philip lelyveld The world of entertainment technology

Don’t Let Virtual Reality Ads Become Virtual Prisons for Consumers

The opportunities for virtual reality marketing are unprecedented, but so too are the potential exploitations. Imagine the unrelenting, optical bombardment of unskippable VR ads -- virtual prisons of advertising -- becoming the norm. Within the confines of these promotional cells, squadrons of lurid logos would assault reluctant retinae, and saccharine spokespersons would push their products -- literally and figuratively -- from every angle. Today's attentional escape routes -- a cursory cellphone glance, a new browser tab -- will no longer be available. With a completely monopolized field of vision, the consumer won't be able to multi-task her way out.

Cheese-maker Boursin released what was essentially a virtual reality rollercoaster ride through a Boursin-stocked refrigerator. ... There is nothing inherently compelling about being trapped in a refrigerator with spreadable cheese.

By producing quality virtual content -- content that audiences pursue of their own volition -- brand claims of "empowering the consumer" might become more than vacuous middle-management lip service. 

The question becomes: Are companies willing to take these risks? The modern parallel is obvious, and it doesn't bode well for the future of VR advertising; marketers tend to invest a disproportionately high percent of their budget on interruptive advertising, rather than quality branded content. This pattern lends a disquieting layer of plausibility to the dystopian state of advertising previously envisioned.

However, if virtual reality emerges as the paradigm-shifting medium that breaks the pattern of interruptive advertising, the business and cultural dynamics will be fascinating.

See the full story here: http://adage.com/article/digitalnext/avoid-horrors-virtual-reality-marketing/301135/

Controlling Augmented Reality in the Operating Room: A Surgeon’s Perspective

Aseptic surgical technique is a concept that came about in the 19th century ...  The idea, which is now intuitive, is that during surgery the surgeon, patient, instruments, and drapes must all be sterilized and completely free of microorganisms to minimize the risk of infection.  ...once a surgeon is gowned and gloved, he/she cannot touch anything that is not also sterile.  If a surgeon does touch something unsterile, he/she is instantly “contaminated” and may need to change his/her gloves and potentially also the gown. 

There are various options available for controlling electronics in the OR including voice control, optical hand tracking, EMG-based gesture tracking, remotes/controllers, and foot pedals. I will briefly go over each technology and evaluate their relative advantages and disadvantages from a surgeon’s perspective.

See the full story here: http://www.medgadget.com/2015/10/controlling-augmented-reality-operating-room-surgeons-perspective.html

UTA Signs Digital Content Studio Secret Location

Last month, the Los Angeles- and Toronto-based company became the first to win an Emmy for a virtual reality project, when the Sleepy Hollow Virtual Reality Experience, an installation experienced by several thousand attendees at Comic-Con this summer, earned an interactive media Emmy for user experience and visual design.

In addition to its unique virtual and augmented reality work, Secret Location also has built websites, apps and created linear digital content (i.e. webseries) for film and TV clients including Insidious 3, NBC’s The Blacklist, IFC’s The Spoils of Babylon and BET’s The Book of Negroes, as well as for brands including Samsung, Toyota and Red Bull. It currently is working with Syfy on a virtual reality series called Halcyon and with GE on a story about China’s largest wind farm.

UTA will work with Secret Location, which has twice won best of show at the Banff World Media Festival, to expand its business in both non-traditional and traditional media. In addition, the agency – which has one of Hollywood’s longest-running and strongest digital departments – will advise on its social and digital media strategy.

See the full story here: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/uta-signs-digital-content-studio-833181

Digital Hollywood: Reality Lab Demonstrates Live VR Broadcast – Quantum Leap

Reality Lab gave a technology demonstration of Quantum Leap, the code name for a VR recording device with 16 cameras and proprietary technology that enables it to render real-time video instantly, without post production, on a Samsung Gear VR running Oculus Connect software. Company founder Halsey Minor calls Quantum Leap, which was featured at a Digital Hollywood luncheon, capable of “the first live VR broadcast.”

“The goal is not to sell or rent the camera,” said Minor, “But to build all the pieces to capture an event.” Minor also recently launched Voxelus, a company that enables the creation of graphical worlds. Although the two companies are separate, the goal is to enable the graphical worlds created in Voxelus to “co-exist with the live video capabilities of Quantum Leap.”

The experience was startling, albeit marred by pixilation, which Minor says is the result of the display’s resolution, and a 6 fps lag, due to the connection between Reality Lab hardware and the Oculus rig. Still, it was hard not to be impressed. “I can definitely see the potential,” said Zazoom Media Group executive Steve Bradbury who stopped by to test out the experience.

Prior to starting Reality Lab, Minor founded and built CNET Networks, founded Uphold, Google Voice, OpenDNS and NBCi and co-founded Salesforce.com and CNET spinout Vignette.

