Meta's Quest Pro VR headset was launched with a high price tag, which was even more expensive than the high-end Apple iPhone and Samsung Galaxy devices. Bloomberg
Meta's Quest Pro VR headset was launched with a high price tag, which was even more expensive than the high-end Apple iPhone and Samsung Galaxy devices. Bloomberg
Meta's Quest Pro VR headset was launched with a high price tag, which was even more expensive than the high-end Apple iPhone and Samsung Galaxy devices. Bloomberg
Meta Platforms, the parent company of social media giants Facebook and Instagram, has cut the prices of its Quest virtual and mixed-reality headsets, in a move to boost lagging sales.
The company cut the price of the high-end Quest Pro by a third to $1,000 from $1,500, while the Quest 2 is now down to $430 from $500, a 14 per cent reduction, the California-based company said in a blog post on Friday.
"Our goal has always been to create hardware that’s affordable for as many people as possible to take advantage of all that VR has to offer," Meta said.
"VR is a powerful social platform and creative technology, and the more people with access to it, the better."
The price changes will take effect on Sunday in 20 countries, the company said.
Meta's push into VR is part of chief executive Mark Zuckerberg's vision of a widely digital future, and key to his broader plans for the metaverse.
The metaverse, based on Web3, is the virtual space where people represented by avatars can interact. It is also poised to reshape workplaces and businesses by using new techniques to streamline operations.
The global VR market is projected to hit $227.34 billion by 2029, from an estimated $16.67 billion in 2022, at a compound annual growth rate of more than 45 per cent, according to Fortune Business Insights.
The price cut for the Quest Pro, in particular, comes a few months after it was released, in October. It was geared towards a higher-end market, with Mr Zuckerberg having touted it to the media as a "work-focused" device.
However, it still had a high price tag. Its original cost was more expensive than the highest-end Apple iPhone and Samsung Galaxy S devices.
The Quest 2, meanwhile, was launched in 2020, before Facebook was rebranded to Meta. While it became popular with its more affordable price tag, selling more than 15 million units, sales fell in 2022.
That resulted in Meta's Reality Labs unit, which manages its VR and metaverse operations, to lose $13.7 billion in 2022, with revenue in the fourth quarter alone declining 17 per cent on an annual basis.
In either case, VR headsets remain a niche market. Even Mr Zuckerberg's metaverse worlds have received criticism for being underdeveloped and underwhelming.
Companies should ensure their trademarks and unique assets are protected in the virtual world and in the metaverse. Khushnum Bhandari / The National
Brig Jassim Al Antali, from the Abu Dhabi Police Academy, says the growth of the metaverse creates a need for proper legal mechanisms to resolve issues that may arise. AFP
The metaverse has a dark side and it needs regulation, legislation and execution procedures, such as how to arrest a person in virtual reality, Brig Al Antali said. EPA
Tech champions believe the metaverse is the next version of the internet and will reshape our world. EPA
Officers in Ajman have been trained in how to use the metaverse. Photo: Ajman Police
Inside Metatut is the first Egyptian city in the metaverse, based on the idea that King Tutankhamun has come back to life to complete what he dreamt he would accomplish in Egypt
Istituto Marangoni opened its own space in the metaverse, called The Talent District. Photo: Istituto Marangoni
The UAE experienced the first metaverse wedding, orchestrated from the UAE by Easy Wedding co-founders Florian Ughetto and Liz Nunez
For meta or worse, the 'couple' were married virtually, with guests including friends and family from all over the world – the groom’s parents from France and the bride’s parents from Paraguay
Meta's struggles were reflected last month when it reported a 55 per cent annual drop in fourth-quarter net profit, underpinned by escalating costs and a decrease in the average price per advertisement. The company posted a net profit of more than $4.6 billion in three months ended December.
The cost-cutting measures include pushing some managers into lower-level roles,flattening the layers of management between Mr Zuckerberg and the company’s interns, thePost said, citing an unnamed source.
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
Porsche Taycan Turbo specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
T20s 52; Runs 1,456; 100s 1; 50s 7; Avg 31.65; Best 116 not out
The studios taking part (so far)
Punch
Vogue Fitness
Sweat
Bodytree Studio
The Hot House
The Room
Inspire Sports (Ladies Only)
Cryo
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
THE BIO
Bio Box
Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul
Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader
Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Warner 151 not out, Burns 97, Labuschagne 55 not out
Pakistan 240
Shafiq 76, Starc 4-52
Men’s singles
Group A: Son Wan-ho (Kor), Lee Chong Wei (Mas), Ng Long Angus (HK), Chen Long (Chn) Group B: Kidambi Srikanth (Ind), Shi Yugi (Chn), Chou Tien Chen (Tpe), Viktor Axelsen (Den)
Women’s Singles
Group A: Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn), Pusarla Sindhu (Ind), Sayaka Sato (Jpn), He Bingjiao (Chn) Group B: Tai Tzu Ying (Tpe), Sung Hi-hyun (Kor), Ratchanok Intanon (Tha), Chen Yufei (Chn)
Heavily-sugared soft drinks slip through the tax net
Some popular drinks with high levels of sugar and caffeine have slipped through the fizz drink tax loophole, as they are not carbonated or classed as an energy drink.
Arizona Iced Tea with lemon is one of those beverages, with one 240 millilitre serving offering up 23 grams of sugar - about six teaspoons.
A 680ml can of Arizona Iced Tea costs just Dh6.
Most sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, five teaspoons of sugar in a 500ml bottle.
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Scoreline
Switzerland 5
Motori Profile
Date started: March 2020
Co-founder/CEO: Ahmed Eissa
Based: UAE, Abu Dhabi
Sector: Insurance Sector
Size: 50 full-time employees (Inside and Outside UAE)
Stage: Seed stage and seeking Series A round of financing
Investors: Safe City Group
Dubai Rugby Sevens
November 30, December 1-2
International Vets
Christina Noble Children’s Foundation fixtures
Thursday, November 30:
10.20am, Pitch 3, v 100 World Legends Project
1.20pm, Pitch 4, v Malta Marauders
Friday, December 1:
9am, Pitch 4, v SBA Pirates
AUSTRALIA SQUAD
Aaron Finch (captain), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Ashton Turner, Andrew Tye, David Warner, Adam Zampa
