Facebook reportedly plans to take an almost 50 percent cut of all virtual asset sales in its “Metaverse” digital universe. Mark Zuckerberg and the Masters of the Universe stand to make a fortune if trading NFTs takes off in what he touts as the future of the internet.
CNBC reports that Facebook (now known as Meta) plans to tax sales on its virtual reality platform Horizon Worlds by up to 47.5 percent. Facebook announced in a recent blog post that it is allowing a small number of Horizon Worlds creators to sell virtual assets within the worlds they develop. However, what Facebook failed to mention is how much of every sale creators will be forced to give up.
A Facebook spokesperson told CNBC that the company will take an overall cut of as much as 47.5 percent on each transaction, which includes a “hardware platform fee” of 30 percent for sales made via the Meta Quest store and a Horizon Worlds fee of 17.5 percent.
Many users are understandably angered by the move, especially those in the NFT space who were excited at the idea of selling digital NFTs in the metaverse. One user told Facebook very simply: “I hate you.”
Another commented that Facebook should take their tax fee up with the IRS:
In comparison to Facebook, NFT marketplaces like OpenSea and LooksRare take a two to 2.5 percent cut of each transaction. NFTs have been growing in popularity in recent months, with individuals purchasing digital art and real estate in virtual worlds on platforms such as Decentraland and The SandBox.
Meta’s VP of Horizon, Vivek Sharma, said in a statement to the Verge: “We think it’s a pretty competitive rate in the market. We believe in the other platforms being able to have their share.”
Read more at CNBC here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan or contact via secure email at the address lucasnolan@protonmail.com