Meta set to shut down Facebook Gaming app

Due to its inability to compete in a market dominated by Twitch, Meta, the parent company of Facebook, is shutting down its Facebook Gaming app, which was introduced two years ago.

Facebook informed users in a notification that the game, which allows users to view and play video games on-demand, will stop functioning and being downloaded as of October 28th, 2022.

“We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to all of you for everything that you’ve done to build a thriving community for gamers and fans since this app first launched,” the company said in an update on the Facebook Gaming app.

“This was truly a community-led effort to bring new gaming features to Facebook,” it added.

“Despite this news, our mission to connect players, fans and creators with the games they love hasn’t changed, and you’ll still be able to find your games, streamers and groups when you visit Gaming in the Facebook app.”

Facebook Gaming was created in response to the Covid-19 wave, which encouraged gaming among many people who were compelled to stay inside due to safety concerns. The app was first seen to be a potential threat to Twitch, but as soon as the restrictions were lifted and business operations started, it progressively lost its lustre.

Twitch and YouTube dominated much of the gaming sector. Facebook Gaming added more tools like a creator program and another feature to assist build out its platform, including the ability to co-stream, in an effort to challenge their dominance.

With Mixer, a streaming network that it hired Ninja and Shroud in a multimillion-dollar agreement to drive and failed with, Microsoft was another business to venture into the gaming industry. In 2020, Facebook acquired Mixer.

Despite these attempts, Facebook Gaming was unable to compete in the market for game broadcasting with Twitch and YouTube.

According to a survey from business research firm Streamlabs, Facebook Gaming has only 7.9% of the market share for total viewing hours in the second quarter of 2022, trailing Twitch (76.7%) and YouTube (15.4%).

But entering the gaming industry is only one of Facebook's several divestiture attempts. The social media juggernaut has been experimenting with numerous new businesses in industries that are now dominated by rivals since changing its name to Meta.

The loss of more than $200 billion from the company's market worth was caused by a significant decline in revenue in January.

Meta announced a significant change to its economic model in February that will include reels and the metaverse, among other things. The switch to short-form video features is intended to take market share away from TikTok, which has attracted a huge number of young people worldwide.

“We took on headwinds in the near-term to align with important trends over the long term. And while video has historically been slower to monetize, we believe that over time short-form video is going to monetize more like feed or Stories than like Watch – so I’m optimistic that we’ll get to where we need to be with Reels too,” CEO Mark Zuckerberg had said.

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