Sacramento Kings new NBA arena wired for VR instant replay with mobile headsets.

This October, the Sacramento Kings will open up a brand new $507 million dollar arena boasting 84 ft long screen almost as long as the court itself. Of course since this arena is in the Bay Area/Northern California part of the world it will be jacked with a high-capacity Wi-Fi system intended to give fans mobile Internet access comparable to high speed home broadband. 

 So great so now we can Snapchat, Instagram, and Facebook at the game faster than ever.  Yes,  but there are also bigger plans for all this investment. 

Paul Jacobs, vice chairman and co-owner of the team, and also executive chairman of mobile chipmaker Qualcomm says "Fans could be given an up-close experience of the action no matter where they’re sitting" 

The Kings are planing on allowing someone watching the game at the arena with access to a mobile VR headset such as GearVR be able to watch an instant reply call in full 360° view and in real time as the play is reviewed.

Another VR option the Kings are considering is having providing fan the ticket option to access high-end VR headsets rather than a conventional seat with a poor view.

 “They'd still be there to feel the roar of the crowd and be part of it but be watching in a  slightly different way,” Jacobs says.

The Sacramento Kings are heavily embracing Virtual Reality and recently invested in virtual reality video startup Voke. The team has also experimented with streaming action from the court to virtual-reality headsets outside the stadium as well as the recent uniform reveal via 360° video and Google Cardboard.

In 2015, a game against the Los Angeles Clippers was viewed by people at a school in India using headsets, something Jacobs feels could be common place in the future. Dan Gilbert, owner of NBA champions Cleveland Cavaliers has also shown interest in using this as a way to generate additional revenue from games. 

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Review-UploadVR E3 Party

What can I say about the UploadVR party? Well not only was it the E3 party VR needed but also deserved. I have been attending E3 since 2011 and in 2013 I had my first experience with Rift DK 1. That seems like forever and a day looking at how important VR was to E3 2016. 

As VR grew in the past few years, so has UploadVR. UploadVR has helped create an awareness of VR in the San Francisco Bay Area and is now helping to evangelize globally. 

This real care about the growth of VR was very present at the party. Though they had Morgan Page as the musical headliner, this party was first and foremost about spreading the importance of Virtual Reality. 

Before the main festivities of the party started the UploadVR founders got on stage for a moment of silence for the recent Orlando tragedy. This followed up by them saying that ticket sales of the event would be going to help that cause. 

@UploadVR has come a long way. #UploadE3Party ticket sales go to help victims of the recent #orlando tragedy. pic.twitter.com/PtZxY7SDyG

— CatsAndVR (@CatsAndVR) June 15, 2016

This in reality is a reflection of how I view the UploadVR E3 party. Yes VR is now the hot girl at the dance that everyone wants to talk to. That does not mean she does not also have a great personality and still aware of her Kickstarter roots. For a party sponsored by Nokia and Hulu that represented the hottest thing, there was still an indie charm that felt real.

My favorite example of this was UploadVR Co-founder & EIC Will Mason legitimately coming across awestruck when introducing Co-creator of the Myst franchise, Rand Miller.

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Miller seemed to be really enjoying himself while also spreading the word about his new game Obduction.  Obduction, which garnered several E3 Best Of Show nominations was available to be played in VR at the party. This was a perfect opportunity to showcase the game to people that may have missed it on the floor and showcased why this party was different than your general free drinks and swag E3 event. 

In fact several demos were available to play including one of my favorite VR games, Time Machine VR. This was also a great opportunity to showcase something that may have flew under the radar for people that were bombarded by all the E3 VR announcements.

Of course what is a party without the party aspect and UploadVR delivered. A variable who's who of the industry attended and one minute I found myself discussing 360° filmmaking with the award winning filmmaker Ando Shah to discussing Space VR with Ryan Holmes.  

On the music side, the event was headlined by Morgan Page but also featured the first ever live in real world venue use of The Wave VR. Bay Area DJ Grimecraft put on a fantastic performance using HTC Vive. This is yet another example of why the VR was the most important aspect of this party.

