Meta's Collaboration with Hardware Companies and Vision for Open VR Ecosystem

Facebook's parent company, Meta, made an announcement on Monday local time, revealing its plans to collaborate with external hardware companies such as Lenovo, Microsoft, and Asus. The objective of this partnership is to jointly develop virtual reality (VR) headsets based on the Meta Horizon operating system.

This strategic move aims to accelerate the development of new hardware devices that will utilize the same operating system and software as Meta's existing virtual reality products, such as the Quest 3 and Quest Pro. The collaboration is expected to bring more clarity to the competitive landscape of the virtual reality hardware market. It is worth noting that in June 2023, Apple introduced the Vision Pro virtual reality headset, priced at a hefty $3,500, during the WWDC conference.

Meta's CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, shared this news through an Instagram video, highlighting that this collaboration will recreate a competitive environment similar to that of Android and iOS in the smartphone era. However, this time, the battleground will be the realm of virtual reality headsets. Zuckerberg explained that while Apple's virtual reality products will maintain their high-end positioning and integration, they will face the challenge of competing with a range of hardware devices running on the Meta operating system, available at various price points.

Zuckerberg further emphasized that throughout the history of computing, both open and closed models have coexisted. In the smartphone industry, Apple's closed model eventually emerged victorious, exerting strict control over their devices and limiting users within the boundaries set by the manufacturer. Nevertheless, this isn't the sole path of development.

The decision to license the operating system to hardware partners aligns with Meta's long-term strategy in the research and development of virtual reality technology. Meta has made substantial investments in its Reality Labs division, allocating billions of dollars each quarter. However, these investments have also brought significant economic pressure. In the fourth quarter of 2023, Meta reported operating losses of $4.65 billion in this segment, despite generating only $1 billion in sales.

For years, Meta has expressed dissatisfaction with the established rules governing Apple's App Store. In response, the company has been diligently working on developing next-generation platforms for virtual reality and augmented reality (AR), with plans to establish its own app store under Meta's control. Consequently, Apple will no longer have the authority to reject app listings or charge commissions. Meta's vision to launch an operating system platform represents the culmination of years of internal investment within the company. Zuckerberg envisions the metaverse, smart glasses, and headsets as vehicles through which the open model will once again dominate the next generation of computing technology.

Zuckerberg extended an invitation to Google, urging them to bring their Google Play app store to Horizon OS-based headsets. He further disclosed Meta's intentions to enable the compatibility of Steam and Microsoft's Xbox cloud games on their operating system. It is worth noting that Meta Horizon is built upon the foundation of the Android system, providing an advantage in porting applications from mobile phones to virtual reality devices.

While Meta has not provided a detailed breakdown of its specific business model with hardware partners or how its software will generate profits, it can draw inspiration from Google's Android mobile operating system. Google offers the operating system to users for free and generates revenue by guiding users to search on Google and displaying ads during the search process. In certain cases, Google even pays hardware partners.

Meta emphasized that opening its operating system to hardware partners will enable the creation of specialized hardware for different markets, such as gaming, productivity enhancements, and lightweight devices. Zuckerberg envisioned a future device that might "come with an Xbox controller right out of the box". Additionally, he revealed Meta's plans to develop a new Quest headset that is "inspired" by Xbox. However, it is expected to be a few years before this new device becomes available on the market.