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HTC has announced the world’s first app subscription service for VR content. Dubbed Viveport, it will launch as a monthly subscription service in early 2017, giving customers a one-stop shop for browsing new apps and a place for developers to show off their products.
HTC has yet to announce exact pricing, but stated that customers will be able to discover new apps for a low monthly fee.” Developers will also be able to opt-in to include their products in the subscription service, as well as continue to distribute their apps as standalone titles that require a one-off purchase.
We’re happy to let VR fans know that the same way they discover and consume content through popular subscription services for music, films, TV and games is coming to virtual reality,” said president of Viveport Rikard Steiber.
For developers, this is yet another opportunity for them to reach broader audiences – we want to give VR developers as many ways as possible to monetise and feature their content, and this is yet another channel for them to reach new customers on Viveport.”
Viveport will also be expanding its remit for enterprise VR customers and arcade operators by launching a dedicated app store for professionals later this year.
Viveport Arcade will create a digital storefront for arcades, cinemas and amusement parks around the world eager to introduce customers to VR attractions, while the enterprise app will focus on training tools and apps for healthcare, engineering, retail and real estate professionals.
Our dedicated Viveport Arcade app store will give operators around the world an easy-to-use digital storefront to curate the experiences they want to feature for their customers,” Steiber added.
We now have more than 300 top VR titles on our arcade platform. In short time, we’ve partnered with operators in China where we’re now in more than 1,000 locations, and we expect that number to grow to more than 5,000 locations globally by the end of this year."
