Microsoft Plans to Shut Down its Social Virtual Reality Platform

Microsoft intends to shut down Altspace VR, a social virtual reality platform by 10^th March

On March 10, 2023, Microsoft intends to shut down Altspace VR, a social virtual reality (VR) platform. Just days after announcing 10,000 job cutbacks worldwide as part of the reorganization process, the titan of Silicon Valley disclosed the news in a blog post.

A more open, accessible, and safe form of immersive experiences in the metaverse is now the company's even larger ambition, according to the blog post. "As we look to the future, we see the possibilities for VR spreading beyond consumer into the enterprise," it says. We hope to create a platform with Mesh that provides the most opportunities for everyone engaged, including creators, partners, and customers.

One of the earliest virtual reality social networking applications was AltspaceVR, which lets users join 3D chat rooms to play games, view films, and attend events on headsets and online platforms. Microsoft purchased the firm as part of its ambitions to create its mixed-reality ecosystem when it was on the point of failure in 2017 owing to financial issues. Microsoft said customers may now retrieve their data and content from the VR platform because AltspaceVR has shut down.

With its Mesh platform, a tool to create apps for users to collaborate in augmented reality, Microsoft is still in the metaverse race. However, the corporation has recently reduced its plans for the metaverse. Microsoft recently announced that it will reduce its global staff by 5%, resulting in about 10,000 layoffs. The layoffs include Microsoft's AR and VR divisions as well; according to Windows Central, the whole AltspaceVR team appears to have been fired. The team behind the 'Mixed Reality Tool Kit,' or MRTK, a well-known cross-platform foundation for virtual reality spaces, has been fired by Microsoft. The group responsible for the HoloLens headgear has had several difficulties recently, particularly since Alex Kimpan, who originally led the teams developing Microsoft's mixed-reality headset and Kinect.