Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s CEO, spoke during the virtual Facebook Connect event, where the company announced its rebranding as Meta, in New York on October 28, 2021.
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Meta, a former Facebook spokeswoman, said her big ambition to build the ultimate “metaverse” would not be possible without drastic improvements in today’s telecommunications networks.
The metaverse is a buzzword that is being touted as the next big thing in technology. Generally speaking, the concept refers to a seamless virtual world where people can work, shop and play with their colleagues, friends and family.
Dan Rabinowitz, vice president of connectivity at Meta, told CNBC at Monday’s Mobile World Congress technical event that home and cellular networks are not yet ready for the metaverse.
“We are working closely with our colleagues to consider what the next step is in terms of innovation,” he said, adding that Meta also works with cellular partners.
“If you really look at the pace of innovation in the world of telecoms, compared to other markets, it’s harder to move faster in this space,” Rabinovica said. “One of the things we’ve tried to change is this innovation trajectory.”
Although a true metauniverse does not yet exist, there are some early projects underway that give an idea of what it is all about. Meta Oculus Virtual Reality Headphones are hailed as an entrance to some of these new experiences in the metaverse. But experiences require low latency and higher upload and download speeds.
“We need to develop a common language about network performance,” Rabinowitz said. “We actually really believe in measurement as fundamental in this next phase of work.”
Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Meta, said in a statement Sunday that “creating a real sense of presence in the virtual worlds supplied with smart glasses and VR headsets will require huge advances in connectivity.”
Zuckerberg said it would have to be “bigger than any of the changes in steps we’ve seen before,” adding that things like large-scale immersive video streaming would require entirely new types of networks.
In response, AT&T Executive Vice President David Christopher told CNBC that 5G is being implemented faster than 4G, adding that there is “huge investment between operators.”
He argues that networks already offer low latency, constant speeds and high capacity. “This will only improve over the next decade to sustain many uses in many industries, including immersion and meta-universe experiences,” Christopher said.
“However, Metaverse will evolve, it will depend on innovation and interoperability in many sectors, with enhanced 5G connectivity being an essential element.”