Oculus Privacy Policy update - users to choose between Oculus and Facebook in October

Ryzza5 · September 12, 2020

Summary

Oculus users are receiving email updates with new terms of service and privacy policy updates that provide further clarification about the Facebook takeover in October.

Existing Oculus users will be able to choose to retain their existing Oculus accounts in October, or they can merge them with their Facebook account.

A list of FAQ has been made available here:

https://support.oculus.com/424208161507635/

Quotes

Quote

We're reaching out to let you know about upcoming changes to the Oculus platform. On October 11, 2020, we are updating the Oculus Terms of Service and Privacy Policy to reflect that Facebook, Inc. will become responsible for the Oculus platform and your Oculus information, and to provide more detail about how your information is collected, used, and shared. On that date, you will have the choice to continue using your existing Oculus account and remain under the updated Oculus Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, or to use a Facebook account on the platform and agree to new terms.

Below is a summary of some of the changes we are making to the Oculus Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. We recommend that you review the updated documents. By continuing to use an Oculus account on the platform after October 11, 2020, you agree to the updated Oculus Terms of Service and acknowledge that the updated Privacy Policy will apply to you.

Here are some of the updates we are making to the Oculus Terms of Service:

Facebook’s Role: Oculus has been one of Facebook’s apps and technologies since 2014. Previously, the platform was managed by Facebook Technologies, LLC. With this update, we transfer this responsibility to Facebook, Inc. As a result, the Terms of Service are a contract between you and Facebook, Inc.

Other Updates: We also make some revisions for better clarity. For example, we clarify that the governing law for users in the European Union is the law of that user’s Member State, and we provide further detail on how we enforce these terms, such as removing content (including apps and other content offered by third-party developers) that violate any of our terms and policies or infringe on intellectual property rights, and to ensure compliance with our Community Standards.

Here are some of the updates we are making to the Oculus Privacy Policy:

Facebook’s Role: We updated the Privacy Policy to reflect that Facebook, Inc. is responsible for the Oculus platform and your Oculus information, and to provide more detail about how your information is collected, used, and shared now that Facebook, Inc. is responsible for the platform.

Oculus Features: We provide you with additional information about certain Oculus features and the information we collect to power them. For example, we explain how we collect information about your physical features and dimensions, such as your estimated hand size when you enable hand tracking. We also explain how we receive information about your Oculus Browser usage, such as the Oculus Browser features you use and crash reporting data.

[End of email]

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Starting in October 2020:

Everyone using an Oculus device for the first time will need to log in with a Facebook account.

If you are an existing user and already have an Oculus account, you will have the option to log in with Facebook and merge your Oculus and Facebook accounts.

If you are an existing user and choose not to merge your accounts, you can continue using your Oculus account for two years.

Starting in January 2023:

We will end support for Oculus accounts.

If you choose not to merge your accounts at that time, you can continue using your device, but full functionality will require a Facebook account.

We will take steps to allow you to continue using content you have purchased, although some games and apps may no longer work. This could be because they require a Facebook account or because a developer has chosen to no longer support the app or game you have purchased.

All future unreleased Oculus devices will require a Facebook account, even if you already have an Oculus account.

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If you choose to merge your accounts, we'll use information about how you use Oculus and Facebook for purposes such as:

Providing and improving your experience across Facebook products.

Promoting safety and integrity on our services.

Showing you personalised content, including ads, across Facebook products. This could include recommendations for Oculus events you might like, ads about Facebook apps and technologies or ads from developers for their VR apps.

My thoughts

I've never created a Facebook account before and never plan to in the future. I'm tempted to put together a list of Facebook-owned IP Addresses that I can block in my Firewall.

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/11164672/list-of-ip-space-used-by-facebook

If I do purchase another VR device (I still have the Rift CV1) it most definitely won't be one tied to Facebook. I do appreciate the advanced warning of their plans taking effect in 2023.

Sources

Email

FAQ: https://support.oculus.com/424208161507635/