Zuckerberg is proving to us with his own actions that the so-called meta-universe is not a purely profitable business. To make a difference in the meta-universe, not only requires more time and energy, but also a lot of costs in the development of the company. The drastic downsizing of Meta is a direct expression of this phenomenon.

Many believe Meta’s big layoffs were unexpected. The surprise was not just in the scale of the cuts, but also in their abruptness. In the eyes of the outside world, even though Meta’s exploration in the meta-universe is struggling, even though Meta starts to lose the interest of capital, it will not start to lay off employees so quickly and on such a large scale. However, it is these unexpected, ultimately led to the external world on the Meta layoffs “scratching their heads.”

When Meta started laying off employees, it also told us from another aspect that Zuckerberg’s attempt to open up new development through the metacomes, trying to solve the difficulties and problems faced by Facebook itself through the metacomes was nearly bankrupt. While we can still hope for Meta’s future, there is still a long way to go before Meta can truly make a dent in the meta-universe, or even replicate its Facebook glory.

By recounting Zuckerberg’s metacomes, we can get a better idea of what the metacomes were like then and now. Starting from this, we can provide reference for the future development of the metauniverse and open another path of correct development of the metauniverse.

The metaverse, far from reaching the maturity of the Internet

When we talk about Meta, we have to talk about Zuckerberg and its predecessor, Facebook. Because it was Zuckerberg and Facebook that introduced us to Meta, and to the meta-universe. Maybe if it wasn’t for Zuckerberg’s voice, if it wasn’t for Zuckerberg’s full involvement, there wouldn’t have been Meta, nor would there have been the massive layoffs we see today. However, it is having Zuckerberg that makes Meta Meta.

One of the reasons why Zuckerberg is so radical in the battle of the metaverse, and why he is betting all his hopes on the metaverse, is that he once enjoyed all the glory that comes with grasping a tulip. Both the rapid growth of Facebook and the rapid rise of personal wealth are direct manifestations of this phenomenon. It can be said that Zuckerberg shows us with his practical actions that once you grasp a wind, all the development will come naturally.

And so we get to see Zuckerberg’s full gambit on the metaverse. It has to be said that Zuckerberg’s gamble on the metacomverse is the direction of the development of the industry. Because according to the current development situation, the metaverse is indeed an inevitable tuyere, is indeed a future direction of development. If this trend continues, Mr Zuckerberg will be able to replicate his Facebook glory.

However, it wasn’t enough to just see the big picture. Zuckerberg didn’t see the true state of the metaverse at the time. Unlike the maturing of Internet technology and applications during the Facebook era, the current metacomph can be described as a germ of a metacomph. It is more accurate to say that the germ of a metacomph does not exist, but is merely a concept.

If we throw ourselves into the metaverse at such a stage, if we put all our bets on the metaverse at such a stage, we will inevitably face more difficulties and challenges. This is the fundamental reason why we see Meta gaining popularity in the capital market at the beginning and then gradually being abandoned. Because there is a limit to the patience of capital, if only with the naive meta-universe to stonewall capital, is bound to touch a nose ash. Therefore, if we want to review the failure of Meta in the meta-universe, it is undoubtedly one that cannot be ignored if we misestimate the real development state of the meta-universe and only compare it with the Internet in the past.

Metaverse is not a panacea for social gamers

Some time ago, Musk’s acquisition of Twitter caused a lot of discussion. If we analyze the root cause of the acquisition of Twitter, we will find that the traditional sense of the Internet type of social players are suffering from various difficulties and problems, it is certainly worth our attention. For social players like Twitter and Facebook, finding an antidote to their ills is key. If they don’t find a cure, they will inevitably, like Twitter, continue to be acquired.

One of the reasons Zuckerberg is so aggressive about embracing the metaverse, and changing Facebook’s name, is that social gamers are facing increasingly important dilemmas and problems. How to solve the dilemmas and problems that social players face, so that they can break the shackles of their current development and start a new development, is an important topic that every social player must think deeply about. And so, when the metaverse began to emerge, we saw people begin to focus on it and try to find solutions from the metaverse.

