Considering how quickly an idea can catch fire if it permeates into social networks, a push for social VR makes a ton of sense. Almost as equally important as just being available on mobile platforms, having a platform that is easy to use is pivotal when hoping for an application to spread to a massive user base and sustain that audience. Social VR platform vTime has started off in the right place with Oculus, Samsung Gear, and Google VR compatibility and now they’re adding a massive puzzle piece by welcoming iOS users to the party. They’re also teasing a future feature that could impact media in a big way.
In the application, you create your avatar from a large collection of clothing and physical attributes and make them as unique as you wish. Then you can place yourself and friends in a variety of locales, including a space station and the edge of a skyscraper. These aren’t just pretty backdrops but have the sights and sounds of a living environment. You can even inhabit 360-degree photographs that you’ve taken for a more personal touch.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGlO8dHD4NU
vCast, a feature that will be fully introduced later in December (a beta is available on the iOS version), is a fairly simple idea at first glance that could be opening up the door for creative content in a way that hasn’t been fully realized in virtual reality yet. The feature allows users to broadcast and/or record their sessions and publish them on the network.
Podcasts have become a way for well-known names and those not quite so known to produce solid content as long as they have a good idea, interesting personality, or some combination of both. While an inexpensive live-action stream of real people in a podcast environment is far off, using vCast could end up being an accessible means to put together a digital talk show where scattered hosts are brought together into one virtual space and shared with an audience. It even opens the door for virtual panels, talks, and more.
Mobile phones, webcams, and the applications that utilize them have bridged us all together in ways previously thought impossible. Friends, family, acquaintances, and business contacts that are far flung around the planet are able to be reached in less time than it takes to go outside and check the mail and those forms of communication continue to evolve. Video chat can bring people together for conference chats in dynamic ways and they are no doubt productive, but virtual reality brings new elements to communication by offering a sense of presence. vTime and similar applications like Altspace and myVR offer exactly that and with so many headsets on the market now, the growth of these platforms might accelerate. You can download vTime on iTunes, Google Play, or Oculus Home.
