Facebook rolls out Messenger for Oculus Quest, as well as App Lab, letting developers distribute apps outside the Oculus Store without needing to sideload

Facebook is continuing to stitch its services more closely together — it's now rolling out Messenger on Oculus.

Engadget 2021-02-03 Kris Holt

Context & Ripple Effects

Facebook had already expanded Quest beyond its standalone catalog through Oculus Link's PC-game access, while also positioning Quest for business use with a dedicated enterprise software suite. App Lab adds a lower-friction distribution path between a fully curated store release and manual sideloading.

Messenger brings a core Facebook communication service into Quest at the same time App Lab broadens the software funnel. The later multi-user and app-sharing update underscores Facebook's effort to make a shared headset behave more like a household platform than a single-owner device.

First-order effects

Quest developers can distribute App Lab applications without winning placement in the Oculus Store or asking users to sideload them.
Quest users gain Messenger in VR, extending Facebook's existing messaging identity and contact graph into the headset.

Second-order effects

The Oculus Store retains its curated role, but App Lab reduces its control over which smaller or experimental applications can reach Quest users.
Developers can test and circulate Quest software with less release friction, increasing the value of Facebook's headset audience relative to distribution channels that require a formal store listing.

Third-order effects

If Facebook continues pairing easier distribution with platform services and developer tools, Quest shifts from a tightly curated device catalog toward a broader software ecosystem with Facebook-controlled identity and discovery layers.
The later Passthrough API and Presence Platform point to the next competitive boundary: developer access to mixed-reality capabilities, not only access to the store.

The trend: Facebook is building Quest into a fuller computing platform by combining social services, developer distribution, and progressively deeper headset software tools.

