Facebook Changed Its Name To Meta

Facebook Inc. Changed Its Name To Meta Platforms Inc.

Social networking giant Facebook, Inc. (FB) has announced that, as of Oct. 28, 2021, its parent company has been renamed and rebranded as Meta. Meta Platforms, Inc., formerly known as Facebook, Inc. , is an American multinational technology conglomerate holding company based in Menlo Park, California. It is the parent organization of Facebook and its subsidiaries.

According to CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the new name is supposed to reflect the company's ambitions to be a leading player in the metaverse, which he says will be the future of the internet. Mark Zuckerberg plans to build a "metaverse" - an online world where people can game, work and communicate in a virtual environment, often using VR headsets.

Zuckerberg says that he has been thinking about changing his company's name since acquiring Instagram and WhatsApp in 2012 and 2014, respectively, but he finally decided to make the change earlier in 2021.

 "I think we're basically moving from being Facebook first as a company to being metaverse first,"

 he told tech-oriented website The Verge in a telephone interview in the days prior to the announcement.

 "I think that there was just a lot of confusion and awkwardness about having the company brand be also the brand of one of the social media apps," he added.

 He said the existing brand could not 

"possibly represent everything that we're doing today, let alone in the future", 

and needed to change.

Meta builds technologies that help people connect, find communities, and grow businesses. When Facebook launched in 2004, it changed the way people connect. Apps like Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp further empowered billions around the world. Now, Meta is moving beyond 2D screens toward immersive experiences like augmented and virtual reality to help build the next evolution in social technology.

The word "meta" comes from the Greek word meaning "beyond".

To an outsider, a metaverse may look like a version of VR, but some people believe it could be the future of the internet.

Instead of being on a computer, people in a metaverse might use a headset to enter a virtual world connecting all sorts of digital environments.

It is hoped the virtual world could be used for practically anything from work, play and concerts, to socializing with friends and family.