As it looks to the next big shift in digital connectivity, Facebook has done it established a new Metaverse product group, which focuses on building the broader direction of the platform in the evolving space, including creative tools, virtual frameworks, advanced social features and more.

As explained by Facebook Reality Labs (FRL) chief Andrew Bosworth

FRL has been focusing for years on building products that deliver presence in digital spaces. Today, Portal and Oculus can teleport you to a room with another person, regardless of physical distance, or to new virtual worlds and experiences. But to our full vision of the Metaverse, we also need to build the connective tissue between these spaces – so that you can remove the limitations of physics and move between them with the same ease as moving from one room in your home to the next. ‘

The new project team will work to establish key parameters in what has now become a key focus for The Social Network.

As noted, with Facebook wanting to look at the next phase of digital connectivity, the Metaverse concept will play an important role, and the platform wants to facilitate new forms of online interaction based on your digital self.

The Metaverse, in a basic sense, is a virtual world where your digital persona can exist in a variety of ways and interact within a new space. Various iterations of this have been developed over time, including projects such as Second Life and the evolving VR space, but the Metaverse is a more comprehensive version of the same, where you will eventually be able to feel that you are actually present with others in a broader digital space .

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg outlined the importance of the Metaverse last week in the company’s plans interview with The Verge.

As per Zuckerberg:

The metavers are a vision that spans many businesses – the entire industry. You can think of it as the successor to the mobile internet. And it’s definitely not something one business is going to build, but I think a large part of our next chapter will hopefully contribute to building it, in partnership with many other companies and creators and developers. ‘

Indeed, Zuckerberg even remarked that in the next five years he foresaw that Facebook would develop into a ‘Metaverse business’, with the digital realm to incorporate all of Facebook’s various tools and platforms into a broader, all-encompassing experience.

It can also cause some concern, given the significant power Facebook already possesses over our everyday lives and inputs. But this is Zuckerberg’s grand vision, and this new project team will have the task of developing and promoting the next phase.

It further highlights the emphasis and importance that Facebook places on the project, and has assigned some senior business leaders to the new group.

“To focus our efforts and provide on this vision, we bring together the teams that are working on this fundamental under the new Metaverse PG. I am excited to welcome Vishal Shah, who joins us on Instagram to lead this new product group; Vivek Sharma, who joins FB Gaming, will lead the Horizon teams, and Oculus OG Jason Rubin, who also joins FB Gaming, will lead the Content team as he and Vivek continues their work with FB Gaming partners to expand the size and capabilities of Facebook’s gaming platforms. ‘

Shah in particular has played a key role in the development of Instagram’s creative tools, which he will now switch to this larger phase.

This is an ambitious project and it still feels largely conceptual, as it is unknown in many respects, as we are not sure how the Metaverse concept is going to develop.

But it develops in many ways – from the e-commerce expansion after the evolution of AR after the boom in virtual clothes and outfits, and branching in VR. Each of these elements has great potential in itself, and the Metaverse will try to put them all together into a unique character, expanding the opportunities for expression, creativity, connection and more.

This is a big, big concept and that’s why Facebook puts so much emphasis on it. And while you may not anticipate it yet, it will soon become very clear and present.





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