Things You Should Know About VR Streaming

Virtual Reality (VR) is a new and emerging technology that has been developed over the past few years. The emergence of VR technology has brought a new dimension to the world of entertainment and video streaming. Now, with the introduction of VR streaming, viewers can watch content in virtual reality, with a wide range of experiences that can take their experience to the next level.

 

What Is VR Streaming?

VR streaming is a way of streaming content to the viewers that can be experienced in virtual reality. VR streaming is the best way to watch VR content on a larger scale. This way, you can view the content in the comfort of your home and take advantage of the potential of the VR technology

Here are 10 things you need to know about the impact of VR streaming and its potential appeal.

Things You Should Know About VR Streaming

It’s still pretty new.

It was a world first when, on March 29, 2016, we live broadcast the friendly soccer match between France and Russia in Ultra HD VR in collaboration with TF1 and numerous technical partners. Never before had a sporting event been viewed in such a manner.

 

Read: How to Use a Projector as a TV

 

The need already exists.

It is still being determined how many specialized VR headsets (such as the Sony Playstation VR, Oculus, HTC Vive, etc.) were recently sold, however, estimates range from 1.5 to 7 million. Samsung claimed that more than 5 million Gear VR headsets are in use worldwide.

There is already a delivery system in place.

While Twitter’s Periscope 360 live streaming service debuted in December, YouTube released 360-degree live broadcasting in April 2016. Through 2017, Facebook Live 360 will be available.

The potential audience is already very large.

The most watched 360-degree video on YouTube has had over 53 million views to date.

360-degree video versus virtual reality

Although the terms are frequently used interchangeably, there is a distinction between Virtual Reality and 360-degree video because the former really contains 3D computer-generated features.

Numerous cameras

The number of cameras that can record 360-degree video is constantly growing. It ranges from the €40,000 Nokia Ozo in the high-end broadcast segment of the market to the €180 consumer-focused LG 360 Cam, mirroring other segments of the camera industry.

VR streaming process

There are also significant changes between the VR streaming approach and traditional 2D media, including a greater emphasis on the directionality of the audio. Prior to encoding and distribution, extra stitching must take place as images are acquired from a number of cameras pointed in various directions.

VR events streaming

The number of VR broadcasting events going live is rapidly increasing as a result of our groundbreaking test from last year. Olympic Broadcasting Services alone provided 14 rights-holding broadcaster organizations spanning 31 nations with 85 hours of live VR programming. One game every week in the format will be produced, the NBA confirmed in October. The number of sports organizations looking into the technology is constantly growing and now includes NASCAR, the NFL, and UEFA.

large-scale live events

Sports aren’t the only popular, high-profile live events that are being scheduled for coverage. Donald Trump’s inauguration as president of the United States was the first live-stream event broadcast by USA Today on its VRtually There channel.

The importance of excellence

A high-quality 360-degree video will likely be encoded using the H.264 codec at a bitrate of 20 to 30 Mbps. It follows that sophisticated technology, like the Tiledmedia VR Streaming technology we employ in our end-to-end VR streaming solution, is necessary to preserve the sense of immersion on current networks. This focuses on delivering excellent video to the user’s field of view rather than the entire 360-degree image. This makes it possible to maintain quality at considerably lower bandwidths.