Facebook officially rebranded to "Meta"

…Meta.

Facebook has changed its corporate name to Meta as a part of a major rebrand. The company said it would better embrace or represent its activities, as it broadens its reach beyond social media into areas like virtual reality.

Meta-verse

Zuckerberg says he is chosen Meta, because of its meaning in Greek – “beyond”. It also alludes to the “Metaverse”. In fact, the Facebook boss unveiled plans to build a “metaverse” – an online world where people can game, work and communicate in a virtual environment, often using VR headsets. “Over time, I hope that we are seen as a metaverse company and I want to anchor our work and our identity on what we’re building towards,” he told a virtual conference.

The company also unveiled a new sign at its headquarters in Menlo Park, California, on Thursday, replacing its thumbs-up “Like” logo with a blue infinity shape.

Negative connotations

There are several reasons for this name change. The main reason among them is that the brand is unmistakably associated with scandals, negative externalities, and Mark Zuckerberg. The CEO wants the name of the company to be less synonymous to the social media platform (which will keep its name) and any negative connotations related to it. The goal is to underline the ambition that the company is more than just a (albeit very profitable) social network.

Substance

Even though it is easy to focus on the negative triggers for the impending name change, there is some substance behind the change as well. For instance, Facebook recognizes that privacy issues have put their primary source of revenue at risk. The company’s ad-driven model built upon its users’ data is coming under increasing scrutiny with each passing year.

As well, there is substance behind the metaverse hype. Facebook first signaled their ambitions in 2014, when it acquired the virtual reality headset maker Oculus. A sizable portion of the company’s workforce is already working on making the metaverse concept a reality, and they plan to hire 10,000 more people in Europe over the next five years.

Make or break

It remains to be seen whether this immense gamble pays off, but for the near future, Zuckerberg and the company’s investors will be keeping a close eye on how the media and public react to the new Meta name and how the transition plays out. After all, there are billions of dollars at stake.

Name changes are not uncommon, but not always a success. In 2015, Google restructured its company calling its parent firm Alphabet, however, the name has not caught on.

Pieter-Jan is a trilingual T-shaped Marketer and a dynamic, enthusiastic digital native with a creative, strategic, and analytical approach to marketing. Currently he is working as a Marketing Consultant at 4P square, a leading sales & marketing consulting company. 

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