Facebook Changes Name To Meta

Mark Zuckerberg (Source: Qz)

JAKARTA - Facebook's new name has been announced. Mark Zuckerberg's company will change its name to Meta.

This name change means that Facebook is no longer the name of the company as a whole - which originally also supervised Instagram and WhatsApp - but only a subsidiary brand that operates the social media service of the same name.

Zuckerberg made this announcement in person in the midst of the Facebook Connect virtual reality and augmented reality conference. According to Zuckerberg, this is in line with his growing focus towards the metaverse, which refers to efforts to combine virtual and augmented reality technology in new online realms.

In addition to better reflecting the company's future ambitions, rebranding is also seen as effective in overhauling Facebook's reputation, after a series of nightmares about managing the company, failing content moderation, and pressure about Facebook's negative effects on the mental health of some users.

"I've been thinking a lot about our identity as we begin the next chapter. Facebook is one of the most widely used products in the history of the world," Zuckerberg said, quoted by CNN, Thursday, October 28 local time.

According to Zuckerberg, although Facebook is an iconic social media brand, Facebook's brand image never really describes what he and the rest of the team do.

"Today we are seen as a social media company ... but in our DNA we are a company that builds technology to connect people. And the metaverse is the next frontier, just like social networks were when we started."