What Is Immersive Technology? by Advrtas

WHAT IS IMMERSIVE TECHNOLOGY?
Because Immersive Technology leverages the 360
space/sphere, users can look in any direction and see content.
Some types of Immersive Technology extend reality by
overlaying digital images on a user’s environment. Others
create a new reality by completely shutting a user out from
the rest of the world and immersing them in a digital
environment.
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WHAT IS IMMERSIVE
TECHNOLOGY?
Immersive Technology is any technology
that extends reality or creates a new reality
by leveraging the 360 space.

WHAT IS IMMERSIVE TECHNOLOGY?WHAT IS IMMERSIVE TECHNOLOGY?
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IMMERSIVE TECHNOLOGY TYPES
360 is the most basic and probably the most
familiar immersive technology out there.
These days, 360 content can be seen
practically anywhere online – especially on
YouTube and Facebook.
The 360 content found in these platforms range from
user-generated to brand-sponsored content. No
surprise there as this new format gives content
creators more space to work with and allows viewers to
explore content by looking in any direction.
360

Virtual Reality is another very familiar type of
immersive technology, especially because it
has been quite the buzzword for the last
couple of years.
With VR, a user is completely shut out from the rest of
the world while being surrounded by content. Through
a head mounted display (HMD), whatever content the
user experiences in the headset becomes their “reality” –
allowing users to experience real and imagined worlds
as if they are really there.
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VR

360 VS 360 VR
While essentially the same thing, 360 VR content is
360 content with VR mode. When in VR mode, users
are able to view the 360 content in a cardboard
headset, or sometimes even a mobile 360 VR headset.
By itself (without VR mode), 360 content can be
experienced without the help of an HMD and is best
experienced on mobile.
Mobile VR leverages HMDs that are connected to
smartphones.
Examples of these are the Samsung Gear VR or even
Google’s Daydream headset. Some might even
consider Google Cardboard as Mobile VR as well.
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MOBILE VR
The world of Immersive Technology can be confusing
because of all the terms involved. You might have heard
terms like 360 VR, True VR, Mobile VR, and wonder if there’s
really a difference between all of them.

TRUE VR
Because of all the terms that are connected to VR,
the term True VR was coined to refer to the “real”
Virtual Reality. Why “real” or “true”? True VR uses
headsets that require very powerful computers
or consoles.
Examples of these are the HTC Vive, Oculus Rift,
Playstation VR, etc. These HMDs are so powerful
they also leverage sensors (separate from the
HMD) that keep track of a person’s movement and
their surroundings. The sensors would then adjust
the VR content to whatever is within a user’s
environment. Because True VR uses powerful
computers and sensors it primarily uses CGI and
3D modeling for content (more below).
360 VR content is VR at its most basic. This means
that users can use their device to explore content by
looking in any direction but the content merely
surrounds them. It doesn’t take into consideration
depth.
In-VR content, on the other hand, does take depth
into consideration (it’s stereoscopic). This means that
when a person is viewing something “in-VR”, they can
move closer to an object or move further away
and the content adjusts to that. This is why In-VR
experiences typically use CGI and 3D modeling.
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360 VR VS IN-VR
VR

Augmented Reality (AR) is a different type of Immersive
Technology where digital images are presented on
top of the real world. This means that users who
leverage AR aren’t completely shut off from the world.
Instead, AR extends their reality.
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AR

Even stores like Target and Ikea have their own
AR apps where users can choose a product (like a
piece of furniture) and place it virtually in their
homes. This enables them to test out how
products look with their other furniture or even
provide an idea of how big the piece of furniture
is going to be.
Essentially, it allows consumers to “try out” a
product before even buying it.
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A great example of AR is Snapchat Filters. With
Snapchat Filters you can overlay digital images of
a puppy, cat, movie star, etc. onto your face. You
can even move your phone around and see
clouds around you or stars.
Another familiar example is Pokemon Go where
users can walk around their neighborhood with
their mobile phones and find Pokemon that are
overlaid on the environment around the user.

Mixed Reality (MR) is somewhat a
combination of AR and VR. Like VR, MR also
uses an HMD. Unlike VR, however, a user is not
shut out from the rest of the world.
Instead, the HMD is more like a pair of glasses that
overlays digital images on top of your environment (just
like AR).
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MR

Mixed Reality (MR) is somewhat a combination
of AR and VR.
Like VR, MR also uses an HMD. Unlike VR, however, a user
is not shut out from the rest of the world. Instead, the
HMD is more like a pair of glasses that overlays digital
images on top of your environment (just like AR).
Because of this, MR is sometimes called AR 2.0. An MR
headset that is currently available to the market is the
Microsoft Hololens. There’s also the recently launched
Magic Leap.
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VR
On their website for the HoloLens, Microsoft describes it
best by saying it is a “holographic computer.” This takes
“extending reality” to the next level and as Mixed Reality
continues to evolve, we might just be looking into a future
where desktops and laptops are no longer a thing and all of
our computer work is done with the help of an MR headset.
The question is: is MR “better” than the rest? Some
say yes as MR takes Immersive Technology to the
next level because it basically serves as the computer
of the future.

