Meta Platforms, the parent company of the world's biggest social media network, Facebook, is planning to develop its own cryptocurrencies and virtual tokens for its suite of products, the Financial Times reported.
The plan – which is being referred to internally as "Zuck Bucks", a reference to Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg – comes as the California-based company tries to leverage the metaverse and develop new alternative revenue streams in view of the waning popularity of its apps, the FT said, citing people familiar with the plans.
If implemented, Zuck Bucks could give Meta control over transactions in its family of services, which include Facebook, photo-sharing app Instagram, messaging platform WhatsApp and the Meta Quest virtual reality platform.
But Meta's planned virtual currencies, which are being handled by its financial unit Meta Financial Technologies, may not be based on blockchain – the technology that underpins Bitcoin – and are intended for the metaverse, the report said.
The planned in-app tokens would be centrally controlled by Meta, similar to the Robux currency used in the popular game Roblox, which can either be bought via the app or received as a reward or by selling in-game items.
Company memos and those with knowledge of the plans suggest that Meta is also considering making so-called “social tokens” or “reputation tokens”, which may be distributed as "rewards for meaningful contributions in Facebook groups", according to the FT. Another idea is to make “creator coins” associated with particular influencers on Instagram.
Most of the plans are in the early planning stages of planning and could yet be altered or dropped altogether. Plans to introduce non-fungible tokens are more developed.
Mr Zuckerberg previously confirmed that Meta is planning to introduce NFTs to Instagram, while a pilot programme for its use on Facebook is also in the works; both are expected to be implemented soon. Supporting e-commerce on its platform is also among Meta's plans to create other sources of revenue.
NFTs are virtual assets that are unique, cannot be replaced with others and can be sent to other digital wallets. Like Bitcoin, their quantity is limited and could potentially add to its value. Meta could monetise these through fees or ads, the report said.
The metaverse – the emerging digital space that allows those in it to communicate and move using three-dimensional avatars or digital representations – is seen as the future of interaction and is being highly touted by Meta.
The value of the global metaverse market is projected to reach about $1.61 trillion in 2030 and at a compound annual growth rate of 43.3 per cent over the forecast period, according to a report from Emergen Research this week.
This will driven by key factors such as rising demand for apps and products based on virtual, augmented and mixed reality, plus the increasing focus on the convergence of digital/virtual and physical worlds, it said.
Facebook in February reported weaker-than-expected earnings in its fiscal fourth quarter and data showed it had lost daily users for the first time in its 18-year history. Net profit dropped more than 8 per cent annually to $10.2 billion but was about 11 per cent up on a quarterly basis. This caused the company's share price to plunge 20 per cent.
Shares of Facebook closed down 3.68 per cent on Wednesday.
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TEAMS
US Team
Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth
Justin Thomas, Daniel Berger
Brooks Koepka, Rickie Fowler
Kevin Kisner, Patrick Reed
Matt Kuchar, Kevin Chappell
Charley Hoffman*, Phil Mickelson*
International Team
Hideki Matsuyama, Jason Day
Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen
Marc Leishman, Charl Schwartzel
Branden Grace, Si Woo Kim
Jhonattan Vegas, Adam Hadwin
Emiliano Grillo*, Anirban Lahiri*
* denotes captain's picks
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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
MATCH INFO
Maratha Arabians 107-8 (10 ovs)
Lyth 21, Lynn 20, McClenaghan 20 no
Qalandars 60-4 (10 ovs)
Malan 32 no, McClenaghan 2-9
Maratha Arabians win by 47 runs
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Country-size land deals
US interest in purchasing territory is not as outlandish as it sounds. Here's a look at some big land transactions between nations:
Louisiana Purchase
If Donald Trump is one who aims to broker "a deal of the century", then this was the "deal of the 19th Century". In 1803, the US nearly doubled in size when it bought 2,140,000 square kilometres from France for $15 million.
Florida Purchase Treaty
The US courted Spain for Florida for years. Spain eventually realised its burden in holding on to the territory and in 1819 effectively ceded it to America in a wider border treaty.
Alaska purchase
America's spending spree continued in 1867 when it acquired 1,518,800 km2 of Alaskan land from Russia for $7.2m. Critics panned the government for buying "useless land".
The Philippines
At the end of the Spanish-American War, a provision in the 1898 Treaty of Paris saw Spain surrender the Philippines for a payment of $20 million.
US Virgin Islands
It's not like a US president has never reached a deal with Denmark before. In 1917 the US purchased the Danish West Indies for $25m and renamed them the US Virgin Islands.
Gwadar
The most recent sovereign land purchase was in 1958 when Pakistan bought the southwestern port of Gwadar from Oman for 5.5bn Pakistan rupees.
The winners
Fiction
- ‘Amreekiya’ by Lena Mahmoud
- ‘As Good As True’ by Cheryl Reid
The Evelyn Shakir Non-Fiction Award
- ‘Syrian and Lebanese Patricios in Sao Paulo’ by Oswaldo Truzzi; translated by Ramon J Stern
- ‘The Sound of Listening’ by Philip Metres
The George Ellenbogen Poetry Award
- ‘Footnotes in the Order of Disappearance’ by Fady Joudah
Children/Young Adult
- ‘I’ve Loved You Since Forever’ by Hoda Kotb
Red Joan
Director: Trevor Nunn
Starring: Judi Dench, Sophie Cookson, Tereza Srbova
Rating: 3/5 stars
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Final scores
18 under: Tyrrell Hatton (ENG)
- 14: Jason Scrivener (AUS)
-13: Rory McIlroy (NIR)
-12: Rafa Cabrera Bello (ESP)
-11: David Lipsky (USA), Marc Warren (SCO)
-10: Tommy Fleetwood (ENG), Chris Paisley (ENG), Matt Wallace (ENG), Fabrizio Zanotti (PAR)
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
