![]() ![]() And the world of virtual reality already has a harassment problem. Virtual worlds existed long before Facebook ramped up investment in VR and augmented reality after its purchase of headset maker Oculus in 2014. The two senators lead a subcommittee that recently met with Haugen to discuss her concerns about the social network. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, and Marsha Blackburn, a Tennessee Republican, also warned Zuckerberg a name change wouldn't deter lawmakers from pursuing Facebook. Meta as in “we are a cancer to democracy metastasizing into a global surveillance and propaganda machine for boosting authoritarian regimes and destroying civil society… for profit!” - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez October 28, 2021 6 insurrection and for hesitancy to get COVID vaccinations. Lies that spread on the platform have been blamed for the Jan. Misinformation has been a widespread problem on Facebook's namesake social network. Friends could fence using virtual swords, attend concerts from their homes or simply work together in virtual offices.īut Facebook will also have to deal with the same issues it grapples with on social media, including data privacy, security, child-exploitation dangers, and content moderation. ![]() Zuckerberg's presentation painted a hopeful vision of the metaverse, filled with digital spaces for people to gather. "We'll need to work together, from the beginning, to bring the best possible version of this future to life." A future utopia or dystopia?įacebook believes that in the future, we'll be able to meet up with friends in the "metaverse." "Every chapter brings new voices and new ideas but also new challenges, risks and disruption of established interests," he said. Facebook doesn't have a great track record when it comes to protecting the privacy and safety of its users, and those issues won't vanish in the metaverse. ![]() It's also dabbling in finance with its Novi cryptocurrency wallet.ĭuring the Connect keynote, Zuckerberg said he's well aware of the risks that come with entering a new field. The tech giant now has virtual reality headsets, smart glasses and video chat devices. Founded in 2004 in a Harvard dorm room, Facebook has spread beyond its roots as a social network. The company says the rebranding is a refocusing of its corporate priorities. "If Meta doesn't address its issues beyond a defensive and superficial attitude, those same issues will occupy the metaverse."įorrester, which surveyed 745 people across the US, Canada and the UK, said 75% of those polled disagreed that a new company name will increase their trust in Facebook. "A name change doesn't suddenly erase the systemic issues plaguing the company," Forrester vice president and research director Mike Proulx said in a statement. About 3.58 billion people use Facebook and its services every month.Īnalysts say a clever rebranding won't help Facebook distance itself from its many problems. Haugen alleges the company has misled the public and investors about its role in perpetuating hate speech, misinformation and other harmful content.įacebook denies the accusations, noting that it has more than 40,000 people working on safety and security. The company's latest controversy, which involves leaked documents gathered by former Facebook product manager Frances Haugen, has proved especially damaging. It's been blamed for destroying democracy and for body shaming. The metaverse will create an entirely new environment for Facebook's legacy problems to take root.įacebook's hard-charging attitude has contributed to it racking up a seemingly endless list of scandals around data privacy, hate speech and misinformation. The company's former mantra - "Move fast and break things" - encouraged a culture that rewarded new ideas without careful consideration of the risks. In barreling headlong into the metaverse, however, Facebook may be repeating the practices that got it into trouble in the first place. CEO Mark Zuckerberg called the metaverse, which at this point is largely hypothetical, "the successor to the mobile internet." The corporate rebranding, unveiled Thursday at Facebook's Connect conference, is part of Facebook's headlong sprint into the metaverse, a virtual environment where people could work, play, learn and socialize with one another. This story is part of Making the Metaverse, CNET's exploration of the next stage in the internet's evolution.įacebook's iconic thumbs-up sign at its Menlo Park, California, headquarters now bears a blue infinity-shaped symbol along with a new name: Meta. ![]()
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