According to a new report from The Verge, Facebook will soon place ads within Oculus Quest apps. Over the next several weeks, ads will begin appearing in games like Blaston from Resolution Games in addition to two other apps that have yet to be named. Facebook says that they will "expand" the system based on user feedback. It claims that they are aiming to create a "self-sustaining platform" for VR development.
This isn't even the first time Facebook added ads to the VR ecosystem. Just last month, the privacy-last company added ads to the Oculus mobile app. It has also been using data obtained from the Oculus ecosystem to have targeted Facebook advertising since 2019. However, this is the first time they're pushing ads into apps themselves.
For now, this is a test with a few apps—once we see how this test goes and incorporate feedback from developers and the community, we’ll provide more details on when ads may become more broadly available across the Oculus Platform and in the Oculus mobile app, as well as guidance for businesses and developers interested in advertising on Oculus. We’re eager to hear what you think, so please feel free to reach out to Oculus Support to share your feedback.
Do note that nowhere in this announcement is any indication that they will do away with this system based on feedback. So while you are free to "reach out to Oculus Support to share your feedback," you can safely assume that your opinion, as a consumer, will be thrown away. Facebook is more than likely only looking to expand this system and will more than likely only take feedback from developers under consideration.
Facebook says that they are not changing how it collects or analyzes user data. You can also take some solace in the fact that Facebook says they have no plans to target ads based on user movement data or recordings from its voice assistant. Other data such as raw images from headset cameras, body weight, and height information are also not accessible (yet) by Facebook. Everything else though goes to them.
A spokesperson from Facebook says that the system will use information from your Facebook profile.
A Facebook spokesperson says the system will use information from your Facebook profile, as well as “whether you’ve viewed content, installed, activated, or subscribed to a Oculus app, added an app to your cart or wishlist, if you’ve initiated checkout or purchased an app on the Oculus platform, and lastly, whether you’ve viewed, hovered, saved, or clicked on an ad within a third-party app.â€
