What do you think about Facebook’s new ‘Meta’ name?

Last week, Facebook revealed that it was rebranding itself as ‘Meta.’ The new name is a reference to the “Metaverse,” a term loosely defined as interconnected virtual reality experiences, which Facebook Meta is now investing plenty of time and money into. Now that the dust has settled, what do you think about the new company name?

The news arrived during Facebook’s “Connect” livestream, where the company talked about its efforts in augmented reality and virtual reality. Jason Koebler summed up the event nicely in a Vice article as, “a delusional fever dream cribbed most obviously from dystopian science fiction and misleading or outright fabricated virtual reality product pitches from the last decade.” The event was also subject to a few recurring jokes on social media, especially regarding the bottle of Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce that Zuckerberg had on a shelf.

why does he have sweet baby rays bbq on the decorative shelf pic.twitter.com/qyytoSjv0z

— conar (@subtoconnorpls) October 28, 2021

tfw you have sweet baby rays (or maybe you are out. honestly i cant tell) pic.twitter.com/jMIDxtnm67

— Incognito Finito (@incognitofinito) October 29, 2021

Jokes aside, it’s difficult to see the rebranding as anything but a distraction from the dumpster fire (lovingly pictured above) that is Facebook’s problems. The company has been heavily criticized for its lack of enforcement against high-profile users, tax avoidance (like nearly every other tech company), privacy policy changes in WhatsApp, allowing hate speech, and much more. The United States Federal Trade Commission is also attempting to reverse Facebook/Meta’s acquisition of Instagram and WhatsApp, but that seems unlikely to succeed.

Importantly, the name change only applies to Facebook as a company. Facebook as a social network will continue to have the same name, as will Instagram, WhatsApp, and other services. However, the company is rebranding its Oculus virtual reality division to Meta — the Oculus Quest headset is now the Meta Quest.

So, what do you think about the new name? Do you think it might help Facebook push back against criticism? Do you think it’s a good move as Facebook pivots to AR and VR content? Head on down to the comment section and talk it out.

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