To be honest I really wanted to spend my entire evening at the UploadVR party but I had to head out to catch up with some old friends old school VIP style at the Twitch Event. 

#E32016 #E3 #twitchparty #twitch @DavidTamargo @JonCarnage #wordlife #demboys #WWE2K17 pic.twitter.com/XsAgXgimos

— CatsAndVR (@CatsAndVR) June 15, 2016

The only thing left to say is that I truly loved every minute I was at the UploadVR E3 party and told people about it at the next event I went to. I do hope that CatsAndVR.com will be around to be able to attend another UploadVR E3 party in the future. Nothing but respect for an excellent E3 event put on by an excellent collective that made sure to show that VR is not a gimmick and worth every minute of celebration. 

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The Fathers Of Virtual Reality-a post about VR on Fathers Day.

It is hard to state with any assurance who the father of virtual reality is, as like any new creation it draws upon a wide range of sources and impacts, including several women innovators. 

More than one individual has been included in the improvement of this innovative framework yet in the event that we are discussing the domain of virtual experience then the answer is Morton Heilig. 

He delivered the principal intuitive film involvement in which viewers were welcome to watch a film which would utilize the majority of their faculties. For instance: he utilized a swaying fan so that the viewer could feel wind blowing all over. 

The Sensorama was not broadly embraced but rather the thoughts drove future exploration into virtual reality and the ensuing results. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morton_Heilig

The term 'virtual reality' was begat by Jaron Lanier in 1987 amid a time of extraordinary movement into this type of innovation. In any case, before then, he had set up VPL Research – an organization which spearheaded research into virtual reality and 3D illustrations which likewise sold the intitail virtual reality apparatus, for example, virtual reality glasses, data gloves and later, the full data suit. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaron_Lanier

The Sword of Damocles is widely considered to be the first virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) head-mounted display (HMD) system. It was created in 1968 by computer scientist Ivan Sutherland with the help of his student Bob Sproull. Before he began working toward what he termed "the ultimate display"  Ivan Sutherland was already well respected for his accomplishments in computer graphics.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivan_Sutherland

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Michael Bae and The Rogue Initiative Partner to Create Entertainment Properties with a Focus on Virtual Reality

The Rogue Initiative and Michael Bae announced a partnership to develop original entertainment properties with a focus on virtual reality and interactive hardware. 

This is Bae’s first foray into interactive entertainment; he will direct and The Rogue
Initiative will produce and develop original content in cinematic-style VR.

Pete Blumel, co-founder and CEO of The Rogue Initiative, said: “I’ve enjoyed a longstanding
relationship with Mr. Bay and couldn’t be more excited to work with him and
truly leverage his unique vision and incredible depth of experience to this amazing new
medium. We’re all absolutely thrilled to be working with such a cinematic powerhouse in
the field of action entertainment.”

Bae said: “I’ve known Pete for a long time, and he’s put together a great team. I’m
excited about building new visual worlds for this innovative medium with them.”

Cathy Twigg, co-founder and Chief Production Officer of The Rogue Initiative, said:
“We take a comprehensive approach in producing our IP for the entertainment landscape,
specializing in film, television and interactive experiences with a focus on virtual reality. This enables The Rogue Initiative to align with our partners in expanding our IP to
various other platforms and media. We’ll be bringing this approach to the properties we
co-create with Mr. Bay as well.”

The Rogue Initiative officially launched earlier this year with several projects in
development.

The company will seek further investment and strategic partnerships to develop its slate
of upcoming cinematic, interactive VR, film and television projects for platforms and
distribution channels, including Sony Playstation, Oculus, HTC Vive, Samsung GearVR,
Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, feature film, network and cable television.

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Meta announces $50 million in a Series B round of funding to develop Meta 3

Meta, the pioneering technology leader in Augmented Reality (AR), announced the closing of $50 million in a Series B round of funding. The round includes significant participation by Horizons Ventures Limited, Lenovo, Tencent, Banyan Capital, Comcast Ventures, and GQY.

