Oculus may share users' Rift headset data with Facebook in the future

Oculus Rift Release Date — Facebook may use Oculus Rift user data for advertising purposes in future CC

Oculus has responded to privacy concerns around the collection of data from its virtual reality Rift headset, saying that while it doesn't share information with parent company Facebook at present, it's not off the cards.

On 4 April, we reported on aspects of the Oculus Rift's Terms of Service that detailed how the company automatically collects data from headset users, including the content they access, head positioning and their location. The terms require that users agree to allow Oculus to share this data within its "family of related companies, such as Facebook."

In an email to IBTimes UK, Oculus explained that while it isn't currently sharing data gathered from users' headsets with Facebook, it is something the company is considering for further down the line.

A spokesperson said: "Facebook owns Oculus and helps run some Oculus services, such as elements of our infrastructure, but we're not sharing information with Facebook at this time. We don't have advertising yet and Facebook is not using Oculus data for advertising – though these are things we may consider in the future."

Oculus added that the data it gathered from the Oculus Rift would ultimately be used to improve customer experience and ensure everything kept ticking along smoothly. "We want to create the absolute best VR experience for people, and to do that, we need to understand how our products are being used and we're thinking about privacy every step of the way," Oculus said.

"For example, one thing we may do is use information to improve our services and to make sure everything is working properly - such as checking device stability and addressing technical issues to improve the overall experience."

We've included the full response from Oculus below. Does it quell your worries? Let us know @IBTimesUKTech

Users and content developers own all the content and IP they create using Oculus services. We are not taking ownership. Our terms of service give Oculus a license to user created content so we can enable a full suite of current and future products and services on our platform, like sharing a piece of VR content with a friend. People continue to own the rights to the content and can do whatever they like with it outside of our platform. This is very clear in our terms: "Unless otherwise agreed to, we do not claim any ownership rights in or to your user content."

At this time, there are not many places where people can upload their content to the Oculus platform. As we add more features, we're working to understand the best ways to give people more control over how they share content in VR.

We want to create the absolute best VR experience for people, and to do that, we need to understand how our products are being used and we're thinking about privacy every step of the way. The Oculus privacy policy was drafted so we could be very clear with the people who use our services about the ways we receive or collect information, and how we may use it. For example, one thing we may do is use information to improve our services and to make sure everything is working properly -- such as checking device stability and addressing technical issues to improve the overall experience.

Lastly, Facebook owns Oculus and helps run some Oculus services, such as elements of our infrastructure, but we're not sharing information with Facebook at this time. We don't have advertising yet and Facebook is not using Oculus data for advertising – though these are things we may consider in the future.

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