Facebook creator CEO Mark Zuckerberg, announced last October 28 the rebranding of his renowned firm Facebook to Meta, which highlights the corporation’s rising objectives in the social networking and virtual world.

According to him, the word Meta comes from a Greek word that means “beyond” and that for him it symbolizes a new chapter to a story and that there is always more to build.

“I’m proud of what we’ve built so far, and I’m excited about what comes next - as we move beyond what’s possible today, beyond the constraints of screens, beyond the limits of distance and physics, and towards a future where everyone can be present with each other, create new opportunities and experience new things”, added Zuckerberg.

The rebranding of the company came with a new company logo that looks like an infinity-shaped symbol slightly skewed yet still bears their trademark blue gradient color.

“The Meta symbol was designed to dynamically live in the metaverse — where you can move through it and around it. It can take on infinite textures, colors, and movement, capturing the creativity and imagination of a 3D world”, claimed by Meta’s design team in the company’s blog post.

The parent company name change to Meta reflects Zuckerberg’s aspiration for the next phase of social technology but the timing of the company’s name change was rather a surprise in the midst of lawsuits and negative press.

“Timing is a critical part of executing a rebrand well, and there’s too much noise around Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg right now. The Facebook brand equals the Zuckerberg brand”, said Allen Adamson, co-founder and managing partner of the brand marketing agency Metaforce and an adjunct professor at the New York University Stern School of Business in Morning Consult.

It can also be remembered that even the Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte lashed out to shut down Facebook’s operations in the country, as multiple fake accounts on his support was shut down which aggravated him to make the threat.

“We allow you to operate here hoping that you could help us also. Now, if the government cannot espouse or advocate something which is for the good of the people, then what is your purpose here in my country?” stated President Duterte in The New York Times.

Marketing professor Prashant Malaviya of Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business also said that “Facebook” will always be present in headlines and will not disappear soon despite its rebranding efforts.