I have to say, it is a good choice to solve the pain points and problems faced by social platforms through the meta-universe approach. However, we should also see that social is ultimately a traffic trade, traffic is the lifeblood of social. If we just use the metacomes to solve social pain points and problems, and users don’t buy it, or even don’t care, then the so-called metacomes to solve social problems is a self-pleasing attempt.

In fact, Zuckerberg is entering such a cycle. Different from the emergence of Facebook to solve people’s social pain points in the past, Meta has made little progress in solving the problem of social pain points. Instead, it just uses the meta universe as a tool to harvest users and traffic. A hint of this can be seen in the high price Meta has posted.

Although Meta’s headdisplay can solve users’ social pain points to a certain extent, its high price prevents many users. When users stop using meta-universe products released by Meta, then the so-called meta-universe may simply become a game for the capital market. Meanwhile, capital markets are still starting to see how much return they can get on their investments. If users don’t pay, then the practice of such a metaverse is tantamount to a self-congratulation.

It can be seen that although the meta-universe provides us with ways and methods to solve social pain points and problems, if the user’s threshold cannot be lowered and the meta-universe is simply viewed from the perspective of the meta-universe, then the so-called meta-universe is undoubtedly a game of self-enjoyment carried out by admirers represented by Zuckerberg. It’s not a real solution to the pain points and problems of social gamers.

Metaverse, not everyone’s plaything

Even in the current market context, we still see so many players jumping into the meta-universe. Among these players, there are losers in the Internet era, entrepreneurs with dreams of making money, and traditional players who are unwilling to be left behind. Everyone talks about the metaverse, everything can be metaverse, it has become a trend and trend. For a moment, the metaverse seemed to be everyone’s plaything.

It has to be said that the metaverse can indeed bring us great development; It has to be said that the metaverse can indeed bring us great wealth; It has to be said that the metaverse can solve many of our problems. However, this does not mean that the metaverse is omnipotent, much less that it is something that everyone can do. The metaverse, in short, is not everyone’s plaything.

Zuckerberg’s failure proves this point once again. Once upon a time, Zuckerberg saw the metaverse as the antidote to save Facebook’s troubles and win over the capital market. However, the harsh reality has told him that the so-called metaverse is not just a concept, let alone a gimmick, nor is it a big cake that only one company can eat alone. To do a good job in the meta-universe, to let the meta-universe truly on the right track of development, and to let the meta-universe get rid of its dependence on the capital market, it needs the joint efforts and support of many parties.

To put it bluntly, the meta-universe is not a existence that everyone can do, and the meta-universe is not a existence that everyone can say. What it tests is the comprehensive strength of players, and what it tests is the scale advantage of players. If one player, even a giant like Facebook, wants to eat the pie of the metaverse alone, it won’t be able to. Therefore, the so-called meta-universe is not everyone’s “plaything”, let alone everyone can do the “Spring and Autumn dream”. Only by truly standing in a larger perspective, only by looking at the metaverse from a broader vision, and looking for the development of the metaverse, can the development of the metaverse be brought into the right development track.

This is the fundamental reason why we later see Zuckerberg reuniting with Microsoft, his onetime rival in the metaverse market.

conclusion

I have to say, we admire Zuckerberg’s courage; I have to say, we admire Zuckerberg’s vision. However, in the real battlefield of business, it takes more than courage and vision to succeed. A hint of this can be found in Zuckerberg’s chequered relationship with the metacomes.

When the metaverse can’t give Zuckerberg what he wants, when the metaverse can’t make the capital market interested in Zuckerberg, when the metaverse can’t give Zuckerberg a cure, then the metaverse becomes Zuckerberg’s “short dream”.

As Meta begins its massive layoffs, it may be time for Zuckerberg to wake up to his cosmic dreams. But isn’t it a new beginning?