Immersive Technology used to be something you would read
about in Sci-Fi books or watch in Sci-Fi movies.
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WAYS TO USE
IMMERSIVE TECHNOLOGY?
Today, Immersive Technology has many
different applications and can be used by
brands and consumers alike in countless ways.

EXPLORATION OF
PHYSICAL LOCATIONS
Immersive Technology gives travel brands the
opportunity to tap into consumers’ emotions in a
way they never could before, while still being
able to showcase the amenities and benefits
available in their destination.
It takes the travel shopping experience to a whole new
level and also gives consumers a chance to tour a
destination before actually booking a reservation. It’s the
perfect sales tool for travel advertisers.
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Another way that travel brands can use Immersive Technology
is by leveraging AR or even MR to highlight certain spots of a
destination while people are physically at a destination.
For example, tourists could be walking around while
wearing Immersive Glasses and the glasses point out
different historical events or fun facts related to that
particular spot – kind of like a virtual tour guide, if you will.
WAYS TO USE IMMERSIVE TECHNOLOGY

The Healthcare Sector has always benefited
from the advancement of technology and the
coming of Immersive Technology is no different.
Doctors and healthcare providers have discovered that
Immersive Technology helps with relieving a patient’s pain as
immersing them in an experience distracts them from what’s
going on. For example, in a university in Canada, students
developed a VR game that would immerse cancer patients
during chemotherapy and thus, distract them from their pain.
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Another benefit (which ties in with Education) is that Immersive
Technology allows medical students and doctors to do surgery
simulations. Immersive Technology can help doctors watch
other surgeons perform operations remotely – maybe even
from a first person perspective.
Immersive Technology improves the healthcare sector because
it is a really good tool that promotes empathy as well. Doctors
and healthcare providers would better understand their
patients by immersing them in experiences that allow them to
walk in their patients’ shoes and see what they experience.
HEALTHCARE

IMMERSIVE ADVERTISING
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It’s been a while since there has been a major
technological shift in the ad industry, but the
coming of Immersive Advertising has changed
that.
But what is Immersive Advertising? Immersive
Advertising is an entirely new ad format that leverages
Immersive Technology while still being able to use
today’s current ad channels and ecosystems. This new
ad technology takes advantage of a mobile phone’s
sensory inputs (like its gyroscope, magnetometer,
accelerometer). These sensory inputs allow the
immersive ad to respond to device motion, which makes
it very effective for mobile advertising.
Because Immersive Ads are very interactive, they are
able to initiate and sustain ad engagement. They also
elevate the ad experience for the consumer – a very
important factor considering the ad industry has been
getting a bad rep for intrusive and irrelevant
experiences.
MARKETING AND ADVERTISING

EXPERIENTIAL MARKETING
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Experiential marketing is one of the most common
implementations of Immersive Technology in
business where brands can set up interactive
booths in trade shows, county fairs, malls or even
sporting events where people can try promotional
VR experiences.
Some of these Experiential Marketing installations are so
incredibly detailed that brands have even created sets and
included props that would help elevate the immersive
experience.
For example, to promote the first season of Stranger Things, Netflix created
an immersive experience that put the consumer in a scene of the show where
they get to watch the scene unfold in first person perspective. Other more
recent examples are movies like Mission Impossible, The Meg, or The First
Purge. Another example of experiential marketing can be found in travel trade
shows. During events, travel brands & tourism boards would hand out
cardboard headsets and encourage people to try them out with a 360 video of
the tourist spot they’re promoting.
These promotional
experiences can be
based on an upcoming
movie or show or they
can even be a
promotional experience
for a product.

IMMERSIVE WEB APPS
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As mentioned previously, Immersive Ads work
best in mobile and it can be flexible as it works
either in mobile web or in-app. Immersive Ads
allow consumers to explore a brand within an
ad unit seamlessly while browsing the internet
– all without having to be redirected into a
page. What’s great about Immersive
Technology is that brands don’t just have to
stop reaching out to their consumers with
Immersive Ads. They can provide bigger and
deeper implementations of Immersive Ads
through Immersive Web apps.
For example, if a consumer is exploring an Immersive
Ad and is interested to learn more, the consumer can
click on a CTA inside the Immersive Ad that will redirect
them to an Immersive Web App (IWA). An IWA is a bigger
and deeper implementation of an Immersive Ad.
Because it works as some sort of landing page, it gives
brands an opportunity to further expose consumers to
their messaging and target those who are deeper in the
sales cycle.

