Meta Inc. announces new virtual reality login system

Meta has been pushing to integrate its accounts to give users cross–app functionality

Meta Platforms Inc. will roll out its new “Meta Accounts”. This will bring about a change in how users log onto Meta’s virtual reality headsets. The social media giant already planned to remove the Facebook login requirement last year after a backlash from users who had earlier accessed the headsets using separate accounts from Oculus, the virtual reality company that Meta, then known as Facebook, acquired in 2014. The new login structure will control the device-level access and manage app purchases, while Meta Horizon profiles will represent the users’ social presence in virtual reality, with associated user names and avatars, the company said in a blog post.

Users will also have the option to connect their profiles in a unified Meta Accounts Center, which will integrate existing social connections from Facebook, Instagram, or Messenger into their virtual reality experiences, it said. For accounts not added to the Accounts Center, the company will only combine user data across apps for counting users and enforcing safety rules. Meta has been pushing to integrate its accounts and other products across its “family of apps,” which gives users cross-app functionality while enabling the company to consolidate data about their behavior in different environments.