Facebook Is Paying $2 Billion To Acquire Oculus VR, The Creators of the Oculus Rift Virtual Reality Headset

Facebook has announced plans to acquire Oculus VR, the company behind the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset, for $2 billion. Oculus VR will continue to work independently within Facebook, and the company will also retain its headquarters in Irvine, California. Details remain light at the moment, but Mark Zuckerberg has posted on Facebook about the acquisition, as has Oculus VR. Facebook will be hosting a webcast and conference call about the acquisition at 3:15 PM PDT.

At first glance, it might not seem obvious why Oculus is partnering with Facebook, a company focused on connecting people, investing in internet access for the world and pushing an open computing platform. But when you consider it more carefully, we’re culturally aligned with a focus on innovating and hiring the best and brightest; we believe communication drives new platforms; we want to contribute to a more open, connected world; and we both see virtual reality as the next step.