Meta Pays Metaverse Programmers Salaries Approaching $1M, Despite Layoffs

In its ongoing quest to develop the metaverse, Facebook parent company Meta has been paying its programmers annual salaries approaching $1 million, according to a new report by The Wall Street Journal.

One source cited in the report said these salaries are more than double what programmers would receive at any large gaming company. The statement calls to question Meta’s overall investment in its metaverse vision and the complicated tech and hardware the company needs to make it possible.

Reality Labs, Meta’s metaverse division, received 20% of the company's total spending and lost around $24 billion in 2021 through the end of 2022.

The exorbitant wages Meta is paying its metaverse programmers -- which start at $600,000 -- also calls attention to the company's recent layoffs. In March, Meta purged 10,000 workers following its cut of 11,000 jobs in November, marking the company's first-ever mass layoff action.

A recent report by CNBC stated that Meta’s job cuts impacted customer service the most, as influencers and group admins are now grappling with scammers and technical difficulties, unable to get in touch with Meta’s support team.

Despite ending its support for non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on Facebook and Instagram -- a technology some believe is necessary for commerce in a metaverse future -- Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said the company will not change its long-term vision for the metaverse.

Moor Insights & Strategy analyst Anshel Sag said Meta is facing more competition in the virtual-reality sector, with companies like PlayStation and, especially, with Apple releasing and expecting to release high-end VR hardware in 2023, in a report in The Wall Street Journal.

Therefore, higher wages may be Meta's way of attracting top talent. According to a small gaming company executive who spoke with The Journal, Meta offered a senior developer $800,000 a year with the potential to earn over $1 million via a performance bonus. 

1 comment about "Meta Pays Metaverse Programmers Salaries Approaching $1M, Despite Layoffs".
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  1. Jonathan May from HorseTV Global, April 7, 2023 at 6:47 p.m.

    Just what we need, programmers earning nearly a million bucks a year to screw up everyone else's life.  No one has a shred of privacy anymore, thanks to Meta, who monetiizes everyone, and sells you off as a product- and now they want to take it to the next level. Nice.

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