Products

EMARKETER delivers leading-edge research to clients in a variety of forms, including full-length reports and data visualizations to equip you with actionable takeaways for better business decisions.
PRO+
New data sets, deeper insights, and flexible data visualizations.
Learn More
Reports
In-depth analysis, benchmarks and shorter spotlights on digital trends.
Learn More
Forecasts
Interactive projections with 10k+ metrics on market trends, & consumer behavior.
Learn More
Charts
Proprietary data and over 3,000 third-party sources about the most important topics.
Learn More
Industry KPIs
Industry benchmarks for the most important KPIs in digital marketing, advertising, retail and ecommerce.
Learn More
Briefings
Client-only email newsletters with analysis and takeaways from the daily news.
Learn More
Analyst Access Program
Exclusive time with the thought leaders who craft our research.
Learn More

About EMARKETER

Our goal is to unlock digital opportunities for our clients with the world’s most trusted forecasts, analysis, and benchmarks. Spanning five core coverage areas and dozens of industries, our research on digital transformation is exhaustive.
Our Story
Learn more about our mission and how EMARKETER came to be.
Learn More
Methodology
Rigorous proprietary data vetting strips biases and produces superior insights.
Learn More
Our People
Take a look into our corporate culture and view our open roles.
Join the Team
Contact Us
Speak to a member of our team to learn more about EMARKETER.
Contact Us
Newsroom
See our latest press releases, news articles or download our press kit.
Learn More
Advertising & Sponsorship Opportunities
Reach an engaged audience of decision-makers.
Learn More
Events
Browse our upcoming and past events, recent podcasts, and other featured resources.
Learn More
Podcasts
Tune in to EMARKETER's daily, weekly, and monthly podcasts.
Learn More

Meta reportedly abandons plans to develop its own AR/VR OS, defers to a modded version of Android instead

The news: Meta, Facebook’s parent company, has reportedly pulled the plug on efforts to develop a proprietary AR/VR OS ostensibly to power its metaverse mixed-reality platform.

More on this: A report from The Information reveals Meta had aspired to develop an OS to run the Horizon Worlds VR app from the ground up but opted to continue using a modified version of Google’s Android OS. Meta’s pivot to the metaverse is hinged on the company’s Oculus hardware and also on its AR/VR platform, which currently works through connected smartphones.

  • The project, initially called XROS, had been underway for years and “involved hundreds of employees” before the company suddenly and unexpectedly pulled the plug.
  • By defaulting to an Android-based operating system, Meta can quickly develop and launch apps and experiences within a framework that’s close to an industry standard.
  • Meta’s Oculus owns the consumer VR hardware space. Oculus accounted for 53.5% of extended reality headset shipment share worldwide in 2020, per Counterpoint. 
  • Meta’s VP of Reality Labs Engineering Gabriel Aul tweeted a response to the report, stating “we’re still working on a highly specialized OS for our devices—we remain very much invested in this work and continue to dedicate the resources necessary to build this.”

Why this could backfire: Facebook’s entire rationale for pivoting to Meta and the metaverse was to create its own platform separate from the controls and rules of the internet. 

  • Relying on Android as the basis for its mixed-reality OS could be a missed opportunity to cohesively develop software that works seamlessly with Oculus hardware and apps.
  • Big Tech rivals, like Apple, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon, seeking to compete in the XR space will likely pursue a whole-widget approach—creating their own OS, hardware, and applications—which could provide a better experience than Meta’s Android-dependent solution.