Facebook has been embroiled in controversies for the past few years with issues raised about how it deals with data privacy, security, how its algorithm functions, and so on. Most recently, former employee-turned-whistleblower Frances Haugen leaked a bunch of company documents and even testified in Congress about how Facebook"s main aim is to maximize profit, even if it harms its platform"s users.
A new report has now surfaced, claiming that Facebook is considering rebranding. This information comes from The Verge, which has cited a source with direct knowledge of the matter. Essentially, Facebook wants to be known for something other than the social media platform of the same name. It"s highly possible that the new name will reflect its recent focus on the Metaverse, a new initiative that the company has been actively hiring for.
While the concept is still in infancy, the Metaverse would allow people to put on their headsets and come together to create, shop, learn, play, work or just hang out with friends in a virtual world. Facebook sees this space as having a more organic feel to it as it emulates real-life interactions.
Splitting off as a parent company with a dedicated brand name would also make sense from a hierarchical point of view. The newly formed parent company would oversee platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Oculus, and more.
The move would not be too different from Google when it split off its parent company as Alphabet, or Snapchat which rebranded to Snap Inc. and then released multiple different products without being bound by the "chat" aspect.
The report claims that Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg will talk about the rebranding at the company"s event on October 28 but it"s possible that it may happen sooner. Additionally, the new name is apparently being kept a secret even from many members of the senior leadership team. That said, it is important to note that Facebook has obviously not confirmed any of this information so it is advisable to consider it with a grain of salt.