View post on imgur.com

View post on imgur.com

Called one of the most significant technologies in recent years, Meta 2 was unveiled to a standing ovation at TED 2016 in February. Meta is delivering a new “natural machine” that builds on the principles of neuroscience to create a completely intuitive experience that transforms how people work, play, communicate and engage with each other.

Meron Gribetz, CEO of Meta, said, “It is incredibly gratifying to have the support of big thinkers and investors who understand the importance of creating a new human-computer interface, anchored in science. Our friends at Tencent, Lenovo, Horizons Ventures, Comcast Ventures and all the other investors really get what we’re doing and why Meta is different from the other players in AR. They understand that the combination of our advanced optical engines along with our neuroscience-based interface design approach are what will create a computing experience that is 100x easier to use and more powerful than traditional form factors.”

Meta plans to use funds raised in the Series B round for building upon its hardware and software technology base, business expansion, including app development, and developing the next generation of its technology, Meta 3.

Check out my review of Meta 2 http://www.catsandvr.com/blog/meta2

Review: Reggie Watts-Live In Virtual Reality

Last night over 1200 people came to watch musician, singer, beatboxer, actor, and comedian Reggie Watts give an incredible show in virtual reality. This is the first time that many people got together in VR for a live event. 

I actually went to a pop up event put on by WeLens and Upload VR to experience this. First of all there were some technical difficulties that caused the show to start a bit later than scheduled. Some even had trouble getting in or actually getting a chance to see the show. I do have do give lots of credit for the AltspaceVR team for keeping people in the loop as well as sending an email this morning addressing the difficulties. While waiting to jump in the event , WeLens showed people at the Upload VR space some great VR experiences on GearVR in order to keep people excited. 

Personally I understood that AltspaceVR was trying to push the limit of their tech and once I got in it was a very enjoyable experience. The technical difficulties actually reminded me of when I was a Twitch streamer. When you are on the bleeding edge technology unfortunately challenges happen.

Rather than a felling of seeing Reggie in a huge setting, the show gave off more of an intimate feel of seeing Reggie Watts as a performer just starting out. The difficulties actually made me feel like it was an independent show at a small hole in the wall stand up joint. For me this made it an enjoyable experience. 

Though the AltspaceVR Frontrow tech is supposed to give any one the chance to see a show front and center I would have liked if there was perhaps some sort of virtual crowd in the back to give off that intended feeling a little better.

Technical difficulties aside I had a really good time and I felt like I was at one of Reggie's first ever shows and experience something that is about to blow. If you were there last night you can look back in a few years once VR is out of it's current palm pilot era and say remember when shows like this were underground. 

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Virtual Reality music visualization experience vrAMP available on Steam Early Access.

Oriku, Inc. has announced its inaugural virtual reality music visualization experience, for the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. ­­ vrAMP, available on Steam Early Access and coming to the Oculus Store. Motes of light and dust particles surround and move through you as they float, swirl, and react to the music. vrAMP listens to any program or web browser and can be used with the Steam in ­game overlay web browser. Listen to local files, YouTube, or any streaming service to see the visualizations react.

The beat algorithm works to create stunning and immersive experiences alongside music without being overwhelming to your senses. vrAMP transitions the visualizations automatically as the music shifts and changes. Toggles are available to pause transitions so that you can stay with one you particularly like.

Oriku looks to the build a strong community for vrAMP. Feature requests, suggestions, and bug reports will be a large part of vrAMP which is why they have chosen to release it now with its core functionality via Steam Early Access and soon on the Oculus Store.

Information provided by Oriku, Inc

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AltspaceVR and Comedian Reggie Watts to debut new FrontRow VR event technology.

One of the things I really enjoy about AltspaceVR is the fact that it turns VR into a community focused non isolation filled experience. Today AltspaceVR continued to push social VR as well as the boundaries of their product with the announcement of FrontRow, new technology that gives everyone a front row seat to events in VR and gives hosts limitless capacity at their events. With FrontRow, thousands of people can attend an event together despite their geographic location and feel like they are there in person

The technology will debut on May 26th at 8:00 PM PT when musician, singer, beatboxer, actor, and comedian Reggie Watts will perform live to what AltspaceVR is saying may be one of the largest events ever attended inside VR. Register at altvr.com/reggie to attend.

