Some users have been locked out of their brand new Oculus Quest 2 device, thanks to the Facebook account merger.
As previously reported, Oculus announced that users would need to merge their account with a Facebook account from October 2020. If a user does not merge their accounts, they continue using their Oculus account for two years (with support for those accounts ending January 1st 2023).
Judging by the comments to both the tweet and the blog post– users were not happy. Many accused Facebook of inflating their user numbers via merging accounts (or users having to create new ones), and concerns over the privacy of the social media platform.
Several have stated they will switch to competitors, or demand a refund [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. One user even prompted a response from VR rival HTC Vive on Twitter.
Facebook also confirmed those who violate their Community Standards and have their account banned “may also lose access” to their Oculus games. These violations also included using a fake name or date of birth. Even so, Road to VR reported “the company says that users can choose a pseudonym to associate with their VR activities and maintain a list of VR friends that is separate from their Facebook friends.”
Now, with the launch of Oculus Quest 2 on October 13th- and the headset needing a Facebook account– fresh problems have arisen for users.
Editor’s Note: Thanks to EuroGamer for most of the Reddit links below.
According to the Oculus subreddit, users soon found themselves unable to access the device for being banned from Facebook, and users having created a new Facebook just for playing Quest 2 being banned with 10 minutes or immediately disabled [1, 2, 3] (losing access to their device).
One user needed to reactivate an old Facebook account by verifying several questions, only to be told they needed to verify a log-in attempt 51 years prior, before they were born. Another accidentally linked their younger brother’s Facebook to their Oculus account, and found themselves unable to unlink them.
While at least one user refunded their Quest 2, the situation is seemingly not wide spread. The majority of posts on the subreddit at this time of writing are discussing the device and games in general, though many are also complaining about the Facebook merging not working, and concerns about data-collection and privacy. At least one user had their issue resolved.
One user called on users to complain to the FTC. Another highlighted a report by VR Final, wherein the US House of Representatives “Investigation of Competition in Digital Markets Majority Staff Report and Recommendations” may mean the Facebook login requirement is anti-competitive.
The 449 page report stated Facebook “maintained and expanded its dominance through a series of acquisitions of companies it viewed as competitive threats, and selectively excluded competitors from using its platform to insulate itself from competitive pressure.”
Though its “data advantage,” the report claims Facebook would then identify competitive threats to “acquire, copy, or kill.” Upon achieving dominance, it then allegedly “selectively enforced its platform policies based on whether it perceived other companies as competitive threats. In doing so, it advantaged its own services while weakening other firms.”
A tweet from Oculus Support stated “We’re aware a small number of customers are having trouble using Quest 2 with their Facebook accounts. If you’re one of the few who’s having trouble getting set up, we’re ready and available to help.”
While encouraging users to start a support ticket, many replied to the tweet; critisizing the speed and quality of the support, as well as claiming the issue was not a small number or minor.
Speaking to EuroGamer, a Facebook spokesperson stated the following.
“We’re only seeing a very small number of Oculus users run into login issues, and if they do, our customer service team is available and committed to working with them directly. Many of these folks are turning to Twitter and Reddit for guidance, and our customer service team has been responding to them on those channels.
“People should contact Oculus Support if they’re having issues and our team is available 24/7 to help: https://support.oculus.com/885981024820727/.”
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Image: Oculus official website, Wikipedia
