Facebook Inc (NASDAQ: FB) is taking a step into the metaverse with its latest virtual reality (VR) application. The announcement has brought heightened attention to the Facebook share price. Shares in the social media giant have already climbed 32% since the start of 2021.
In a press release today, Facebook unveiled its answer to Zoom, known as 'Horizon Workroom', or more simply as 'Workrooms' — the VR experience aims to be a more immersive environment for people who work together to communicate and collaborate.
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Remote working of the future
While COVID-19 has resulted in a massive influx of remote working out of necessity, some people still argue that real collaboration can't occur outside of the workplace. Video teleconferencing company, Zoom Video Communications Inc (NASDAQ: ZM), would argue otherwise.
Communicating with colleagues is critical in just about every occupation. Thanks to the modern internet, much of the population has been able to continue to interact with others while being homebound. However, as Facebook points out — working remotely can feel isolating, and creative collaborating can feel stifled — queue Workrooms.
Facebook's Workrooms utilises the company's Oculus Quest 2 VR headset to bring colleagues together virtually. According to the company, Workrooms is "designed to improve your team's ability to collaborate, communicate, and connect remotely, through the power of VR".
In stark contrast to Zoom's 2D interaction, Workrooms allows users to enter a completely virtual space with multiple people. From there, people can share documents on a virtual screen, take notes on a virtual keyboard, and wave their virtual hands in the air — pretty cool huh.
Apparently, Facebook employees have been using their own creation for months to conduct their own virtual meetings.
Commenting on the innovation, CEO and Founder Mark Zuckerberg said:
These kinds of experiences, where you can actually feel present with other people, are I think a much richer way to interact than the types of social apps we've been able to build on phones or computers.
The product announcement follows discussions of how Facebook wants to push into the next frontier of the internet… the metaverse. Perhaps Workrooms is the first public piece of that ambitious puzzle.
Facebook share price compared to Zoom
Surprisingly, despite a continuation of lockdowns and restrictions across some geographies, the Zoom share price has underperformed even the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). Specifically, the video conferencing company's shares have gained 14.3% in the past year.
In comparison, the Facebook share price has outperformed the Aussie benchmark index. Even more impressively, the social media company has inched out an outperformance of the S&P 500, which returned 30.1% over the past year.