See the full story here: http://www.etcentric.org/digital-hollywood-reality-lab-demonstrates-live-vr-broadcast/#more-97568

The Virtual World’s Fair is where VR hype meets theme parks

Earlier this year, Landmark announced that it would begin building VR-based attractions called Live Centers, starting with one in China in the summer of 2017. The centers would include a “virtual zoo,” digital art gallery, and various cinematic offerings, all contained in a 200,000-square-foot complex. As the company announced earlier this month, though, it’s also planning to launch at least two home virtual reality services in the next two years. If everything goes right, its VR apps — the self-contained “Pavilion of Me” and much larger “Virtual World’s Fair” — will put Landmark in the company of gaming companies, VR film studios, and software designers. But that’s a huge qualifier — and a sign of how little we really know about the future of VR.

Based on which analyst prediction you happen to click in a Google search, the virtual reality industry will be worth $7 billion, $21.8 billion, or possibly $30 billion by 2020. Landmark predicts there will be 170 million active VR users by 2018. The ultra-simple Google Cardboard notwithstanding, most consumers today have yet to use the technology in any meaningful sense, but Christopher believes that the amount of high-profile support it’s gotten is a sure omen. "There’s too many very, very powerful organizations trying to launch this business for it not to happen," he says.

Both the Virtual World’s Fair and the Pavilion of Me (POM for short) are described as portals; the former is a digital theme park, the latter a personal entertainment complex. POM is slated to arrive first in the fall of 2016, after the launch dates of Oculus, Sony, and Valve’s high-end headsets — Landmark hasn’t officially announced launch platforms, but Christopher says there’s interest from Sony and Oculus. Right now, Landmark is showing off only a video of an early build, a series of separate "rooms" for activities like watching movies, holding Skype calls, lounging with friends, and looking through virtual versions of your old-fashioned photographs.

In other words, Landmark is building a VR user interface — a notoriously hard thing to get right.

See the full story here: http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/26/9615024/landmark-virtual-reality-worlds-fair-pavilion-of-me?curator=MediaREDEF

How Microsoft’s HoloLens actually works

Philip Lelyveld comment: This is a good basic overview.

Microsoft describes HoloLens as the "first fully untethered, holographic computer, enabling high-definition holograms to integrate with your world". The development version is set to ship out the first quarter of 2016.

See the full story here: http://gogglenaut.com/Gear/How_Microsoft's_HoloLens_actually_works

Magic Leap Wants to Build an Augmented Reality OS

Magic Leap is trying to develop an “operating system for reality”, with augmented reality being vastly different compared to virtual reality.

In an interview at the WSJD technology conference on Tuesday, Abovitz declared that Magic Leap is prepared to ship “millions of things” though he declined to give a date as to when the technology might actually become available.

The start-up is developing an eyeglass-like device that projects computer-generated images over a real-life setting.

In addition, Magic Leap has also taken over a portion of a former Motorola phone plant in South Florida.

On October 21st, 2015 – nearly exactly a year ago – Google led a $542 million investment in Magic Leap.

See the full story here: http://www.huewire.com/technologies/magic-leap-wants-to-build-an-augmented-reality-os/20148/

AuraVisor, the first untethered cross-platform virtual reality headset, is seeking to emulate the success of Oculus Rift and has launched its own Kickstarter campaign

The Bluetooth-enabled headset sports a 5-inch display capable of 1080p HD video and 100 degree field of vision. Users can participate in games via a Bluetooth game controller.

“Because AuraVisor has been designed from the ground up to specifically function as VR, the initial set up is quick and simple and the graphics do not pixelate. The headset does not suffer from noticeable latency or lagging issues as you move your head freely,” he added.

see the full story here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/11951768/First-untethered-cross-platform-virtual-reality-headset-launches-on-Kickstarter.html

Wevr Thinks You’ll Spend Hours in Virtual Reality

Here are two opinions you’ll hear a lot in virtual reality business circles today: Short experiences are better than long ones, and Apple-like app stores will win the day.

Wevr is hoping that both of those beliefs are wrong. Best known for a demo in which users come face to face with a whale underwater, the Los Angeles-based VR studio is trying to drum up interest in its virtual reality content platform, with an emphasis on longform video and the “open Web.”

“We see virtual reality as so broad that it can’t be confined to app stores,” CEO Neville Spiteri said. The technology Wevr is developing, he added, is intended to make it possible for creators to make something once and publish it on the myriad of VR devices heading to market.

See the full story here: http://recode.net/2015/10/26/wevr-thinks-youll-spend-hours-in-virtual-reality/

LucidCam from Stanford, Berkeley grad students

Some Stanford University and University of California Berkeley graduates are building a tiny virtual reality camera with just one button.

It's called the LucidCam and when it's finished the company's CEO Han Jin said "you can take a picture now, holding it like a mobile phone."

"Even the distance between the lenses is exactly the average eye distance," said Sheldon Fernandes, LucidCam virtual reality engineer.

Of course, you can get a whole stack of these if you pre-order the $300 camera on Indiegogo. They say the fundraising's going well and they plan to ship early next year.