A year ago the company launched its platform for creating 360-degree video, called Jump, and since then Hollywood studios have come calling, Google’s head of VR, Clay Bavor, said at the Google I/O developer conference on Thursday.
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IMAX, an innovator in entertainment technology, combines proprietary software, architecture and equipment to create experiences that take you beyond the edge of your seat to a world you’ve never imagined.
The Wall Street Journal reported that IMAX has plans to open six VR locations worldwide making use of the StarVR headset in multiplexes and shopping centres before the end of the year.
To that effect, it was announced today that Google is teaming up with IMAX to develop a “cinema-grade virtual reality camera”, which will allow filmmakers the freedom to create and deliver high-quality, 3D, 360-degree experiences to audiences everywhere.
IMAX’s VR experience centers won’t solve the distribution challenge but they could make VR more accessible, which in turn could raise awareness and bring the benefits to more people. This year it’s expanding on the collection of companies that are helping it build Jump-ready camera rigs for use with VR. As part of the partnership, Starbreeze’s existing library of VR entertainment content and games will be made available to consumers as well as the premium content resulting from the IMAX Google VR camera. IMAX is then looking to expand into other countries afterward, including China, where the company maintains a sizable presence.
Gelfond envisions that virtual reality experiences will cost between $7 and $10 for 10 minutes of content, with his interest particularly in creating virtual reality content that is connected to movie franchises.
If Facebook’s Oculus Rift mission was to bring sophisticated virtual reality gear to true believers, Google’s evolving VR vision is introducing this otherworldly tech to the masses.
“As soon as you’re in VR, your brain expects the world to look like it looks in real life, which is stereoscopically, where things have depth and volume, which is why we invested so heavily in Jump”, Bavor said.
The company will partner will Starbreeze AB to work on its VR theatres.
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The first is slated for Los Angeles. The company decided that offering virtual reality content will give customers a great social viewing experience, which is the same reason why customers go the theaters to watch movies.
