Sony Approves VR Patent Sale to Meta After 43 U.S. Patents Changed Hands
The patents span extended, virtual, augmented, and mixed reality, while Meta's VR Glasses are due in 2027.
Sony approved a sale to Meta covering 419 VR-related patents worldwide. Signed in December 2025, the agreement includes 180 U.S. patents and 239 in Japan, China, Korea, Europe, and other regions. U.S. Patent and Trademark Office records show that 43 of the U.S. patents changed hands between June and September 2026, as detailed in ZDNet Korea’s reporting on the patent transfers. The 43 patents were filed between 2010 and 2022. The wider portfolio spans extended, virtual, augmented, and mixed reality.
No patent in the transfer identifies a particular PlayStation headset or feature. The deal does not establish that PSVR 2 production has ended or that Sony has abandoned plans for future PlayStation VR hardware.
Sony entered the head-mounted display market with HMZ-T1, a 3D viewer that helped lay the groundwork for the original PSVR. PlayStation engineers paired that work with PS Move controllers, and the original headset found an audience on PS4. PSVR 2 launched for PS5 on February 22, 2023, at $549.99 in the United States and £529.99 in the United Kingdom. Sony published two original games for the headset, Horizon Call of the Mountain and Firewall Ultra, developed by First Contact Entertainment.
Sony cut the standard headset’s price by more than 30% in 2024 and added PC support through an adapter. Even with those steps, PSVR 2 received little bespoke software support from Sony, leaving the VR line outside the company’s visible priorities. The headset has also faced months of stock shortages. When it has appeared online, listings have often been for pre-owned or refurbished units, or at higher prices.
Meta, meanwhile, has announced VR Glasses due in 2027, with a design aimed at avoiding the bulk of earlier headsets.
Sony has also announced that it will skip CES in Las Vegas in 2027 as it continues shifting from consumer electronics toward entertainment products. That broader change in direction offers context for the patent transfer, though Sony has not identified it as the reason for the deal.
Does Sony’s approval change how you read its commitment to PlayStation VR, especially alongside months of PSVR 2 stock shortages? Stay connected as Sony’s technology plans evolve and Meta’s 2027 VR Glasses approach through X, Bluesky, YouTube, Instagram, Steam, and Telegram.
