Facebook Gets Into Virtual Reality By Acquiring Oculus VR

Facebook has acquired Oculus VR, Inc., the immersive virtual reality
technology company, for a total of approximately $2 billion with the potential for an addition $300 million based on hitting certain milestones, the company announced on its blog.

Oculus VR, the start-up which developed Oculus Rift, a prototype virtual reality headset through a Kickstarter campaign, is the leader in immersive virtual technology, but Sony recently announced it is developing a new virtual reality headset for its PlayStation 4 game console.

Until now, virtual reality technology has generally been limited to gaming, but Facebook said it had plans to expand the technology into communications, media and entertainment and other areas.

“Mobile is the platform of today, and now we’re also getting ready
for the platforms of tomorrow,” said Facebook founder and CEO, Mark
Zuckerberg. “Oculus has the chance to create the most social platform
ever, and change the way we work, play and communicate.”

On its company blog post, the team at Oculus VR wrote, “Over the next 10 years, virtual reality will become ubiquitous,
affordable, and transformative, and it begins with a truly
next-generation gaming experience. This partnership ensures that the
Oculus platform is coming, and that it’s going to change gaming forever.”