VR PLAYER

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) markets are expected to grow fast during the next few
years. The growth derives first from consumer uptake of VR gear and content. This is mainly based on
games. Later on the major growth comes from the industrial uptake of AR technology and services. The
development of the VR/AR gear market so far has been a disappointment compared with the earlier
expectations. The main obstacles for quicker consumer uptake have been high prices, requirements of
the computing devices, cyber sickness, and the chicken-and-egg-situation with the development of gear
and content. The basic workflow in VR as in all media includes content production, distribution, and
consumption. There are multiple parties involved in the VR workflow. The production of 360 videos
differs from the traditional production of 2D videos in several ways in terms of narrative, filming, sound,
and postproduction. The challenges of delivering the video and providing a seamless end-user
experience are even bigger. There are no established business models for 360 videos or other kind of
VR/AR content yet. Companies are still doing mainly pilots and PR-oriented try-outs in order to learn the
new technologies, and to understand their commercial potential and requirements concerning skills and
resources. The main ways to finance productions are sponsoring, subcontracting, branded content, and
public subsidies. Advertising is also becoming a relevant model. Currently it is challenging to get VC
funding for VR/AR companies, as the expectations of the early hype have not been fulfilled. The
companies developing technology, software and tools are in a stronger position to get VC funding than
the content production companies. There are no established VR/AR platforms for mass distribution or
broadcasting yet. Social media services are primary channels for reaching larger audiences. Media
houses have also created their own standalone applications. For more immersive content gear platforms
are important but limited from consumers’ point of view. For VR games there are already established
digital distribution platforms. We analysed the current Finnish VR/AR industry landscape, and
categorised companies’ products and services into three areas: tools and platforms, production, and
applications/content. We identified more than 60 companies in Finland working on VR. In addition to
these companies, there are also a remarkable number of VR utilizer companies, which represent any
industry or branch.
INTRODUCTION

Background Virtual Reality (VR) is now a timely topic in consumer technology. After decades of
research, products are coming to market that allow fully immersive VR experiences with games and
media. An important subclass of VR media is immersive video and audio. It offers a profound sense of
virtual presence (especially when combined with spatial audio), can be enhanced with interactive
features and computer generated graphic and audio, and is compatible with many media production
tools. However, so far the production has required specialized setups and expertise, which has been rare
among media companies. Traditional media industry has been observing the development in the field,
but trials with immersive media have been quite rare so far. The industry will soon have to adopt this
technology, as the new generation of consumers will expect similar immersive media experiences they
already know from gaming. The problem of production of immersive media is still a black art. Building
the needed camera setups and using them has so far required extensive expertise. Crucially, immersive
media calls for new conventions in storytelling and production planning.

Aims

The main aims of this report are:

• To provide basic information on the current state and the future trends of the VR/AR market

• To study, which areas of the VR/AR business are most potential for Finnish VR/AR companies

• To analyse, which are the critical success factors for Finnish VR/AR companies

• To propose action points for Finnish VR/AR companies for entering the international market and
creating growth

Comfort and VR Sickness

Compared with the traditional media, where the content presented in the display is mostly
independent from user actions, content presented using VR devices react (at least in part) to user
actions. This interactivity has strong implication for the creation of the content to grant an enjoyable
and comfortable user experience. However, every unintended, uncomfortable side effect of using a VR
system means some form of VR sickness. Experiencing discomfort as a side effect of using VR systems
has been the largest threat to widespread adoption of VR. Motion sickness resulting from motion (also
known as cybersickness) is the most common negative health effect resulting from VR usage and its
unstable scenes due to latency. Latency is the time a system takes to respond to a user’s action, the true
time from the start of movement to the time a pixel resulting from that movement responds. Physical
fatigue is another cause of discomfort related to VR. It can be a function of multiple causes including the
weight of worn/held equipment, holding unnatural poses, and navigation techniques that require
physical motion over an extended period of time. As a result of these causes most currently available VR
content products have a limited duration or they have been designed to be used only for shorter periods
of time.
Gear and Consumers

The currently available VR gear can be divided into three main categories:

1. PC-based immersive VR headsets such as HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Samsung Odyssey, and Playstation VR
plus various additional control devices

2. Smartphones (mainly Samsung and Google top-line products and ecosystems)

applications of Virtual Reality are:

TRAVEL INDUSTRY:

Instead of flying around the world, you could enter the world of Virtual Reality. With VR headsets advancing so
rapidly we are left to think “What’s the next thing?”. Soon we might have full body VR suits that simulate
temperature, wind and a variety of other sensations from the environment we are transported to.

