Oculus German sales have been "temporarily paused" for the foreseeable future. Facebook is halting any restocks sent to retailers and German VR enthusiasts may soon have a difficult time getting their hands on Oculus hardware.
The Oculus Rift was arguably the world's first successful mass-market headset. The company had since been acquired by Facebook and has grown to include several different models of VR headset including the Oculus Rift and the standalone Oculus Quest model.
Now, Oculus has announced that it halting sales in Germany for an undetermined period of time. The announcement from the VR company was explained in an FAQ published by Mixed (via ResetEra). German gamers will soon be unable to purchase these headsets in their country at all — although they might get lucky if a retailer happens to have any models left in stock.
Why Are Oculus German Sales Stopping?
Oculus German sales have been halted due to "pending discussions with German regulators." The FAQ from Facebook PR that was published by Mixer essentially repeats this same answer several times with little variation; it's best encapsulated with this one answer:
Q: Why are you punishing German users?
We know this is an inconvenience and we are actively working with German authorities to educate regulators on our practices and to ensure our products comply with local laws. This is a temporary pause and we hope to resume sales again in the future.
Facebook will not be restocking retailers, but the FAQ mentions that there may still be some headsets still available. The company cautions that importing a headset may not work. Either way, any customers who have made recent purchases can get a refund as long as they're within a 30-day window of their receipt of an Oculus device.
As for the business side of things, "existing and new enterprise customers" will continue to be supported through Oculus for Business. The pause in Oculus German sales only appears to affect the consumer side of the business.
Why the pause, then? Facebook says that it has done this voluntarily due to the talks they're having with German regulators, but it doesn't specify what those talks are about. It may have something to do with the company's recent announcement that a Facebook account will be required to use an Oculus device in the future or it may be something else entirely. For now, German gamers seeking to buy an Oculus device should probably get one sooner rather than later.
Why do you think Facebook has halted Oculus hardware sales in Germany? Does the requirement for a Facebook login make Oculus products less appealing to you? Let us know in the comments below!
