Meta takes one step closer to acquiring VR fitness app Within: report

U.S. District Court Denies FTC Motion

US Meta (former Facebook) has taken a step forward to acquire VR (virtual reality) app maker “Within Unlimited”. Bloomberg and others reported.

In July 2022, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a lawsuit seeking an injunction against Meta’s acquisition of Within, accusing it of violating antitrust laws. Now, however, the FTC’s allegations have been dismissed by a US federal district court, making the acquisition possible.

A judge has ordered Meta to hold off on the acquisition for a week. This is to give the FTC time to decide whether to appeal the ruling.

Within is an independent VR development studio that designs and develops Supernatural, a popular fitness app powered by Meta’s VR devices.

In filing the lawsuit, John Newman, deputy director of the FTC’s competition division, argued that Meta seeks to pave its way to the top through corporate acquisitions, rather than trying to compete on product value. It is an acquisition.”

It also alleges that if the acquisition is approved, it would hinder innovation, reduce consumer choice, reduce competitive pressure, and violate antitrust laws. In response, Meta commented, “We are confident that the acquisition of Within will be good for users, developers, and the VR space.”

Relation: Metaverse division of US Meta, 380 billion yen deficit = 2Q results

2010 4Q financial report

Meta reported its financial results for the fourth quarter of 2022 (October-December) on the 1st. Revenue in 4Q 2022 was down 4% year-on-year to about 4 trillion yen ($32.17 billion), and for the full year of 2022, it was down 1% year-on-year to about 15 trillion yen ($116.61 billion). announced that.

Relation: NY Dow, cryptocurrency-related stocks all-around high FOMC interest rate hike narrowed

He explained that this was also due to the impact of exchange rate fluctuations. If the exchange rate were the same as the previous year, it would have increased by 2% year-on-year in the fourth quarter and 4% year-on-year for the full year, he added.

Facebook’s daily active users averaged 2 billion in December 2022, an increase of 4% from the previous year. In addition, ad impressions delivered through Meta’s app increased 23% year-on-year in 4Q, while ad unit prices fell 22% year-on-year. For the full year, ad impressions were up 18% year-on-year, while ad unit prices were down 16% year-over-year.

Meta’s sales have exceeded analyst forecasts, and the company’s announcement of a share repurchase of approximately 5 trillion yen ($40 billion) has also been appreciated, prompting the stock to temporarily rise to 18 in U.S. after-hours trading. increased by more than 10%.

Metaverse division continues to lose

On the other hand, Reality Labs, the metaverse business unit, posted an operating loss of approximately 550 billion yen ($4.28 billion) in the fourth quarter. The total loss for the whole of 2022 has reached about 1.8 trillion yen ($13.72 billion).

Reality Labs’ 4Q sales were about 93 billion yen ($727 million). Overall sales for 2022 were about ¥280 billion ($2.16 billion), down from about ¥290 billion ($2.27 billion) for the entire 2021.

Meta is predicting in advance that losses will increase due to upfront investment in the Metaverse. As of October 2010, he said, “For FY2023, we expect Reality Labs’ operating loss to increase significantly compared to the previous year.”

Beyond 2024, the company plans to adjust the pace of investment in Reality Labs with the goal of increasing the operating profit of the company as a whole over the long term.

In October 2010, Meta announced the new virtual reality headset “Meta Quest Pro” for businesses. The price was about 190,000 yen ($1,500), which is more expensive than the conventional model, but just three months after its release, the price was reduced by $400 as a limited-time sale (UK and US only).

The post Meta takes one step closer to acquiring VR fitness app Within: report appeared first on Our Bitcoin News.