MOVIES:

Wouldn’t you like to see a Hollywood blockbuster that is completely VR compatible? Well, it’s coming. Large
movie studios are already looking into it.

BUSINESS:

Imagine how much money you will save by attending virtual conferences. Businessmen and women from all
over the world will no longer need to fly, stay in hotels and eat at fancy restaurants. Instead, from their home
offices they simply put on their virtual reality goggles that are linked to a real time feed and they are at a
conference in Vegas for example That way they can explore and interact with people just as if they were there.

REAL ESTATE:

Virtual Reality has a prominent role to play in the housing market. This makes it easier for the potential buyers
to view properties at their convenience, reducing the need to travel.

VIRTUAL REALITY IN GAMING:

Virtual Reality, one of the breakthrough developments in technology, has brought about a revolution in the
gaming industry and has picked up momentum in every corner of the world taking in its fold the interest of
every generation. VR provides a commendable gaming experience because of which there has been a surge in
the demand of VR games.

Virtual reality can be divided into:

 The simulation of a real environment for training and education.

 The development of an imagined environment for a game or interactive story.
All reality-altering technology changes the way we perceive the world in some way, but virtual reality (VR)
completely changes the visual environment around us.

VR is an experience that takes users to a purely synthetic environment, which involves nothing of the
immediate reality that surrounds them. VR involves rendered graphics that fill your entire vision and is usually
complemented by 3D sounds to make the experience more real.

For the moment, gaming remains the main use case of VR. However, it is also being used in professional work,
such as training athletes, or real estate business.
COMPITITORS

SONY

he PlayStation VR, known by the codename Project Morpheus during development, is a virtual realityheadset developed
by Sony Interactive Entertainment,[3] which was released in October 2016.[1]
It was designed to be fully functional with the PlayStation 4 home video game console. In certain games and demos for the
VR, the player wearing the headset acts separately from other players without the headset. The PlayStation VR system can
output a picture to both the PlayStation VR headset and a television simultaneously, with the television either mirroring the
picture displayed on the headset, or displaying a separate image for competitive or cooperative gameplay. PlayStation VR
works with either the standard DualShock 4 controller or the PlayStation Move controllers.[4]
The PlayStation VR has a 5.7 inch OLED panel, with a display resolution of 1080p.[5][6] The headset also has a processor box
which enables the Social Screen video output to the television, as well as process the 3D audio effect, and uses a 3.5mm
headphone jack.[5][7] The headset also has nine positional LEDs on its surface for the PlayStation Camera to track 360
degree head movement.[5][8]
As of August 16, 2018, PlayStation VR has sold-through over 3 million units worldwide, along with 21.9 million games and
experiences.[2]

PlayStation VR (PSVR)

Also known as Project Morpheus (code name)

Developer Sony Interactive Entertainment

Manufacturer Sony

Product family PlayStation

Type Virtual reality headset

Release date October 13, 2016[1]

  $399
Introductory price
 €399

 ¥34980

 £349

 A$549

 CDN$548

 SGD$599

 IDR6.9 million

 RIA17 million

Units sold 3 million (As of 16 August 2018)[2]

Display 5.7" OLED, 100° field of view.