"Working with AltspaceVR has allowed us to create a digital stage, bringing our favorite comedians to an audience that was unimaginable even a few months ago,” said Brett Kushner, Director of JASH VR Studio. “Taking shows that might normally play in a 100-seat theater in Los Angeles and bringing them to an infinite-seat theater with a worldwide audience is proof that there's a global appetite for quality comedic experiences."

JASH has brought comics including Reggie Watts, Baron Vaughn, Brandon Wardell, Heather Campbell and Miles Stroth to perform in VR. JASH, among the pioneers in bringing comedy to VR, is now the first entertainment company to open a VR comedy stage, and is featuring Reggie Watts as it kicks off a new series of VR comedy programs.

“FrontRow allows everyone who attends to have a front row seat. Do you want to have a private party and attend the show with just your friends? You can do that,” said Eric Romo, CEO of AltspaceVR. “Do you want to enjoy the show just by yourself? You can do that. Do you want to have the traditional public event experience with 50 new friends? You can do that, too.“

With the VR Call feature, included when AltspaceVR is downloaded from Google Play, users can invite just their friends to enjoy an event in a private space. Users can join FrontRow experiences from a variety of VR platforms including Facebook’s Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and on mobile with Samsung Gear VR. AltspaceVR delivers a front row experience regardless if 40 or 40,000 people attend. 

For more information please visit altvr.com/frontrow.

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XTECH 2016 showed me that with VR and AR here, BRain is still the most innovative.

Virtual Reality is in the here and now(even if we are in the palm pilot era) and AR is right around the corner. It seems like there seems to be a conference or meetup every week that is VR related. Well Xtech 2016 had VR but it was not a conference showcasing the cool experience of the now but rather how VR as well as other technologies will redefine how we learn, grow, challenge, and understand the workings our brain on a conscious and unconscious level. 

Tim Ferriss, author of the 4 hour Work Week was the Day 1 Keynote speaker and really helped to highlight why this such a important time in technological development in relation to human development. His story from being born premature to now pushing his mind and body to become the  Batman (peak human state) is an inspiration. Check out the video below.

My back ground as a former video game journalist makes me lean towards that type of content and I found a rather interesting VR brain training simulator on the XTech expo floor.

Read About Cerevum VR brain training: http://www.catsandvr.com/blog/cerevrum

Though the event was not geared towards gaming, VR has created such an exciting spark for technology that Playstation had a presence there and showcased Playstation VR. In fact I was in awe by who sat in front of me during the conference.

XTech 2016 surprised me as it had a Ted Talk vibe that spoke to many people from various worlds not just the people in attendance. 

NY Jets Player and mental health advocate Brandon Marshall spoke about how technology can not only create a better athlete but also help those who suffer from depression and other mental illnesses. http://project375.org/

From to raising money to raising awareness XTECH 2016 did not focus on what technology is now but what it could be and possibly will be in relation to who we are. The important thing about the conference was that it focused on the fact that as much as we go forward in technology the human brain is still the most powerful computer.

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Assassin's Creed writer and Papo & Yo Developers team up for Time Machine VR.

Time Machine VR, the made-for-VR adventure game from Minority Media Inc., is available now for $29.99 USD on Rift and Vive, with a PlayStation VR launch slated for later this year.

The team behind Time Machine VR were also behind Papo & Yo, the very emotional and compelling fantasy adventure game for PS3 that dealt with child abuse. I expected quality from Minority Media's followup and they have delivered in VR. Time Machine VR has over 10 hours of gameplay and a gripping narrative penned by Jill Murray. Jill was the award-winning writer behind the underrated PS Vita game Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation that featured an African-French women as the protagonist.  Jill was also the writer behind the very well received Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. 

Download Time Machine VR today on the Oculus store or on Steam.

