America's beloved and hated social media, Facebook, has been on a roll this year, with Mark Zuckerman pushing the 'metaverse' concept on a number of occasions, sending the trend even to China on the other side of the world and causing many online companies to go on a 'metaverse binge' this summer.
According to Zuckerman, it was his childhood dream to create a metaverse. Is this really the case? People close to Facebook's top management say that after the privacy controversy over Cambridge Analytica and the collapse of Libra, the virtual currency, Facebook was desperate for a new concept that would avoid regulation, ease the pressure of the US government's anti-trust efforts, gain new growth and boost the company's image.
The metaverse is a perfect fit for this concept.
On the one hand, the metaverse is high-tech and has a long implementation time, which gives Facebook enough time to fade from the public eye and justifies the perception of a "pie in the sky". On the other hand, the metaverse is "cool" enough to gain the attention of consumers and users, and to win the sympathy of the government. This includes the launch of Quest2, a VR headset, and a partnership with Ray-Ban, a famous eyewear brand that claims to be revolutionising remote workflow with XR devices.
In less than a decade, Facebook has gone from being a symbol of American innovation to a symbol of "technological evil," leading to a wave of global legislation and non-stop litigation against the technology industry, and perceptions of Facebook slowly changed after the 2016 US presidential election, when it was claimed that Russian agents were spreading false information on Facebook. Facebook's image fell even further after the Cambridge analysis of the privacy scandal.
The Facebook meta-universe effort is not just a public relations stunt, but a ploy by Zuckerman to deflect public opinion from Facebook in the midst of a massive anti-trust lawsuit by the Federal Trade Commission. According to a number of Facebook insiders, it is a political strategy aimed at repairing the political-business relationship and redefining how to deal with the next round of online corporate regulation.
In Facebook's Washington DC office, the meta-universe is already in full political action: Facebook has hired a think tank to discuss creating standards and protocols for the upcoming virtual world. Nick Craig, Facebook's vice president of global affairs and communications, plans to speak at the Atlantic Festival, a Washington creative gathering, funded in part by Facebook, titled "A Journey into the Metaverse".
"Facebook can fight for many years." analysed Joan Donovan, Director of Research at the Center for Media, Politics and Public Policy. Many companies now give some kind of signal of intent to settle," says Paul Barrett, associate director of the Stern Center for Business and Human Rights at New York University. But Zuckerman is focused on the metaverse and doesn't seem to be responding to the public voice.
Why are the US government and users becoming increasingly negative about Facebook? A list of seven major controversies facing Facebook may explain.
1. Leakage of user information
In 2018, the Facebook data breach scandal that rocked the world erupted, and Facebook was accused of collecting personal information from 87 million users, and there was much criticism. In addition to the $5 billion fine imposed by the Federal Trade Commission, "Datagate" also became a dark moment for Zuckerman - who went before the US Congress for questioning.
2. Algorithmic election meddling
Facebook sold data to Cambridge Analytica, a data company that used users' data to influence the US presidential election, and used biased algorithms to push Trump-friendly ads to a large number of users. The president of Cambridge Analytics later said that it was the use of this technology that allowed Trump to win the election against Hillary.
3. Monopolising social media
In August, Facebook acquired WhatsApp and Instagram by force as a market monopoly, and the Federal Trade Commission filed another lawsuit to The Federal Trade Commission filed another lawsuit to split up Facebook. 4.
User information security concerns
The US$19 billion acquisition of WhatsApp was one of Facebook's most controversial acquisitions. At the time of the acquisition, Facebook pledged to make WhatsApp independent, avoiding the monopoly controversy of its rival acquisition. Finally, in September 2020, Facebook announced that WhatsApp, Messenger and Instagram would become a platform quiver, raising the risk of data sharing between the platforms. If the four platforms share data, it could lead to serious user information leakage.
5. Shake up the currency market
Libra has been a point of interest for Facebook in recent years. Since its introduction, the cryptocurrency Libra (now known as Diem) has been questioned by various parties, including the ownership of the currency, abuse of market dominance, and potential systemic financial risks. After repeated challenges at the government level, Libra was not launched.
Suppression of SMEs
While Facebook has repeatedly criticised Apple's 30% Apple tax on social media, its own VR platform Octlus also takes a 30% cut, and the founder of VR video platform Bigscreen took to Twitter to attack: "We're losing more than $1 for every $1 we make. Facebook has created a monopoly on the VR video industry.
7. illegal collection of facial data
In August 2020, Facebook was also accused of illegally acquiring nearly 100 million users' facial information through the mobile phone camera for its Instagram app. Facebook allegedly collects information about users' reactions to ads to serve advertisers.