replicon1 Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 Facebook has bought new Virtual Reality kickstarter Oculus Rift VR for $2bn! http://ampp3d.mirror.co.uk/2014/03/25/facebook-buys-oculus-rift-virtual-reality-company-for-2bn-nerds-revolt/ Zuckerbergs statement suggests he sees the VR tech as more than just a new way to play games: "Immersive gaming will be the first, 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. We're going to focus on helping Oculus build out their product and develop partnerships to support more games. Oculus will continue operating independently within Facebook to achieve this. But this is just the start. After games, we're going to make Oculus a platform for many other experiences. Imagine enjoying a court side seat at a game, studying in a classroom of students and teachers all over the world or consulting with a doctor face-to-face -- just by putting on goggles in your home. 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. These are just some of the potential uses. By working with developers and partners across the industry, together we can build many more. One day, we believe this kind of immersive, augmented reality will become a part of daily life for billions of people." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
@contradevian Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 Nah Londoners need to network in the flesh in Hockston coffee bars, this guy at the BBC told me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
200p Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 Virtual Xes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeDavola Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 I've been followimg the rift closely for a long time and I can't believe this. Had to double check it wasn't a wind up. Terrible news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirGaz Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 I've been followimg the rift closely for a long time and I can't believe this. Had to double check it wasn't a wind up. Terrible news. Agreed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chronyx Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 I've been followimg the rift closely for a long time and I can't believe this. Had to double check it wasn't a wind up. Terrible news. Why's that? The usual big company buys something and ruins it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StainlessSteelCat Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 Depends how hands off Zuckerberg is with it. Maybe it's just a rich blokes hobby company, like Pixar was for Jobs (and look how that turned out). If it's a proper investment, then it's a very long term play - and I'd guess limited true value. Is there anything patented here that's unique to Oculus. A $2Bn investment should make a decent amount of difference to progress providing it's not squandered. But the fact just the Facebook name is putting off developers is disturbing. Not surprised as even if it doesn't mean Farmville in VR, Facebook is a brand with some horrible associations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bendy Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 I've been followimg the rift closely for a long time and I can't believe this. Had to double check it wasn't a wind up. Terrible news. Can't say I've ever heard of it but that was the first thing that came to my mind. Pretty devastating to the ambitions of developers IMHO to have FB on board, I imagine many talented ones will abandon ship, unless FB rewards them enough, which I doubt they will do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snafu Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 Bizarre purchase. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Jib Fingers Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 I don't get it. Sure it's decent enough technology, but it was done with a few million investment and wasn't anything particularly ground breaking. They could probably have got the whole lot for £2m a couple of years ago. And it's a terrible fit for the companies involved since it is designed for complex 3d games rather than the 2D casual stuff you get on Facebook. What is there that is worth £2bn exactly? You could make the whole thing from scratch for at most £10m. The whole thing just seems completely mental. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monkey Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 I could imagine Google buying ot. It smacks of desperation of the prospect of Facebook being non existent/not used in a few years, do lets buy some random tech company to try and apease the shareholders that facebook will be player in years to come Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Battenberg Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 I pre-ordered one around September in the hope it would arrive before Christmas. The order finally went to shipping around November but my son then changed his mind and we cancelled and got a refund. He did mention to me the other day that apparently they hadn't been able to meet their orders and I think it may have been down to manufacturing problems, or at least that's what had been suggested at the time. Obviously this was already in the pipeline. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19 year mortgage 8itch Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Is this another bung to the VCs like whatsapp was? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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