Nowadays, Virtual Reality has become in a motivation for those who want to make the most of the technology, either in the gaming industry, apps or in general media content. Although for many people this “modern” approach to immersive media is new, we are just witnesses of the tip of this iceberg, the technology behind VR has been in constant development since the half of the past century until now. In recent years, technology has made a big leap towards the proper tools to make this “virtual idea” in reality. This blog is designed to talk about this technology, it’s impact and possible applications in different fields, but let’s begin with some data to put into context regarding VR. Here are some facts that probably you don’t know about this emerging way to see the world.

1- VR: An ancient innovation

Most people think about VR as a new possibility of alternative media, however, Virtual Reality has been in constant development, the original concept of VR could be traced to the 20’s decade, but the first functional prototype was created by Morton Heilig created his “Sensorama” in 1956, this simulator had the ability to provide the illusion of reality using different techniques such as, stereo sound vibrations on the seat, smells and other features in order to create an immersive and believable experience, nevertheless, due to the costs of the prototype and lack of investors, the project had to stop. but it remains in the mind of the VR enthusiasts as the first successful attempt in produce an immersive experience to the user.
2-VR for everyone

On one hand, Oculus rift, HTC Vive and PlayStation VR of Sony has been the most publicised products by the media, all of them with price between $350 and $600 plus a computer or game console capable of rendering the graphics with the appropriate FPS (frames per second) in real time to play a game on this platforms, and to be honest, those technologies are not accessible to everyone; on the other hand, exists the mobile version of VR, with Samsung and oculus as partners and the giant Google as maximum exponents of this VR approach. Google, which in the past years created one division dedicated to VR, launched it’s Google Cardboard, with different prices and a variety of manufacturers is an affordable solution for the average consumer with a smartphone. Recently Google has announced Daydream, it’s own platform with exclusive content for mobile VR.

3- The known “VR” world.

with huge advances in technology in the recent two decades, virtual reality now has the proper tools to create and develop its true potential. While I was looking for data, I found something interesting to help to understand the real magnitude of this “VR world”. The map was created by www.greenlightvr.com and is divided into 22 categories with 11 sections, from the hardware to software, from developers to those who create specific content for each platform, this diagram will guide and help you to understand that this emerging technology is not just a trend, VR came to stay and change media technologies.

Vr Ecosystem Map

4- Opportunities beyond the big players

With a sample of 58 independent companies with content for VR and Augmented reality, Greenlight VR shows the average growth in products designed for VR and AR in its report; the poll reveal an exponential increase of more than a 100% in the last year, with a revenue of $2.4 million on average; making VR and AR a great field to explore for those who are enthusiasts and with the desire to create content and why not to take a piece of this cake called VR.

5- More than ads

Big brands such as Coca-cola, McDonalds, Merrell, Topshop, Marriot, Volvo and more have something in common, they always invest in new media to attract new customers and preserve the loyalty of the ones that they already have, Those companies and many others had believed in the potential of virtual reality as a good medium to communicate a message in a different, immersive, and memorable way. Advertising is profitable in any media and in VR is a field ready to explore.

These facts are just an overview of big VR world, it’s capabilities and potential. In next posts, I’m going to talk about different technologies, software, and implementation not only in content creation but in the industry in general and its impact in different fields. saying that, I hope you liked this little overview of VR world as it is today.