The virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) market – collectively known as extended reality (XR) has been on the verge of becoming the next mainstream platform. Nonetheless, it has remained a niche market due to technological and content related limitations. At first experts believed that XR technologies would follow a similar technological development as smartphones. For example, in Germany, 56% of the population had adopted smartphones within the first 5 years. VR on the other hand only achieved an adoption rate of 5%. Now experts believe that the COVID-19 pandemic will open up a breakthrough window for the extended reality market. But first, let’s start at the beginning.
XR technology
XR technology is used as an umbrella term for augmented reality, virtual reality and mixed reality. Augmented reality can best be described as an interaction between a virtual experience and the real world. You could think of it as a form of enhanced environment. One of the most popular examples of augmented reality is the application Pokémon GO. AR does not only exist within the gaming industry but is also slowly working its way into other industries such as entrainment, retail and online shopping. AR is considered to be the most widely adopted XR technology. Virtual reality on the other hand is completely simulated, it creates a entirely virtual environment. VR is more complex as it seems because it requires a fully developed simulation. Virtual reality is often used to fully engage the customer with the product without any external influences. Lastly, mixed reality can be seen as a hybrid between augmented and virtual reality. Its goal is to overlay an interactive experience onto the real world. An example of this is the integration of the Microsoft HoloLens into Skype. Here the consumer is able to control a Skype session by interacting with the simulation casted into the real environment.
Examples of AR, VR and mixed reality (top to bottom)
Perception of XR
One of the major reasons people are experiencing hesitation has to do with the fact that XR was first introduced to the public in the gaming industry. People started seeing AR and VR as a gaming device. Additionally, the gaming industry has shown that although this technology is quite impressive, it is very limited in what people can do with it. At first, people simply did not want to give it a chance. Throughout the last years XR technology has been developing on serval dimensions (quality, complexity, audio, etc), allowing users to interact with the augmented and virtual reality on a different level. Now we can slowly acknowledge that XR is moving into different areas such as the entertainment, education and e-commerce industry. Where it has proven itself to be extremely useful.
Importance of XR
The impact of COVID-19 and physical (semi-) lockdowns has led to the limited availability and visitation of brick- and mortar retail stores, acting as a catalyst for e-commerce sales. Especially with the development of XR technologies, people are able to virtually showroom products at any point in time from their home. There is no need to go to the physical stores anymore, which helps to reduce the risk of coming in contact with other people. Additionally, XR has become extremely important for entrainment purposes such as sports events. Through the use of XR we are able to fully immerse ourselves into the event and experience it as if we were actually there. Furthermore, XR is also being used for the purpose of education. It can be used as an interactive tool for children, where they can learn about certain topics through the use of augmented realities. On the other hand, business professionals that need to receive training in a certain area of expertise can make use of virtual reality.
Future of XR
Currently many people are working from home and therefore attending video conference calls. Even though this is a good alternative during the pandemic it does not provide the same experience as a ‘real’ meeting. Here XR can step in and allow people to collaborate in a virtual environment, providing a real and personal experience. Moreover, XR can be used to recruit employees providing better insight into job applicants. This technology could also be used to improve training for workers. Workers would be given the opportunity to gain experience in a controlled environment. Additionally, it could be used to give virtual tours of organizations or within the world of tourism (museum exhibitions, city tours, etc.). There are so many opportunities for XR to become successfully integrated within society.
What do you guys think?
Will this pandemic be the long-awaited breakthrough of XR? Or will it remain a niche market after all?
Resources:
https://www.govtech.com/opinion/COVID-19-Could-Accelerate-Government-Adoption-of-AR-VR-Tech.html
https://venturebeat.com/2020/04/25/how-could-covid-19-change-ar-vrs-future/
