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Join on Telegram Rabat – Meta, the social networking company that was formerly known as Facebook, has discussed the possibility of opening retail stores worldwide, according to a report by The New York Times.
The stores would be used to introduce customers to the company’s virtual reality products, such as the wide range of Oculus headsets, eventually transitioning to showcasing the company’s augmented reality glasses.
The devices act as a gateway to what the company calls the Metaverse, a vision of a futuristic digital world where people can move between virtual reality and real life environments seamlessly.
Mark Zukerberg, Meta Platforms’ chairman, recently announced the new name of the company, along with a plan to position the “metaverse” as the next most prominent social platform.
Reports indicate that discussions of physical locations predated the company’s change of name, and also that the project may not go ahead at all.
The company aims to make its virtual reality vision more “welcoming” to consumers, with the “metaverse” seeming divisive among general audiences, especially while the company is shrouded in controversies due its alleged negative impact on society.
Other concerns are that the hardware for virtual reality is expensive, confusing to use, and only appeals to a niche audience of hobbyists.
Meta had made other attempts at entering the retail market in recent years, notably by opening kiosks to showcase their Oculus line of virtual reality products.
Should the company succeed in their current attempt, it would be a first for a tech giant that focuses largely on digital content.
