potential in gaming. Then again nothing wrong with trying out idea, they might just work or improve VR in other fields.

That doesn’t sound right at all, did a majority of people think an internet payment system (Musk) an online shop (Bezos) and social network (Zuck) wouldn’t succeed
Are you at least 45+ years old? Because it seems unlikely that you would make those statements if you were an adult in the 90’s. If an online bookstore was so obvious in 1994, Borders would have done it. If internet payment systems were so obvious in the 90’s, American Express would have done it. If social networks were so obvious in 2004, earlier networks like Friendster and MySpace would have got it right the first time.
There were people who thought they could be successful, but not that they would be. An

Because there’s absolutely no consequences for members of the ruling class.
If you and I screwed up even 1/100th at that level of our employment we’d be out on the street. But homelessness is only a threat if you work for a living not when you own shit for a living
It’s worse than that.
They get to move on; ordinary people are saddled with those failures for the rest of their lives.

Why do billionaires feel the need to waste their money on doomed pet projects that everyone outside their bubble can see won’t succeed ?
I don’t know, but it’s certainly more interesting to me than the likely alternative: squeezing every last penny out of the existing business model to maximize shareholder value.
There’s been a concerning trend of cynicism in tech that really ramped up along with COVID. Makes me wonder if the virus is having some sort of effect on our general temperament.

that most people see will fail
I think that quote is most of it. If most people don’t think it will fail, then it was probably was probably a “safe” project that a million other companies are doing already. If I were a type-A billionaire I’d probably want to change the world too.
Take Musk for example. Musk’s “dumb” ideas include tunnels, brain chips, cave capsules, and humanoid robots. But are those really any dumber than his successes? Not by much. Looking back it seems like electric cars were inevitable, but Tesla was being laughed at

But there comes a point when it is obviously being wasted on dead ends, and could better be spent elsewhere.
Yes! And a less interesting company would prudently stop doing it the moment that likelihood became apparent. And that’s how you become Walmart; tremendously sound, terminally boring, never furthering society. Be honest, would you rather Facebook spend that money on more algorithm tweaks?
Carmack has other gripes beyond the direction. But of course he’s welcome to criticize the direction too. He certainly has better visibility into it than we do.

– Bezos has his Blue Origin, that is doomed because Spacex is better engineered.
That is such an interesting comparison to prove your point. After all, what is SpaceX other than a different billionaire’s pet project that happened to be turned into a success?
What else do you suggest they do? Buy pretty art and hang it in their living room? At least with these investments their money is being recirculated through the economy.
With all the money they are pissing away it just would have been cheaper to buy Second Life at this point. /s
…This is not the time to be pissing away money like this.
Facebook sells ads. That’s the service that keeps them in business.
There are only so many ads that Coca Cola and Wal-Mart and Toyota will buy on Facebook; a whole lot of Facebook’s revenue relies on hyper-localized ads, which are more valuable to local restaurants and retailers and startups.
In the event nobody’s told Mark and friends, the economy isn’t terribly stable right now. Inflation is very high, employees and employers are playing chicken with each other, and interest rates are going through the roof. Marketing is amongst the first budgets to get cut when this happens.
The fact that ZDNet and Ars Technica and other out-of-touch publications write fluff pieces about the Metaverse does not equal popularity or enthusiasm from the buying public. Facebook’s problem is twofold with the Metaverse. The first is getting the general public to adopt it, and the second is to get advertisers to pay for ads in it. The latter, of course, making the former that much more challenging.
If TV, video games, and pr0n can’t make 3D/VR achieve critical mass, Facebook is going to have one hell of a time doing it in an environment when even their core product is more a matter of inertia than actual enjoyment. Letting it be a pet project is obviously a good idea, but betting 20% of the company’s revenue in what is very likely to be a bust year for them is straight up foolishness.

…This is not the time to be pissing away money like this.
Why? Right now is when everyone is investing heavily in VR. If you don’t invest now regardless of how good your idea / product is you will miss the boat and potentially ceded future revenue to competitors.
The thing about bean counters is that “now” is never the time to invest in some unproven new idea. And honestly do we really give a shit if Zuck pisses away Facebook’s billions? We may as well get some decent VR hardware out of it before Meta fades into obscurity on the back of their dwindling business mo
As long as it permanently destroys Facebook, all the better. ‘Basic’ indeed.

Finally today we know VR is “the final medium” is as much as every other medium (text, video, etc) can be reproduced inside of it.
Therefore we know VR is going to “be a thing” well into the future and a majority of VR’s users are in the future.
Do we? Using VR (even on a quest 2 with no PC) is not as simple as picking up your phone. You cant really use it for ‘I have 2 mins before im supposed to pick up my mates I’ll quickly check ticktock’. You cant really use it for ‘I have a 30 min bus ride home and need to kill some time’. You cant really use it for ‘I’m stuck in traffic and just need to tell work I’m going to be late’.. Its terrible for ‘normal’ office work that isn’t group meetings. Its not going to replace anyone phone or desktop/laptop in
True but we didn’t get the modern smartphone overnight either. Even the iPhone 1 which was a pretty big leap over all the other phones of it’s time is down right clunky compared to what we have today. The ultimate goal of Meta is a device that can provide more value/functionality/productivity than having a smart phones, tablets, laptops, and desktop PC in individually.
That’s a pretty tall order but they aren’t intending to do it with their first product. The Quest is just the first step to understanding the
So John Carmack was 20 – 18 = 2% of Facebook’s costs? Interesting.

Only 20% doesn’t sound like they are all in.
Facebook is all in on the idea of the metaverse. They aren’t an addicted gambler putting their entire life savings on red. If you’re intelligently running a company you know in order to be all in on any idea you need to maintain your income enough to develop it.
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