Virtual Reality and How it will Change the Media Landscape

Virtual reality (VR) has been the dream idea of almost every child - being able to actively see what you want to see, where anything and everything you think of has the potential to come to life and for you to see it as true 3D. It's immersive and has a wealth of potential to be a new way we interact with the world. 

It's about time for a new update to how we see the world. From 1997 onwards personal computing and internet usage expanded and became commonplace. In 2007, when Apple released their very first iPhone, mobile device usage expanded like wildfire and saw the rise of the rise of the subsequent wealth of tablets. Now mobile devices are essential to almost every aspect of modern life. Almost 10 years on, we are now seeing the rise of a new device, a new platform and way of seeing the world around us - virtual reality has finally arrived.

There are two main versions of virtual reality:

1. Headsets that are showing you a completely virtual dimension where worlds, maps and the landscape is created entirely by developers and designers. There are more companies making this version of virtual reality because its much simpler and puts the efforts in the hands of developers. These include Samsung's Gear VR, the Occulus Rift and HTC's Vive VR. There are also derivatives of these headsets which are practically different versions of the Google Cardboard where a phone is placed inside a cardboard box structure with glass lenses that give an approximation how virtual reality devices would really look like. 
2. Holographic headsets that show virtual objects in your current environment, visualising what it would look like if a physical object was really there. There are fewer companies in this area with the most notable and developed VR headset being made by Microsoft, known as the Microsoft Hololens. 

Microsoft's Hololens, Courtesy of Microsoft Corporation

These holographic and virtual reality devices have enormous potential to change not only the way everyday people interact with the device but also how businesses will interact. Specifically, designers, planners and creative jobs. Microsoft is tapping into this, which is probably a part of a larger direction to move towards being a more B2B business than compared to a B2C business, positioning their VR device, Hololens, as being the business go-to device for holograms and virtual reality. This can be seen in Microsoft's demo of how the device would work for retail planners and designers in the youtube video below: 

Youtube Video: "Windows Holographic: Enabling a World of Mixed Reality (Narrated)"

As you can see, the business potential for these devices is enormous. Business decisions can be readily made seeing in real-time how designers ideas and creations would look like in real life before they are actually implemented. This will save not only time and money but will enhance the efficiency of creative industries as well as allowing designers more ways to be creative and new ways for them to interact with their environment. 

Consumers won't get the short-end of the stick though. In MS video above, they also show a small snippet of how gaming would work, using the HTC Vive. Gaming in particular, an industry that has been fighting and waiting for the advent of virtual reality, is continuously trying to evolve and improve, specifically in the immersive gaming department. This is because, to put it simply, games are supposed to be simulations. What better way to truly simulate something than to feel as if you are truly in the environment and truly a part of the game/simulation? VR, of course. 

Also the many derivatives that have been made from google cardboard also show how there is massive potential in these devices. What this means is that developers and businesses don't need to necessarily create new programs, software and apps for these new platforms and devices but just make simple alterations to their existing phone apps on the App Store or the Google Play store. For example, only recently, I was able to go and experience first-hand the new direction retail stores are taking with virtual reality. eBay (an online personal shopping website) and Myer (a large department chain) joined forces to create a new shopping experience using an app and a Google Cardboard derivative. This is what the headset looked like: 

Thank you eBay and Myer!

The experience was relatively easy to use and you only had to use your eyes to buy, browse and experience this new retail shopping direction. I can see this truly taking off for many retail stores - it solves the problem that many people had with buying items online: if I was able to see it in real-time I would purchase the item online. The app was a little laggy to say the least and there were still a few kinks and problems with the software but that can be easily improved upon and changed with an update to the app store - a problem that can't readily be solved in a traditional brick and mortar store. 

Maybe it might be a while before these devices and platforms truly take off - all these new ventures do take a while, normally because of funding reasons and both developer and consumer support - but the potential is out there for a new, modern way of interacting with our environment. What VR allows is unlimited imagination - anything you can think of, can be created AND interacted with. This is truly the future of technology and the next wave of change we've all eagerly been waiting for. 

If you have a burning question, or would like to featured in some way in the "Ask them from me" segment, email me at: cc3493@gmail.com. If you do not want to be featured in the "Ask them from me" featured post, please let me know in the email :)

Visit Particular Interest for more content like this!

Previous Comment All Comments Next Comment