New Oculus users will need a Facebook account in order to access their VR headsets, starting this October – and existing users will have until 2023 to make the mandatory switch if they require “full functionality” of their device.
According to a blog post shared by Oculus earlier today, anyone using an Oculus device for the first time from October this year will need to log in with a Facebook account. Things are a little different for existing users, however.
From October, those that currently use an Oculus account will have the option to merge it with a Facebook account. Those that remain determined to avoid Facebook and its dubious privacy practices as far as possible, though, will be able to continue using their device as they do now, without merging their accounts, for two years.
Come 1st January 2023, however, Oculus account support will end, limiting the device’s functionality for non-migratory users in currently unspecified ways.
Oculus, which is owned by Facebook, claims this move to a single account log-in will – alongside numerous other supposed social benefits – “make it easier to find, connect, and play with friends in VR”. However, the less-than-stellar immediate response to the announcement by Oculus users on social media suggests many view it as nothing more than a nefarious attempt by Facebook to hoover more individuals up into its data-siphoning ecosystem.