Facebook’s parent company Meta recently launched an online avatar store that includes clothing and other accessories for users’ digital avatars. Prada, Balenciaga and Thom Browne will be the first digital clothing brands to be introduced by Meta. Mark Zuckerberg said on his official Facebook account, “We’re launching our Avatar Store on Facebook, Instagram and Messenger so you can buy digital clothes to style your avatar.” He adds, “The digital goods will be an important way to express ourselves as a major driver of the metaverse and the creative economy.” Buying clothes for avatars will help users to express themselves. Also, it will get some money for the company.
Need a new fit for your avatar? We’re launching our avatar store on Facebook, Instagram and Messenger so you can buy digital clothes. Mark Zuckerberg and @evachen212 tried a new look from @BALENCIAGA @prada @thombrown Ihttps://t.co/7SN0hdYz2D pic.twitter.com/Bp9zeK2ZNl
— Meta Newsroom (@MetaNewsroom) June 17, 2022
Meta is trying to improve the appearance of its avatars to create a “metaverse”. Earlier this year, the internet giant upgraded its avatars for Facebook and Messenger and added 3D avatars to Instagram. Now, avatars have faces, skin tone, and accessibility tools.
The Meta Avatar Store will be available on Facebook, Instagram and Facebook Messenger. This will allow users to spend real-world money to buy clothes in the digital world. Initially, the Meta Avatar Store will be available to users in the US, Canada, Thailand and Mexico.
The new initiative has drawn a lot of criticism online. One person wrote, “Boycott PRADA, BALENCIAGA, ThomBrowne for entering into such a stupid partnership with such a stupid company.” Another person wrote, “Sadly this crap will do more to get people to move on. [Redacted] likes to decorate things that aren’t real.” Here are some of the responses:
The point of clothes in the virtual world is to live out the fantasies. like dragon avatar with sexy fairy clothes
This ain’t soft corporate bullshit https://t.co/yUgZF2OMXp
— samarium-kalium (@SummeriumOEP) June 19, 2022
This is so dumb and embarrassing. I can’t wait for Facebook and Meta to fail. https://t.co/UhxCglLrhl
— Chris Sturr (@ChrisSturr) June 19, 2022
Nobody wants this. https://t.co/FMLtl7k9F4
— Dave Troy (@davetroy) June 19, 2022
It is noteworthy that Balenciaga, Prada and Thom Browne agreed to this. https://t.co/hmWl7eAU2y
— David Grunwald (@st_eppel) June 19, 2022
I can’t express enough to you how much I hate the fact that they used Mark’s face as a model. https://t.co/tvP1h1LHV3
— Lightning Larry Lu-Shea-Ano (@RealSlimSheady_) 18 June 2022
the future has come and it’s so sad$meta https://t.co/fxObEc9uAM
— Rick Baumstein (@baumstein rick) 18 June 2022
The development comes as shares of the Facebook owner recently fell more than 20 percent. This comes after the social media company posted a weaker-than-expected forecast, blaming Apple’s changes to privacy and increasing competition for users from rivals such as TikTok. Facebook’s global daily active users declined from 1.930 billion to 1.929 billion for the first time last quarter.
The 18-year-old tech giant, which also faces pressure from platforms such as TikTok and Google’s YouTube, said the coming quarter is likely to see a growing competition for users’ time and lack of engagement towards such features. Revenue growth is expected to slow in the quarter. Video offering reel, which generates less revenue. Facebook reported 2.91 billion monthly active users in the fourth quarter, showing no growth compared to the previous quarter.
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