It’s that time of year again sports fans. Well, technically it’s that time of every four years. The thirty first Olympiad is officially underway in Rio de Janeiro. The swimmers are swimming, the gymnasts are soaring, and we’re all collectively trying not to think about what’s in the water that the rowers are rowing across. Those competitors may not want to get any closer to that questionable surf than they need to, but all of us sitting at home would love the chance to dive deeper into the action of these Summer games. Thanks to a new partnership between Oculus and Getty Images, we may be getting that chance.
You can already watch some events stream video in VR, but the two companies recently announced a joint effort that will produce 360-degree immersive photos of the Rio games for Oculus Rift and Samsung Gear VR users to enjoy. According to Oculus, each day during the Olympics “people can check out a new selection of images in Oculus 360 Photos from various Olympics events.”
Oculus 360 Photos is the photo hub that comes enabled in the VR company’s overarching software platform: Oculus Home. The app has long been home to a variety of interesting 360-degree images that are refreshingly high resolution.
Getty Images is perhaps the leading stock photography agency in the world with over 80 million stills and illustrations in its stables. You’d be hard pressed to find a notable world event or memorable moment that has not been chronicled in some way by Getty. The agency recently launched a 360-degree image initiative that has already racked up thousands of projects and this partnership with Oculus further solidifies its commitment to immersive content.
Oculus and Getty are reportedly hoping to add at least 400 new 360-degree images to the Oculus 360 Photos app from the Rio Olympic Games. The first of these are accessible now and free of charge.
