Microsoft To Amputate AltspaceVR Social Hubs; Strengthen Security And Teams

Microsoft is eliminating all social hubs housed in AltspaceVR and requiring users to use a Microsoft account to log into the virtual reality app. The modifications are intended to improve AltspaceVR's safety and moderation, and Microsoft will switch on its existing safety bubble function by default and mute guests joining meetings in AltspaceVR.

As platforms like AltspaceVR develop, it's critical to assess existing experiences to see if they're meeting the demands of customers now and in the future. This includes assisting people in connecting with others who share common interests while also ensuring that the areas they use are free of harassment and inappropriate behavior.

AltspaceVR Social Hubs Deleted

The social hubs in AltspaceVR were created to "help cultivate new friendships" and to serve as an introduction to the platform. Users were free to roam the places and converse openly with other AltspaceVR users.

They were also handy for allowing AltspaceVR users to invite each other into private spaces or gatherings. The lack of regulation in these open social spaces may result in harassment or unwanted attention, which is why Microsoft has decided to shut them down.

AltspaceVR will be strongly connected with Microsoft Family Safety in the coming months as a result of the Microsoft account requirement, allowing parents to approve or limit access to AltspaceVR if it's acquired from the Microsoft Store.

While social centers like the Campfire, News and Entertainment Commons will be deleted from AltspaceVR right away, the app will require a Microsoft account to utilize in the coming weeks. Microsoft began testing account connections with AltspaceVR a year ago, and it appeared that it might become a requirement in the near future.

Microsoft To Focus On Immersive Meetings

It's evident that Microsoft is attempting to anticipate moderating concerns as part of its larger metaverse drive. Microsoft bought AltspaceVR in 2017, just as it was ready to go down, and hasn't made any significant modifications to the service until now. Kipman now refers to AltspaceVR as "a building stone for the future of the metaverse," as the software developer works to make mixed reality and the concept of a metaverse a reality.

That suggests AltspaceVR is merely a component of Microsoft's larger metaverse project, rather than a critical component of the metaverse's future. Over the last year, the corporation has been developing Microsoft Teams immersive meetings and a complete Microsoft Mesh platform.

Similarly, Mark Zuckerberg is counting on the metaverse as the future of Facebook. In October, Facebook changed its name to Meta, and the company plans to invest at least $10 billion in the metaverse by 2021.

Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft, is equally enthusiastic about the metaverse. During Microsoft's earnings call last month, Satya Nadella expressed how metaverse has made everything extremely well-positioned to be able to catch what is essentially the next wave of the internet. It is certain that the next wave of the internet will be a more open environment where anybody, whether they are companies, game creators, or anyone else, may create their own metaverse worlds.