VR about to explode!

Virtual reality and the technology that drives it is at the point of no return and that could be good or bad!

In the same way the 2-dimensional land of the internet started slowly but became unified and created an explosion VR technology is approaching the same stage the internet was in the late 90s. People have been dabbling with ideas, finding applications, and applying those in ad hoc ways.

As with every technology there are early adopters and alongside them those who once sold snake oil promising the new tech to cure every problem. As with most tech the adult "entertainment" industry has seen the applications. Good or bad that is not for me to comment on. What is true though is that virtual reality as a tool is now definitely here to stay and the acceleration of its adoption is about to change gear exponentially .

If we could choose one word about the internet and it’s affected on mankind, it would arguably be “Empowerment”. It has empowered many to share the knowledge of a few and for the few to control and influence the many in terms of the internet giants.

Virtual reality and its cousin Artificial reality are both tools that will increase empowerment in the user but of course also allow the few to manipulate and influence the reality so responsible applications and uses should be our guide.

3d technology is readily available, affordable and has many beneficial uses for a business but the business needs to first understand what the technology can be used for in their field and how it can empower their customers and future customers. It is time to once again think out of teh box in terms of how you do business. The rewards of doing so are already becoming clear for business who adopt the technology and adapt their offerings accordingly.

Statistics show virtual tours are powerful in marketing empowering visitors to make choices and to view the product, service or venue remotely and in more details than ever before. The benefit to the business is that research shows customers are increasingly relying on such content to make buying decisions and even to influence subjective factors such as trust in a company.

In the world of training clear benefits in terms of reducing risk and cost in certain areas of training from a company point of view are rewarded further by trainees reporting better engagement with the materials thought and crucially significant benefits on levels of retention of tha information.

In operational and research uses use virtual “twinning” of assets allows efficient management of the businesses, makes planning of moves and refits easier and allows testing of ideas both quickly and with reduced risk and cost.

The above "virtual world" applications are already in place along side teh "real world" but the tools available are increasing and this includes improve infrastructure such as web speeds, data handling and faster processing.?360 video is a step beyond currently widely available “static “virtual tours. Videos enhance the viewer experience and add a further layer of reality.

With increased bandwidth and the advances in 5g the option to live stream events in 360 degrees will become more common. This has major significance for event companies, sports franchises, and the entertainment world. In tis respect not only does it open options to allow people from anywhere to view an event but to choose how they view the content in a new way. Driving this is of course a benefit of reducing travel and the need for ever larger venues which impacts both in terms of cost but also carbon targets that we all face. Imagine if the Beetles had played the Cavern and it had been streamed live in 360 video and viewed virtually by fans? Would te h1960s have been different ( OK I know most of you didn't live though tha period in time but the option is now there.

In 1995 I wrote a paper for my then business partners about the implication of a thing called the World Wide Web in delivery of legal services. I think it is fair many were cynical. We stand at a similar point now with the virtual and artificial technologies available. Simply “you’ve seen nothing yet”!