Graphics 1080p RGB (960 × 1080 per eye; 90–120Hz refresh rate)"[1]

Sound 3D audio through headphone jack, and available

microphone input

Input Positional tracking with 9 LEDs via PlayStation Camera

Controller input DualShock 4 controller

 PlayStation Aim

 PlayStation Move

Camera PlayStation Camera

Touchpad None

Weight 610 grams (21 ounces)

Website Official website

Samsung Gear VR
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Samsung Gear VR
Also known as Gear VR

 Samsung
Developer
 Oculus VR

Manufacturer Samsung

Product family  Samsung Galaxy

 Samsung Gear

Type Virtual reality headset

Release date November 27, 2015

Introductory price US$99.99

Units sold 5 million[1]

Display Display of inserted smartphone

Controller input Touchpad and back button

Touchpad Yes

Weight 318 grams (without smartphone)

Website Official website

SAMSUNG
The Samsung Gear VR is a mobile virtual reality headset developed by Samsung Electronics, in
collaboration with Oculus, and manufactured by Samsung. The headset was released on November
27, 2015.
When in use, a compatible Samsung Galaxy device (Galaxy Note 5, Galaxy S6/S6 Edge/S6 Edge+,
Galaxy S7/S7 Edge, Galaxy S8/S8+, Galaxy Note FE, Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy A8/A8+ Galaxy
S9/S9+ or Note 9, the Note 4 was discontinued from the Gear VR line) acts as the headset's display
and processor, while the Gear VR unit itself acts as the controller, which contains the field of view,
as well as a custom inertial measurement unit, or IMU, for rotational tracking, which connects to the
smartphone via USB-C or micro-USB. The Gear VR headset also includes a touchpad and back
button on the side, as well as a proximity sensor to detect when the headset is on.[2]
The Gear VR was first announced on September 3, 2014[3]. To allow developers to create content for
the Gear VR and to allow VR and technology enthusiasts to get early access to the technology,
Samsung had released two innovator editions of the Gear VR before the consumer version.

Samsung Gear VR

Also known as Gear VR

 Samsung
Developer
 Oculus VR

Manufacturer Samsung

Product family  Samsung Galaxy

 Samsung Gear

Type Virtual reality headset

Release date November 27, 2015

Introductory price US$99.99

Units sold 5 million[1]

Display Display of inserted smartphone

 Controller input Touchpad and back button

Touchpad Yes

Weight 318 grams (without smartphone)

Website Official website

MI
Mi VR Play is a virtual reality headset developed and manufactured by Xiaomi. Mi VR Play is hoping to create a buzz in the
market by making virtual reality more affordable to customers. Mi Play supports smartphonesthat have a display screen size
between 4.7-5.7 inches. Xiaomi’s Mi Play aims to offer the experience of high-end VR headsets at a budget of Google
Cardboard.
Introduced to the world in mid-2016, Mi Play is eyeing the VR market share captured by Google Cardboard. Priced at $15,
Xiaomi’s Mi Play is just one-fifth the cost of many top-rated, high-end virtual reality headsets like Gear VR.

Mi VR Play

Information

VR/AR Virtual Reality

Type Head-mounted Display

Subtype Slide-on HMD

Developer Xiaomi

Operating System Android, iOS

Requires Smartphone with display screen between 4.7 to 5.7 inches

Successor Xiaomi Mi VR Play 2

Display Depends on the smartphone

Resolution Depends on the smartphone

Pixel Density Depends on the smartphone

 Optics Anti-reflective Aspheric Lenses

Tracking IMUs in Smartphone

Weight 208.7 grams

Size 201mm x 107mm x 91mm

Release Date 2016

Price $15

Website http://www.mi.com/en/mivr1c/

Google Cardboard
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Google Cardboard

