Germany Worries About Monopoly If Quest 2 Headset Can Only Be Used for Facebook and Instagram

Meta Platforms Inc., allowing the use of its virtual reality headset without a Facebook account. (photo: Instagram @zuck)

JAKARTA - Facebook's parent company, Meta Platforms Inc.,  has responded to the concerns of the German cartel office by allowing the use of its virtual reality headset without a Facebook account, the office said on Wednesday, November 23.

The cartel office has been watching Meta closely since last May when it stated that Meta was "critical for competition across markets", a classification that gives regulators more room to curb the market power of digital companies.

In a statement on Wednesday, the cartel's German office said Meta would allow devices to be used with separate Meta accounts, paving the way for it to start selling Quest 2 headsets in Germany. This also applies to the new Quest Pro model. Meta did not immediately reply to a request for comment via email.

The head of the cartel's office in Germany, Andreas Mundt, points to Meta's strong position in social media as well as the growing VR market.

“If the use of VR headsets is only possible for Facebook or Instagram account holders, this could greatly affect competition in both areas,” said Mundt.

Although the headset is available to other users through the Meta account, the German regulator said it will continue to monitor the user's preferred design and issues relating to the aggregation and processing of user data from the Meta service.