The Immersive Wire - 25 April 2021 (Sunday edition)

SUNDAY READ EDITIONCurated VR/AR analysis every Wednesday and Sunday 

// 25 April 2021

By this point, I have mastered 

tsundoku: the art of collecting lots of books, but not reading them. I propose a new internet version: digitsundoku, when you never get around to reading online articles that you bookmarked.

Connect with the Igloo Vision team on LinkedIn.

Let's talk about Facebook's vision for the future. And before I take another step, I must give props to Ian Hamilton who recorded the discussion (as Twitter Spaces doesn't archive sessions), transcribed it, and scraped the details for UploadVR's audience. If you can,

support the team and check his hard work out

; I'm largely taking information from his article and analysing it. The most interesting point (to me, anyway) is that they suggest headsets could become fully functional personal computers. Think of it as typing up all your work via hand tracking, browsing the web, and collaborating all in one virtual world - all in one '

Infinite Office

.' The key goal is to get the software up to scratch, and innovate on the hardware over time so the experience gets better and better. My first initial thought was, computers are good enough. Most office workers will choose a handy laptop over a VR headset the lacks the app libraries for work. The sheep depth and complexity of the laptop's system dwarfs VR headsets, and choosing one over the other feels like picking a DVD player over the internet. Another part of me sees a future where they are deployed across very particular businesses, but it won't be widespread. One example includes enterprise companies that require close collaboration, but the commute times are too long or the living accomodating is quite cramped. Deploying a fleet of headsets to a remote-working workforce makes sense, at least in those particular times. Facebook is following the money on this; the digital workplace money is estimated to be worth $72bn

by 2026. 

But to choose a VR headset over, say, a cheap laptop, is unlikely for most companies.I see a future where companies work within remote virtual worlds, hopping from virtual place to place as they make plans and execute campaigns. But while some will be hopping around the

virtual micro-metaverse

, most will be content hopping onto Teams calls while checking their Twitter. 

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Would you work in a VR headset every day? Photo credit: Tom Ffiske.

Igloo Vision has landed on the continent - our first demo centre in Europe is now up and running in the heart of Rotterdam. If you'd like to visit at our newest location, or at any of our demo centres around the world in the UK, US, Canada or Australia, 

just get in touch.

We can 

even offer you a virtual demo

.

Q&A with... a veteran XR marketeer

Alan Smithson, Co-Founder and CMO at MetaVRse.

Currently, what do developers really want, irrespective of your platform? We refer to our community as creators rather than developers because our mission is to unlock the power of XR for everyone, not just those who can code. Having said that, from the thousands of conversations we have had, creators want the following (in no particular order): Easy to Learn, No Apps, No Downloads, Photorealism, Device Agnostic, Enterprise-grade Security, Multi-user (player and editor), Built-in Scalability, Works Everywhere.So why launch a platform now? The time for XR is now! The past five years have been learning, building, and practicing for the real show that started in 2020... and [the industry] will hit the exponential curve.How've you found the launch of the MetaVRse Engine so far? The MetaVRse Engine has been in the market for ten months now and the feedback has been absolutely incredible. I would say things have been pretty amazing so far and the demand for products like our new MetaVRse Virtual Showroom is continuing to pour in. There is still a lot of education that needs to happen on what is XR, why should I care, how will it create value, etc., but we have created many tools to help buyers understand these and make better buying decisions.

If you would like to learn more about the MetaVRse Engine, you can check it out here.

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That's all for this week! Want to have a chat, let me know about a news story, or talk business? Either reply to this email, or contact tom (at) virtualperceptions (dot) com. Have an excellent day!