Why Netflix and Hulu are so important for Oculus

oculus-rift

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, 2016 is the year that virtual reality will start to really make waves amongst the general public. Here’s the catch though, gaming won’t cut it. Right now when people think of a VR experience they think of a video game, which segments the market to not just gamers, but gamers that are also early adopters of VR technology.

Enter Netflix and Hulu.

Back in September of last year Oculus announced that it would be adding the Netflix apps to the roster of apps that the Gear VR would support. Of course this is still the beginning of the experience and many speculate that we’re still far away from where we need to be:

“While Netflix and Hulu worked with Oculus last year to develop “virtual screening rooms”—sort of middleman service where you can effectively block out the rest of your vision to only focus on the viewing screen—the product itself isn’t particularly game changing…yet.” (Source – Observer)

Yes, it’s a very v1 experience, but that experience represents something that will draw non-gamers into VR which covers most of the general public. Given the high price tag of Oculus’ consumer product ($599) it’s unlikely that everyone will jump onboard right away but it’s the same price as your average television, and if you’re using it as a television it might just make sense.

What do you think? Ten year from now can you see a world where we watch tv with VR goggles on?

Morgan Linton

Morgan Linton