philip lelyveld The world of entertainment technology

The Void, IMAX Pioneer Successful Virtual Reality Experiences

Factors that have held back VR’s popularity include expensive VR headsets, lack of compelling content, the potential for nausea and an experience that is isolating. The Void, which mitigates these factors, sees itself as “a new draw for dying malls” as well as another use for multiplexes. “We’re a big solution to a lot of big puzzles,” said Bretschneider.

But the big question is if there is long-term sustainability for The Void and how it will fare against competition. The Verge reports that one such competitor is IMAX, which, on January 6, opened its IMAX VR Experience Centre in Los Angeles, a standalone location with 14 VR “pods,” equipped with HTC Vive and Acer’s StarVR headsets, which offers a 210-degree field of view, and titles from “Star Wars: Trials on Tatooine” to “John Wick Chronicles.”

It’s the first of six pilot locations to open in New York City, the United Kingdom, China and a second in Los Angeles, all set to open by the end of 2017. Each installation will be linked to Cineplex chains, set up in the lobby or a movie theater.

See the full story here: http://www.etcentric.org/the-void-imax-pioneer-successful-virtual-reality-experiences/