Discussion

@oculus @oculus on x
Introducing App Lab, a new way for developers to safely distribute their apps without the need for sideloading, plus @messenger begins rolling out on the Oculus Quest Platform // https://www.oculus.com/...
@jeffbulljr Jeff Bull Jr on x
YES! This is great news for independent developers, Quest fans and for the standalone industry as a whole! https://twitter.com/...
@diegomendes Diego Mendes on x
My team worked super hard on @messenger for @oculus this past half, including Oculus Parties. Glad to see this begin to roll out for all Quest owners to help them stay connected with friends and family and easily get into VR together https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/..…
@creationsdb DB Creations on x
We're working on bringing Rhythm 'n Bullets over to App Lab! https://www.oculus.com/...
@vr_sam Sam W on x
App Lab starts rolling out today with v25 software update for Oculus Quest #VR - works with SideQuest and provides an alternative channel for devs to get experiences onto headsets without sideloading (they appear in the library ☺️) https://www.oculus.com/...
@id_aa_carmack John Carmack on x
Now that App Lab is shipping, I'm going to start doing public app reviews again. I'll aim to do one a month, probably in a video format. This will be a cross between my Connect app reviews and the writeups I did on Facebook for early GearVR titles. https://www.oculus.com/...
@jacobrossi Jacob Rossi on x
Really excited about how App Lab will open up Quest to more developers and help incubate new and interesting content for VR! https://developer.oculus.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...
@lucid00 @lucid00 on x
It's sad how much what Facebook is doing with Oculus is what they should've been doing with their platform from the jump. Instead of causing genocides and fucking up democracies, they could've had people partying together online. Having fun. No need for as much moderation either …
@visigoth Shaheen Gandhi on x
we know people love to sideload great content, but sideloading random stuff from the internet is also a great way to get malware. App Lab lets users get access to non-store content without worry. https://twitter.com/...
@beatsaber Beat Saber on x
Since our release in 2018, we're excited to announce that Beat Saber has sold over 4 million copies and over 40 million songs from paid music packs! We're speechless, this is such a huge milestone for us, but this is just beginning. 🎈 THANK YOU PLAYERS & LET'S GO! 🎈 https://twitt…
@schellgames Schell Games on x
We're excited to announce that our titles @ieytd and @UntilYouFallVR both fall into this group! Congratulations to our teams, we're so proud of them for creating amazing experiences that people love. https://twitter.com/...
@fasttravelgames @fasttravelgames on x
We're SO proud to see our very first game @ApexConstructVR included among the titles that have generated over $1M in revenue on Oculus Quest! Thank you to all you VR gamers out there for your support, we got so much more to come so stay tuned!🙏❤️ https://twitter.com/...
@hrafntho Hrafn Thorisson on x
Happy to say Waltz of the Wizard is among these 60 titles, with sales and active users growing fast. Our sales on December 25th 2020 were 5x greater than on December 25th in 2019. January 2021 was our biggest sales month on Quest to date. More than 4x greater than January 2020. h…
@azadux @azadux on x
Happy that we're one of 10 apps on @oculus's new App Lab platform! Especially excited that the app won't be hidden in “Unknown Sources” anymore :) https://twitter.com/...
@shawnfrompdx @shawnfrompdx on x
first step in getting on Quest store is writing a proposal describing the project. 6 months after submitting mine to get my Go app on Quest, there was still no response. maybe i'll actually be able to do it this way. https://twitter.com/...
@ananddass Anand Dass on x
If you are building games, it's a no-brainer. Build for VR :-) If you are building other VR applications (e.g. productivity, collaboration, meetings, creative & design tools, B2B) now is the time to get in on the ground floor! DM me if you are a dev/founder building VR apps!
@tipatat @tipatat on x
Huge numbers for #VR and really great to see a breakdown. 60 titles over $1m, 6 titles over $10m and @beatsaber selling 4m and dlc. Putting them well over $100m lifetime sales. #VR 🚀 https://twitter.com/...
@levontincapital Amir Dov on x
If Beat Saber with 4m units is the best selling game, what's a fair assessment of total activated Oculus sets to date? I'm thinking something like 13m-16m but haven't really thought this through https://twitter.com/...
@ndreamsvr nDreams on x
A certain award-winning stealth kayak game may be one of the 60 titles that have generated more than $1m in revenue from the @oculus Quest. YEAH! Congrats to all those other titles too... can't wait to see what 2021 brings to the #VR platform! 🙌 https://twitter.com/...
@greenlig Zac on x
Good numbers coming out of @oculus. I imagine the high barrier for entry onto the store has an impact, but there are big wins to be made for small devs here. https://www.oculus.com/... #VirtualReality
@untilyoufallvr Until You Fall on x
Well done, Champions! We are proud of the Rune Knights fighting for Rokar on their Oculus Quest headsets! It is an honor to be included in this list. #FightFallRiseAgain https://twitter.com/...
@necrosofty Brandon Sheffield on x
Very interesting - though to me this says more about high level store curation than it does about vr, specifically. https://twitter.com/...
@ieytd @ieytd on x
It's great to be a part of this group of titles! HQ sends an explosive thank you to all of the Oculus Quest field agents out there. Stay sharp! https://twitter.com/...
@beatsaber Beat Saber on x
Read about more cool VR stuff in Mike Verdu's blog post: https://www.oculus.com/...
@oculus @oculus on x
More than 60 titles have generated revenue in the millions on the Oculus Quest Platform—nearly double the number we announced at Facebook Connect in September 2020. Hear more from VP of Content Mike Verdu // https://www.oculus.com/... https://twitter.com/...
@epro Emil Protalinski on x
Reminder to entrepreneurs everywhere: There is appetite for a VR competitor not owned by Facebook. https://twitter.com/...
@mattconte @mattconte on x
TL;DR: Developers are making real revenue on the @Oculus Quest platform. :) https://www.oculus.com/...
@piershr Piers Harding-Rolls on x
FB have released some Oculus Quest content performance numbers 60 titles have now generated in the $ millions (1 in 3) up from 35 in Sept 20. 6 at $10m+ Beat Sabre has sold 4m units across all platforms and 40m songs Games Population: One & Onward - $10m+ revs #OculusQuest2 https…
@c_pruett Chris Pruett on x
1 in 3 apps on Quest has made over $1M. 6 are now over $10M. https://uploadvr.com/...

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