The decision to merge Oculus and Facebook accounts was incredibly unpopular. Having to use a Facebook account to log into an Oculus Quest headset turned many off of purchasing one. However, the company could be walking this decision back and allowing Quest users to log into Oculus without a Facebook account.
Will we be able to log into an Oculus Quest without a Facebook account again?
During the Facebook Connect 2021 keynote, CEO Mark Zuckerberg insinuated that the company had heard user feedback concerning combining Oculus and Facebook accounts. He made a statement that could be construed as meaning that things will go back to the way they were before the merge:
“We’re working on making it so you can log into Quest with an account other than your personal Facebook account. We’re starting to test support for work accounts soon, and we’re working on making a broader shift here over the next year.”
Unfortunately, that’s an incredibly non-committal statement. It’s possible that Zuckerberg was referring to using Workplace from Facebook accounts to log into the Quest. We also don’t know what a “broader shift” means. It could indicate that Meta will be launching accounts that aren’t necessarily tied to Facebook.
Facebook continues to be criticized for its lack of accountability, rampant privacy violations, and general disrespect toward public health. In addition, the social media platform has been cited as being a constant source of disinformation, and an increasing amount of users have been pulling the plug on their accounts. Unfortunately, those that want to continue using their Oculus Quest headsets can’t delete their Facebook account, or they’ll lose access to it and all their purchased software. Additionally, Facebook has banned accounts made for the sole purpose of logging into the headset, making it impossible to detangle from the beleaguered company’s increasingly weighty baggage.
Given that much of Facebook’s revenue comes from data harvesting and advertising, we don’t see a complete reversal coming regarding Oculus accounts being tied to Facebook. Instead, there’ll likely be a new variety of account that might be optionally connected to Facebook.
