[ekianjo]

I think it's the other way around. Because of Sony's involvment, I'd say investors from probably many large companies were pressed to buy stake in Occulus Rift ASAP to make a dent in the VR market should it become big. Facebook probably had the biggest offer on the table and that's the end of the story.

[threeseed]

I doubt it was just money. Facebook has also shown that when they acquire companies they generally leave them alone.

That is so much more important to a startup than just money.