Mixed-reality technology, which fuses virtual spaces with the real world, could take years to become a consumer product, Facebook parent company Meta told ad agencies on Thursday.
Mixed reality technology allows users wearing mixed reality devices to use real-world objects to trigger reactions in the virtual world, such as hitting a video game character with a real-world baseball bat.
Mixed reality technology is one of three reality expansion technologies associated with the Metaverse. Augmented reality does exist, as is the case with mobile games like Pokémon, but players cannot influence the digital world with real objects.
A virtual reality device like Meta’s Oculus allows users to immerse themselves in a virtual world but is completely isolated from the real world.
Meta made the remarks during an online conference call with advertising companies on Thursday. The purpose of the meeting is to help advertisers better understand Meta’s metaverse business, said an executive from an ad agency that attended. This is the first time Meta has had public discussions with various institutions regarding the Metaverse business.
The metaverse that Meta wants to build would allow users to access a network of virtual worlds from different devices, which could take a decade. And the estimate that mixed reality will take several years to achieve also provides more details on the development path of the Metaverse.
Some mixed reality devices are already on the market, but there are no products for the average consumer yet. Microsoft’s Hololens 2, which launched in 2019, retails for $3,500 and is intended primarily for the workplace.
At its annual Connect conference last October, Meta introduced a device called Project Cambria that supports mixed reality technology and also has a face and eye-tracking. The device is expected to be released this year.
Meta continues to advise advertisers to try out augmented reality ads, where digital images are superimposed on the real world through cameras and video filters, the executive of the ad agency attending the conference said. The comments reiterated Meta’s position at ad industry conferences.
Meta said brands could partner with content creators to create augmented reality ads or use the technology for virtual clothing try-on.
The ad agency executive said the meeting did not detail what the format of ads in the Metaverse would look like or what specific controls would be in place to prevent inappropriate content in ads.
Advertisers at the conference are also focusing on the details of how to measure the effectiveness of Metaverse ads, the executive said, asking “What can I get for the money I put in?”