The parent company of Facebook, Meta has reported a loss of around $2.81 billion on $452 million in revenue from its metaverse division. These were the results of the second quarter that ended in June. Meta’s virtual reality division, Reality Labs has now posted two consecutive quarters of decreasing revenues. It is emerging to be a point of concern for the company.
This huge spending indicates that Mark Zuckerberg-led Meta is splurging a significant amount in developing products related to virtual and augmented reality. With the growing interest of consumers in the metaverse, large-scale organizations like Meta are eyeing to become the leader of the industry. Thus, it is understandable for Meta to afford that expense.
Meta earned around $8.36 billion in operating income. The company’s total revenue was $28.82 billion, whereas its total costs and expenses stood at $20.46 billion during this quarter. However, the company has now posted a loss of $5.77 billion in its year-to-date changes. Meta’s net income stands at $6.69 billion.
Meta Continues to Put Weight Behind VR Headsets
High-ranked officials of Meta, including Mark Zuckerberg, believe that augmented and virtual reality headsets are set to become the leading computing platforms of the next generation. Thus, the organization is investing in new technologies and prototypes. Also, they are gathering technical experts and resources to compete with other tech giants in the market. The competitors of Meta include the likes of Apple, Google, and Microsoft.
Recently, Zuckerberg stated, “This is obviously a very expensive undertaking over the next several years. But as the metaverse becomes more important in every part of how we live, I am confident that we are going to be glad that we played an important role in building this.”
Currently, Meta’s Quest 2 headset is the most popular VR headset in the market. The number of consumers and customers are still limited but Meta has decided to increase the prices from $299 to $399. This shows that Meta is confident in its popular product and its demand in the market.
Moreover, the tech organization is also planning to come up with advanced goggles at the end of this year. These devices will have front cameras, and the headset user could see the real world through them. Furthermore, Meta has shown an increased interest in acquiring VR startups that are excelling in such technologies and products. However, it is yet to be seen if the long-term strategy of the platform pays off or not.