"VR is the only way to make this game," said Minority CEO Vander Caballero. "We've spent three years re-creating prehistoric creatures and the oceans they lived in... and their sheer scale in VR is heart-stopping. A livyatan on a flatscreen TV is cool to look at; a VR livyatan twenty times your size with a mouth so big you can stand comfortably in it is out of this world.”

In the role of an adventurous time-hopping cadet, players will be tasked with traveling to the Jurassic era to gather data on the ancient titans that roamed those oceans. This mission takes a dire turn when rising temperatures in the present free a deadly virus from the ice caps where it had lain dormant for millions of years. To prevent the extinction of the human race, the player must delve deeper into the past, seeking a cure among the marine monsters who survived the plague when it first emerged.

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So AltspaceVR has integrated with Slack but what else do they do?

 So AltspaceVR has integrated with Slack but what else do they do?

Recently AltspaceVR announced they integrated with Slack. Though I feel like a Slacker for just now getting to post this it is because CatsAndVR.com is not my day job. I was actually bombarded by Slack messages in my “real world” gig. I am a big fan of Slack as it has helped increase productivity at my day job in quantifiable ways. I use Slack for my day job and to interact with the MettaVR community.

Exit Scene/Cut to Future: 
A good majority of the modern American tech workforce need an escape from the mundane day to day spreadsheet salesforce customer service existence we call a day job. Monotony is our first world brain torture. VR offers us an escape into immersive worlds where we can forget our worries, disabilities, and troubled state of consciousness. 

What AltspaceVR offers is to bring us back together as a social unit during that momentary escape. 

During SVVR 2016 I had the time to chat with the AltspaceVR team and do a #VRcall in a 80’s/90’s era phone booth. Just using a mobile device and a Gear VR I was able to visit an island dance party in honor of the recently departed Prince. This gathering of people showed my point whether likeminded or not, there are more commonalities than differences in the world. Everyone was there for a common interest in both Prince and VR. 

The picture told of VR sometimes is that is a lonely isolationist experience. Hell at a point people looked that way at videogames. That is actually counterintuitive of the historical precedent of Mankind itself and the way technology has shaped shows this. World Of Warcraft was popular not because of being a good game but for it’s social value. The term Social Media has been ingrained in our modern technologic vernacular.

I get the marketing angle that with AltspaceVR and Slack conference calls and meetings will never be the same again.Well that angle is how you get funding and VentureBeat articles. Now mass scale adoption is different and that angle about AltspaceVR  is what intrigues me about them. 

My first interaction with AltspaceVR was a few years ago when I saw a random person on the street carrying an Oculus Dev kit. Though it was brief I got to share my intrigue of the modern VR movement and get some quick insights. Only recently I realized that person was Bruce Wooden.

For many people the fear of walking up to someone in the real world and having a conversation ends up creating a limited world view.  AltspaceVR looks to solve this by having a virtual safe space to interact and communicate. The thing that really got me intrigued with AltspaceVR is the open mic and comedy events they host. Many people myself included want to get on stage and perform but can have a level of fear that is hard to overcome. In fact I only did my standup act once and it was random at Burning Man. A place I consider safe for me to truly be myself. 

By having a virtual community people can become singers and poets in a space that is more akin to a real world environment than Youtube. When I spoke to Debbie Shepard she said she was so caught up in the energy and excitement of a recent event she decided to recite Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll 

 I have to thank the AltspaceVR team for giving me some time to get a better idea of what they are doing. 

I want to give a special thanks to Gerald Gottheil for taking the additional time to ask me what does AltspaceVR mean in the perspective of Cats And VR. I look at AltspaceVR as a place where pet owners as a whole can find out they have way more in common than they might have thought. I also look at people with disabilities having the opportunity to go to a virtual dog park. If I would request something in AltspaceVR it would be intuitive pet avatars, sometimes you may just want to wander around a virtual social world with your dog buddy. 

I hope this turned out to be a good read, the original was actually deleted this morning due to WiFi issues and user error. Ok well now back to that AR Slack channel I'm living my real reality in, unfortunately the AR stands for Accounts Receivable not Augmented Reality. 

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