Meta announces it will take 50% of all sales made in The Metaverse

Facebook parent company Meta is working to realize the virtual world of The Metaverse. As a free-to-use product, Meta's VR platform will heavily monetise user-generated content. However, users of the platform may not be happy to hear that the company plans to take a 50% commission on everything that's sold.

Meta takes 50% commission on all Metaverse sales

Via CNBC, the Facebook parent company is already creating ways for users to make money in The Metaverse. A recent announcement from the company explained that this will start with the sale of digital items and NFTs inside Horizon Worlds.

For example, one scenario pitched by the company shows a secret temple in a Metaverse world. While the rest of the world is accessible normally, only people with a special key can access the temple. However, this requires a small purchase of $4.99 to get.

As Horizon Worlds is almost entirely user generated, Meta is banking on passionate individuals to make its platform enjoyable. If users want to make any money through the platform, Meta will obviously take a cut, but many won't expect how much its taking.

A Meta spokesperson told CNBC that it would take a 47.5% commission on all sales. They explained: “That includes a “hardware platform fee” of 30% for sales made through the Meta Quest Store, where it sells apps and games for its virtual reality headsets. On top of that, Horizon Worlds, will charge a 17.5% fee.”

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After complaining about platform commissions

Hilariously, Meta’s massive commission reveal comes after years of complaining about platform commissions with other companies. As reported by Mac Rumours, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has berated companies like Apple for taking a cut of his profits.

Zuckerberg has frequently attacked Apple for taking a 15-30% cut of Facebook revenue. The multi-billionaire of a company constantly under investigation for monopoly claimed Apple was “monopolistic” in this regard. Furthermore, Zuckerberg claimed that such high commissions “blocks innovation [and] blocks competition”.

In a report by The Verge, vice president of Horizons, Vivek Sharma attempted to claim that Meta is being fair with its cut. Sharma believes that the 50% slice of revenue is “a pretty competitive rate in the market”.

Technically, Meta isn't wrong in that regard. The company's metaverse plans are most similar to video games like Roblox. As it turns out, Roblox gives developers just 25% of sales with additional bonuses based on engagement.

This is indicative of a massive issue with companies relying on user generated content. After all, if the only reason people are on your platform is due to content others make, they deserve to be paid fairly.