Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) has unveiled its first virtual reality app after roughly three years of speculation as to what the firm has been up to ever since it acquired Oculus Rift.
Facebook acquired Oculus Rift for a whopping $2 billion in 2014 at a time when virtual reality and augmented reality were really starting to become popular. The acquisition obviously meant that the company was working on something big as far as VR and AR were concerned. However, the company kept a tight seal on the developments. Earlier this week the world got a glimpse of what the social giant has been working on after its first virtual reality app made its debut at the F8 Developer Conference.
Facebook digs deep into social VR
The new Facebook virtual reality app called Facebook Spaces was introduced by Rachel Franklin, the company’s chief for Social VR. The debut took place on Tuesday at the F8 Developer Conference which took place in San Jose. The firm already sells the Oculus VR headset but it has been relying on third-party developers to create apps for the headset. The new app is, therefore, the first app that the social giant has created to target users on its social platforms.
Facebook Spaces allows users to enter an immersive world with cartoon avatars
Facebook spaces gives an insight into what VR has to offer. The app lets users enter VR world where they find a cartoon avatar that acts as a guide. They can also make their own cartoon avatars.
“We’re not trying to be super photorealistic. We just want to show that you’re talking,” stated Mike Booth, the product manager for the app’s development team. He further added that the avatars mimic the user’s actual body language courtesy of the sensors in the Oculus Rift and Touch.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg believes that virtual reality could soon become a means of communication rather than promoting isolation. This further suggests that the company is still planning to exploit VR into more uses in the future considering that it is one of the fastest growing technologies.
Facebook stock closed the trading session on Tuesday at $ 140.96.
