Would You Wear a VR Headset to a Live Event? What About Using It to Replace the Said Spectacle?

This is a serious question, not amplified conjecture or projected philosophical bias. And, I think your answer…your POV and your focus are critical to business and human development—at least as far forward as I can project, and maybe until the end of time.

OK…dear loyal, returning readers, we know I tend towards drama… new found friends and browsers will find the same. That being said, this question is serious, as is my belief that we can get sidetracked by DIGIBABBLE and cause ourselves needless angst and possible harm.

What set me off?

I’m writing this from Salt Lake City where the NBA is holding its annual ALL STAR WEEKEND. I’m here with my grandson, Teddy, and enjoying every second through his eyes as well.?

As I have written before, I am still amazed that pundits question the viability of anything in-person.

Let’s be clear…I have written since the start of The Plague that I don’t believe in a “new normal” and I still don’t. There is no new normal…we are in a constant state of flux, not based on solo lockdown but rather on a new appreciation for the power of in-face/in-person/in-crowd dynamics and an ever-changing health environment.?

I really do believe that what we took for granted for so long is more precious than ever, and that is just how truly DNA/Primal imprinted we are with the need for real social stimulation.?

Our weekend began on a crowded Delta flight with minimal leg room (what else is new?). It was a crowded flight of energized people—some going skiing, many going for the NBA, and a few going home. The energy was positive and catching. Even the cabin crew was having fun. And yes, some people still wore masks and that’s fine.?

Salt Lake is a great venue as most hotels are in walking distance to the arena, the NBA Experience, and most SLC attractions. It’s also a friendly place…thank you Brigham Young.?

The events are fun, inspiring, exciting, and the energy is contagious. Local fans add power, and there is nothing like sitting in a great stadium with a cheering crowd… and the occasional beer…

The Slam Dunk contest was historic and wild as a young player, not even officially in the league, made history…we were on our feet, as were most.

Technology plays a major part in enhancing the game in so many seamless and now transparent ways that it’s impossible to even catalog.

From huge screens in the stadium to social media, emails, texts info apps, payments, and the use of QR Codes (something good that came out of Covid), the list goes on and on.?

Content, of course, is critical. We saw, among others, a video of Shaun White, the legendary snowboarder, talking about flying, hanging air, while shots of dunking that paralleled his own jumps were cut together with shots of him.?

Back to tech…most people had their tickets in their digital wallets…that is, most people except for those with VIP or premium packages…they wore the traditional lanyards with their creds printed on long vertical attachments around their necks…INSIGHT: who cares about the tech if you can't see I’m a VIP when the ticket is hidden in my phone? And let me tell you, the folks with those lanyards are all tech savvy and power users…it's just that one has nothing to do with the other.

BTW, not a Tesla in sight…Lamborghinis, Maseratis, Rolls…you get the picture.?

Back to my question and what set me off.?

At the NBA Experience, one major sponsor had a great exhibition of VR. Some of it was truly amazing and fun…good use cases…mostly games like boxing or light saber….they also had the usual arcade type VR games… But there was one section that was a stadium where you sat with a headset and supposedly had an immersive experience sitting next to others.

So the experience in VIVINT wasn’t a “real” experience? It wasn’t immersive enough? I need to put on a VR headset and sit next to others wearing them in an AVATAR environment to have experiences? YOU KIDDING???

Check out the Slam Dunk contest, it was historic as it turns out…the thought of watching Avatars instead of real people is not to be considered…at least by me…maybe James Cameron…but that’s a billion dollar enterprise.

It reminded me of the META commercial where the folks sitting around a table together put on headsets so they can have a “real” meeting…frankly, I’d question my relationship with the agency or planner who pushed that scene…see my point on the VIP tickets…they are related.

I, for one, question the need to even think about such a world.

I would recommend to all Boards and management types the need to seriously question wasting money, time, or diverting resources because someone has convinced them that VR is Digital First…whatever that means in a world that is foundationally digital already.?

Our weekend has been enabled and enhanced by all of the fully integrated tech around us…but it has been extraordinary because it's live and real.

Don’t get confused or misled. KNEE JERK ALERT…VR has amazing use cases…I’ve written about many…so does AR. But if you don’t have one, it doesn’t make you less digital or any less forward…maybe, though, more focused and smart. We are all digital and real is as real as it gets!

What do you think?