The social media juggernaut Facebook has made a deal with Oculus VR and will own it by the end of the second quarter this year for the price of $2 billion.

 

The announcement came from the CEO and founder of Facebook.com, Mark Zuckerberg. While the man behind the social media site admitted to having a focus on mobile apps, Zuckerberg said, “at this point we feel we’re in a position where we can start focusing on what platforms will come next to enable even more useful, entertaining and personal experiences.”

 

This purchase is a combination of stock and $400 million in cash.

 

Oculus, who is best known recently for the Rift Virtual Reality headset, has become a recent name in the gaming world for the Rift. Zuckerberg acknowledged this, saying, “Immersive gaming will be the first [experience], and Oculus already has big plans here that won’t be changing and we hope to accelerate. The Rift is highly anticipated by the gaming community, and there’s a lot of interest from developers in building for this platform.” He went on to say that Oculus will work independently within Facebook.

 

After gaming, however, Oculus will broaden their services. Zuckerberg said, “This is really a new communication platform. By feeling truly present, you can share unbounded spaces and experiences with the people in your life. Imagine sharing not just moments with your friends online, but entire experiences and adventures.”

 

Brendan Iribe, co-founder and CEO of Oculus VR said, “We are excited to work with Mark and the Facebook team to deliver the very best virtual reality platform in the world. We believe virtual reality will be heavily defined by social experiences that connect people in magical, new ways. It is a transformative and disruptive technology, that enables the world to experience the impossible, and it’s only just the beginning.”

 

This has started to turn away some developers that were interested in working with Oculus, including Minecraft’s creator, Marcus Persson, where he tweeted, “Facebook creeps me out.”

My Opinion

 

Umm… where do I start? I must say, Mark Zuckerberg, you sure can say great things, and greatness is your domain, but Oculus? Really? I would be ok if this tech was already in the hands of consumers and mainstream, but as it stands, this could be an end to Oculus VR.

 

On the other side of the coin, though, this could actually work in favor of Oculus. If Facebook can make the headset mainstream, then everything else will fall into place. I trust Zuckerberg here saying that he will be laissez faire when it comes to gaming on the Rift, and that if he wanted to, he could put VR technology in the minds of the population. While I want to laugh and scoff at this, I can’t help but think that this is actually great for both parties: Oculus gets some free press, and Facebook gets to be one part of the technology curve. Now, if only Facebook doesn’t change the design of the Rift every 6 months, that would be great.

 

To Mr. Zuckerberg, be careful. You are treading on thin ice, especially with an audience as die-hard as the hardcore gamer. The future of gaming and possibly technology as a whole rests in your hands now.

 

Source: Facebook , PRNewswire

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Shawn Richards studies games to understand how they work. Follow him on Twitter or Facebook.