YouTube (Photo : Reuters)
Video sharing website YouTube recently announced that it is entering the virtual reality market and promises to add 3D support in its 360-degree video playback in the future.
The announcement was made just a day after the company release its first ever 360-degree ad which is a commercial for Bud Light, according to CBC News. Users of the YouTube mobile app or through the Google Chrome browser can now rotate into any direction when viewing a 360-degree video.
YouTube was able to create a 360-degree video by using special camera rigs that are mounted to look into several directions. The trick then lies deep in a software used to stitch all the raw videos captured by all the cameras into a single video.
3D video playback require users to use virtual reality headsets like the Google Cardboard, Oculus Rift or the Samsung Gear VR. The video sharing company is planning to provide its international studios with special camera rigs in order to support the new video format.
According to Toronto Sun, the new video playback feature was announced at the announce VidCon convention, a yearly event that attracts creators and fans of online video. The convention was held at the Anaheim Convention Center.
During the event, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki said, "We've seen big name artists like Avicii and Bjork do some breakthrough things with 3D video, but we want to empower all of you to chart this new frontier."
According to Wojcicki, the mobile YouTube app will receive a new feature that allow users to receive notification every time a new video is uploaded by a creator that they follow. The new feature will be released on the Android platform immediately and iOS platform will closely follow.
