Monday 17 July 2017

Virtual Reality Music Gigs and Sports Games: The Future Of Events?




360 photography and virtual reality experiences are already having a massive impact, both for industries such as Property, and for entertainment purposes such as gaming and film. But now, the technology is also encroaching on experiences that have always been considered beyond the realms of tech.



Sports


Though we are used to seeing details and lines laid over our favourite sports games (which is augmented reality, incidentally), technology has generally kept its distance from spectator interaction in sporting events. Virtual reality may, however, change all that.

Lately, we are seeing a lot more instances of 360-degree cameras being used to capture and live stream sporting events in VR. This has been a welcome development for avid sports fans who have always dreamed of a front-row seat at their favourite game but could never travel to, or afford, the opportunity. Virtual reality offers the most realistic experience you’ll get other than attending the event in person.

The 2016 Olympics in Rio used virtual reality for the first time in the event’s history. Networks such as NBC and the BBC launched apps to allow audiences to see the action right from the ground from within a VR headset. Nonetheless, there was processing time involved, so the experiences didn’t go live until the day after they had happened, which took away some of the excitement a bit.

There are also companies, such as NextVR, VR broadcasting startups that focus on covering professional sports in virtual reality. NextVR has already covered the 2015 NBA opening season game, as well as mid-season NFL games, a NASCAR race, and some NHL games.

Music


Sports in virtual reality may be increasingly popular, but could music concerts be going the same way?

Holograms have been used in music arenas to allow fans to experience the feeling of seeing some of their favourite artists live, after their death. The most notable example was Michael Jackson, whose ghostly presence on stage at the Billboard Music Awards was a little too spooky for some fans. Elvis is another one that made a posthumous appearance on stage by hologram. But could holography be just the tip of the iceberg for what we can achieve for VR music gigs?

Who doesn’t lament that they were never there to see Jimi Hendrix play live? Or that we’ll never see The Beatles re-form? Or how about the opportunity to see Robert Plant play with Led Zeppelin when he was still young, lithe, and sexy?

Virtual reality opens the possibility of allowing us to experience a virtual version of our favourite, long-lost artists as though we were really there. That, we’re sure, would be a big hit with fans of the good ol’ days of rock!

Not only that, but augmented reality glasses may allow us to go to a live concert and see those favourites still going strong alongside their younger selves. Though, that might get a little trippy… two Mick Jaggers leaping around the stage might be a bit overstimulating for some of the older members of the crowd…

The opportunities above, however, aren’t limited to the golden oldies, but apply just as well to newer, younger artists. Not everyone can afford the high prices charged by some live acts, nor can they always get to the gigs they want to. Some parents may shudder at the idea of accompanying their tweens to a Taylor Swift concert… but if their kids could take part from the front row with just a VR headset, then that could be the next best thing.

Live shows are often all about the spectacle. Lights and lasers and big screens are all part of the live experience these days, but if we consider the rise of augmented reality, imagine the breathtaking shows that could be conceived. Though there aren’t any commercially available AR glasses right now, they could only be a handful of years away from release and mass adoption. For now, however, we do have smartphone-enabled AR, like that used in Pokemon Go and Snapchat. Rather than holding up their phones to take blurry pics of the stage, audiences could now raise their smartphone in the air and see anything the show’s designers could possibly come up with.

There’s no question that, whether it be sports or music events, nothing will replace the experience of truly being there in the flesh. However, both virtual and augmented reality technologies provide another avenue for more people to have experiences with their favourite bands and teams that go beyond their wildest dreams. The sheer potential for new, innovative, and creative experiences using these technologies is limited only by the imagination. We are definitely looking forward to seeing what they come up with...