Facebook has bought the virtual reality technology firm Oculus VR for $2bn [£1.2bn], it revealed on Tuesday.
In a surprise announcement, the social networking company said it had paid $400m in cash and the rest in more than 23m shares, currently worth $1.6bn [£970m], plus an additional $300m pegged to future performance.
A detailed company statement said that Facebook recognised how Oculus had built a solid following among game developers, but that virtual reality technology would expand to other industries from communications and entertainment to education and media.
“Mobile is the platform of today, and now we’re also getting ready for the platforms of tomorrow,” said Facebook founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg. “Oculus has the chance to create the most social platform ever, and change the way we work, play and communicate.”
Oculus will remain in its base at Irvine in California while the transaction closes in the second quarter of the year. The company has just announced the Dev Kit 2 version of the Rift headset, complete with high definition displays and better head-tracking hardware. The company says it has also eliminated motion blur and judder, which should significantly reduce motion sickness in users – a vital element in ensuring wider consumer use for the device.
“We are excited to work with Mark and the Facebook team to deliver the very best virtual reality platform in the world,” said Brendan Iribe, co-founder and CEO of Oculus VR. “We believe virtual reality will be heavily defined by social experiences that connect people in magical, new ways. It is a transformative and disruptive technology, that enables the world to experience the impossible, and it’s only just the beginning.”
Source By: http://www.theguardian.com