Sky VR Studio Selects Jaunt to Bring Its Immersive Content Library to Life in 2018
Jaunt has announced a major new partnership for the Jaunt XR Platform with Sky, Europe’s leading entertainment company.
Jaunt’s XR Platform is a state of the art white label immersive content distribution solution that enables media companies, brands, content aggregators and enterprise customers to deliver immersive content directly to audiences through their owned and operated channels.
Sky VR Studio, Sky’s in-house virtual reality studio, will use the technology to deliver content to consumers via its popular Sky VR app. Sky will become the first media company to adopt the Jaunt XR Platform for the distribution of its VR content, which includes experiences that allow viewers to explore inside The Jungle Book’s King Louis’ temple as well as ride a Star Wars X-wing starfighter fighting Imperial forces.
The partnership marks the launch of the Jaunt XR Platform and will be one of the immersive technology company’s showcase demonstrations at CES 2018 in Las Vegas this month.
Gary Davey, Managing Director of Content at Sky said, “The viewing habits of our customers are evolving and the appetite for immersive content is growing day by day. Since launching the Sky VR Studio in 2016, we’ve been at the forefront of VR content creation – fusing together world-leading technology with the best storytelling and ideas. This year Sky will launch ‘Hold the World’, an inside look at the Natural History Museum’s collection of rare objects featuring a three-dimensional hologram of Sir David Attenborough – a world first.
“To deliver these experiences to our customers, we need the right platforms and technology. We’re excited to adopt the Jaunt XRP as it will let us take the next steps in our VR journey, helping ready the Sky VR App to handle the ever more innovative and complex VR experiences we will be creating.”
Dominic Collins, General Manager Jaunt International, said, “Sky is an example of a media company that is already producing fantastic immersive content for their viewers, naturally we wanted to give them the tools to distribute those experiences in a seamless way across their own channels. Sky, like many broadcasters, has a huge opportunity to pioneer the way in which immersive content enters and enriches the lives of consumers all over the world and we’re excited to power that vision.”
My Take: With Disney now in the process of purchasing Sky as part of their buyout of 21st Century Fox plus Disney being a investor in Jaunt already, this could help push VR related content like the recent Spider-Man: Homecoming VR experience and other VR titles that have been launched with Star Wars and Disney franchises. Sky have always invested heavily in new technology to make sure they stay ahead of the curve, however it’s going to be interesting to see if this can make the leap to mainstream.