Metaverse Investments are Not Unusual

It is not hard to find critics of Meta’s metaverse spending. Meta’s third quarter 2022 earnings showed Meta’s Reality Labs division lost $3.7 billion during the third quarter on revenue of only $285 million. And, as always, expectations drove investor sentiment. 

Meta said “Reality Labs expenses will increase meaningfully again in 2023.” So, at least for the moment, Meta is betting the farm on the future of computing, which the company believes will be based on immersive, persistent and 3D worlds. 

Skeptics argue it might not happen. Some might argue it happens only in part. But it is reasonable to argue that some investment has to be made now in the use of augmented or virtual reality, as there is a reasonable chance such experiences become a standard part of content, commerce and communications experiences at some point over the next decade. 

It is not hard to find critics of Meta’s metaverse spending. But other major app, content and commerce providers are making investments in metaverse-type features as well, if on a more-measured pace. That matches expectations that metaverse might be a decade away from everyday use.  

Alphabet, for example, is working to apply artificial intelligence to immersive computing and search, for example, after dubbing in its own line of virtual reality goggles. 

Amazon applies virtual and augmented reality to support its e-commerce operations. Amazon’s Room Decorator feature allows shoppers to use their phones or tablets to see what furniture and other home décor will look like in their own living spaces. 

Warby Parker has a virtual try-on app used on the Amazon site  that allows customers and prospects to “try on” frames to see how they look on a particular face. 

Gaming platforms such as Decentraland, Epic Games, Roblox, Unity Software and Microsoft are widely expected to be early adopters as well. 

The point is that criticism of Meta’s spending on metaverse, simply referred to as applied augmented reality by others, should not negate the actual moves by other major firms to incorporate features based on augmented reality.