Meta this week reported its earnings for the third quarter. Analysts’ attention has been centred around the figures from Facebook’s Reality Labs (FRL) division, which includes augmented and virtual reality operations. As it turns out, this quarter’s revenue was only $285 million, instead of the expected $406 million.
The division lost $3.7 billion compared to a $2.8 billion loss in the second quarter. Despite these disappointing numbers, the company promises significant revenue growth in this area next year.
Mark Zuckerberg remained optimistic about the Metaverse, though he acknowledged concerns about Meta’s direction. He admitted that he did not put enough effort into the development of the metaverse, and that next year he will correct this.
Meanwhile, amid the report’s release, Meta shares fell more than 15% in over-the-counter trading on Wednesday. The stock is down over 60% this year.