Second-generation Google Cardboard viewer

Developer Google
 Manufacturer Google, third-party companies

Type Virtual reality head mount

Release date June 25, 2014; 4 years ago

Units shipped 10 million

Operating system Android, iOS

Successor Daydream

Website www.google.com/get/cardboard/

GOOGLE CARDBOARD
Google Cardboard is a virtual reality (VR) platform developed by Google for use with a head
mount for a smartphone. Named for its fold-out cardboard viewer, the platform is intended as a low-
cost system to encourage interest and development in VR applications.[1][2] Users can either build
their own viewer from simple, low-cost components using specifications published by Google, or
purchase a pre-manufactured one. To use the platform, users run Cardboard-compatible
applications on their phone, place the phone into the back of the viewer, and view content through
the lenses.
The platform was created by David Coz and Damien Henry, Google engineers at the Google
Cultural Institute in Paris, in their 20% "Innovation Time Off".[3] It was introduced at the Google I/O
2014 developers conference, where a Cardboard viewer was given away to all attendees. The
Cardboard software development kit (SDK) is available for the Android and iOS operating systems;
the SDK's VR View allows developers to embed VR content on the web as well as in their mobile
apps.[4]
Through March 2017, over 10 million Cardboard viewers had shipped and over 160 million
Cardboard app downloads had been made. Following the success of the Cardboard platform,
Google announced an enhanced VR platform, Daydream, at Google I/O 2016.

Google Cardboard
 Second-generation Google Cardboard viewer

Developer Google

Manufacturer Google, third-party companies

Type Virtual reality head mount

Release date June 25, 2014; 4 years ago

Units shipped 10 million

Operating system Android, iOS

Successor Daydream

Website www.google.com/get/cardboard/
 ANNEXURE

NAME:___________________

1. What is your age?

18 to 24

25 to 34

35 to 44

45 to 54

55 to 64

65 to 74

75 or older

Question Title
2. What is your gender?

Female

Male

Question Title
3. What country do you live in?

England

Wales

Scotland

Ireland

Other (please specify)

Question Title
4. What county do you live in?
Question Title
5. How do you most often travel?

Car

Bus

Train

Walk

Cycle

Taxi

Car pool

Unable to travel

Question Title
6. What, if any, of these devices do you own and use regularly?

Smart phone

Tablet

Laptop

PC/iMac

Games console

Wearable technology (smart watch etc.)

Smart TV

None of the above

Other (please specify)

Question Title
7. What, if any, of these Virtual Reality devices have you heard of?

Google Cardboard (or other 'cardboard' devices)

Microsoft Hololens

Oculus Rift

Samsung Gear VR

HTC Vive

Playstation VR

None of the above

Other (please specify)

Question Title
8. How did you hear of the above device(s) if you have heard of any?

N/A

TV Advertising

Newspaper

Magazine

Poster

Word of mouth

Internet

News report

Social Media

9. What is your opinion on VR? (positive, negative, uses, risks, etc.)

INKI 10 COPIES KRVA LENA USKE DATA ANAYLISIS HOGA OR INTERPRETAION VO QUESTIONAARE FILL
KRNE K BAD HOGA.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS(END ME)

The VR/AR market is developing fast both in Finland and on global level. In order to run successful
business Finnish companies have to establish themselves swiftly both in Finland and in global markets.
The strategies of Finnish companies have to be based on the already strong skills and develop them
further. This requires more co-operations between the companies and also with academic research
institutions. The biggest challenges are ensuring financing, and keeping and acquiring scarce talent in
Finland. The next few years are challenging especially for the start-ups to survive before the market
starts growing substantially. In both the B2B and B2C market VR/AR requires a lot of promotion in order
to speed up the uptake, which would enable scaling up the volume of Finnish VR/AR companies. In order
to exploit the potential of the emerging markets we would recommend the following action points: •
Invest in the industrial uptake of VR/AR, especially the successful companies in basic industries • Invest
in exploiting the potential of VR/AR in the most potential business areas such as security, education,
health care, construction, and maintenance • Add VR/AR into the education programs in all levels and
create specialized programs • Support co-operation between SME companies and academic research
institutions • Amplify the resources for VR/AR research • Target more Tekes support and funds for
VR/AR • Support international networking and exports of the VR/AR companies • Subsidize various
kinds of pilot projects and further development of the best ideas • Use the success and reputation of
Finnish gaming industry in promoting Finnish VR/AR companies and products both in Finland and abroad
• Improve the understanding of consumers’ habits and values Most of the fore-mentioned action points
would require further analysis, which would include action plans for all parties in business. These plans
should be executed without further delays in order to move fast in international markets and gain
competitive advantages in the growing market.