E-COMMERCE AND SHOPPING TOOLS
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Immersive Technology has put new meaning to the
term “online shopping.” As mentioned earlier, more
and more stores are using AR apps to allow users to
test out their products beforehand. Even with VR,
brands like those within the car industry are using
virtual showrooms where consumers can look at
cars, take virtual test drives and even “sit inside”
them. The experience is made even more immersive
by letting users sit in actual car seats to make them
feel like they’re actually inside a car.
Other examples of Immersive Ecommerce & Shopping Tools are
the Target and Ikea AR apps mentioned before where users can
try and see how a product would look like in their homes. This
also works for real estate where people looking for homes can
decide which homes are worth visiting in person and which
homes are not, by taking a virtual tour of the home first. By
allowing consumers to “try before they buy”, immersive
technology makes the online shopping experience much more
seamless and interactive.
In marketing & advertising, Immersive
Technology allows brands to reach consumers in
every stage of the consumer purchasing funnel.

Education has and can greatly benefit from
Immersive Technology as it taps into the different
senses of a human being.
For example, a few years ago at CES, one of our team
members was able to try out a VR simulation used to train
firefighters. In this simulation, a user is given an actual
firefighting coat and a VR controller shaped like a water hose.
The coat would heat up depending on the temperature of the
fire in the simulation and the water hose would vibrate due
to the pressure of the water. In this simulation, the user’s
sense of sight, hearing, and touch are being tapped into. If a
scent generator was added to the simulation, even a user’s
sense of smell could be used.
Because it taps into the different senses of a
person, immersive content allows a person to learn
from the best method that works for them –
whether they’re a visual learner, an auditory
learner, or even a haptic learner – Immersive
Technology makes it possible.
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With Immersive Technology, students can even have field trips
in VR all from their classroom. Learning about the Roman
Colosseum? Pop on a VR headset and tour the actual
Colosseum and see historical events unfold as if you’re really
there! Immersive Technology like AR or even MR can even help
students learn about the human body and how each part
functions by overlaying digital images on an actual person and
highlighting where the different parts are located.
EDUCATION

ART
Many museums are finding that using Immersive
Technologies allows visitors to engage with pieces and
“feel a connection with the artist”.
By revitalizing old works of art in the museum
into virtual spaces, visitors no longer have to
stand in line among large crowds in order to
stare at a painting from 5 feet away. Now they
can be immersed within a classic painters studio
or find themselves placed in the landscape of the
painting.
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And with the ability to download immersive technology apps,
those who are unable to travel to popular museums are now
given an opportunity to view rare works of art and limited run
collections. Immersive Technology is also giving artists a new
canvas of creativity to reach younger audiences who have
grown up only using screens.
With the help of AR, brands like Remy Martin are using virtual
art and immersive technologies to create a stronger brand
image. Therefore allowing audiences to feel a deeper emotional
connection to the brand and artworks.

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With all these benefits, we can definitely see that Immersive
Technology is here to stay and is ushering in the next Industrial
Revolution. This new technology is opening up a realm of
possibilities that the world has never seen before and is making
improvements in industries that have not had a major
technological shift in a long time. As time passes, it will be
exciting to see how Immersive Technology will continue to
develop and progress and what other emerging technologies
will come out of it.
GAMING
The gaming industry has been one of the first movers of
Immersive Technology. Because of this, Gaming and
Immersive Technology have become almost synonymous to
each other – causing a barrier for brands to leverage this
technology. Thankfully, this misconception has slowly been
debunked as people are beginning to realize the many
different benefits of Immersive Technology. Even so, the
Gaming Industry has been going strong with Immersive
Technology. The launch of the Playstation VR
and even Pokemon Go has definitely helped in
this aspect. Not to mention that these days, VR
arcades are becoming more and more common.

RESOURCES ON IMMERSIVE TECHNOLOGY
All About Immersive Advertising eBook
http://360vradresources.advrtas.com/all-about-360-vr-ads
Immersive Media Glossary
https://advrtas.com/immersive-media-glossary/
Why AI Immersive Ads are the Breakthrough to the Advertising of Tomorrow
https://advrtas.com/ai-immersive-ads-breakthrough/
4 Reasons Immersive Smart Ads Are Better Than Video and Display
https://advrtas.com/immersive-smart-ads-better/
4 Reasons Why Immersive Smart Ads Need To Be In Your Media Plan
https://advrtas.com/immersive-ads-media-plan/
VRARA Resources
http://www.thevrara.com/casestudiesandwhitepapers
© 2018 Outlyer, LLC. Advrtas is a registered trademark of Outlyer, LLC.
All rights reserved.

What Is Immersive Technology? by Advrtas

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