The official launch date of the HTC Vive virtual reality headset was delayed to April 2016. Following this delay, HTC recently announced that it will start accepting preorders in February 2016.
HTC reveal the news in its official blog posting, "In collaboration with Valve, we have been distributing the HTC Vive Developer Kits to developers and content creators, and are continuing to work with many other innovative companies to create content that spans gaming, entertainment, medical, education, and retail."
HTC added that the company will host a developer conference in Beijing on Dec. 18.HTC plans to launch the second generation HTC Vive Developer Kit at CES. The company said that it will engage audiences at events like the SXSW, Sundance Film Festival, Mobile World Conference and the Game Developers Conference.
On top of this latest news, two top executives that are involved in the development of HTC Vive have left the company. HTC executive director of global marketing for connected products Jeff Gattis left the company in November. HTC Vive project founder Phil Chen left the company to launch his own virtual reality investment company, Presence VR.
According to Fortune, HTC will release 7,000 units of the HTC Vive developer kits in January. On the other hand, HTC Vive rival Oculus has been flooding the enterprise and developer market. Oculus has released 118,930 units as of June. Oculus is believed to have $10 million in funds to help developers create games exclusively for the Oculus Rift device.
Experts believe that the more developer kits and more time, developers and content creator can create more immersive virtual reality experience.