Experience sights, sounds and shops virtually
A technology which has been around for decades, used in limited ways so far, is fast becoming an integral part of our work and leisure lives.
Virtual reality is now going mainstream with travel and tech companies offering 3D visits to famous locations.
Tech giant Amazon has launched a global product for a world stuck at home. Amazon Explore is the new tech platform that allows people to visit places virtually almost anywhere on the globe.
While virtual experiences have been around, Amazon says it has converted it into a complete experience with tour guides explaining everything about the place. Virtual travellers can walk into shops, ask interactive questions and even buy products which will be delivered home. By Amazon, of course.
Currently the serve is on offer only within the US, but likely to roll out for customers across the world. Importantly, Amazon Explore has put a price on every product and experience. Sample this. A consumer can walk around Kyoto's traditional neighbourhoods for $90 an hour. Then browse and shop for cookware in Tokyo for $45 an hour. And learn how to make sake at a Tokyo bar for $50 an hour.
By packaging the visual experience with shopping, Amazon Explore has combined two powerful impulses that drive tourism and travel across the world.
It follows the launch of Airbnb Online Experience earlier this year. With the travel industry in a bind, Airbnb hit upon this to generate a new revenue stream for itself, based on its large user base. In such an experience, the people who offer the talent and services earn too. While store owners will be able to sell products with Amazon, guides and local hosts can earn from the Airbnb tours. Airbnb has offered such online experience in India as well.
Indians can cook Mexican street tacos with a pro chef from ~1377 per person, or go on a Leopard Safari in Sri Lanka from ~906 per person, or meet woolly sheep and lambs at a farm in New Zealand from ~1003 per person.
Even in a post-covid world, when travel normalises, virtual tours will be a boon for consumers like senior citizens or school children who are unable to visit.
The virtual reality (VR) experience is now on its way to becoming a retail service. So far it was limited to industrial and enterprise services.
Not surprisingly, a big rise in the market for VR is expected. "The global virtual reality market size was valued at USD 10.32 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.6 per cent from 2020 to 2027," says Grand View Research.
VR was popular in the entertainment and gaming industry for individual users. This is being extended into related sectors now. "Other consumer applications in the entertainment industry include VR art gallery, VR theme park, and music VR experience. Rapid adoption of smartphones has led to the implementation of VR technology in commercial applications," says a report by Grand View Research.
In India, the ministry of culture is planning virtual tours of important monuments across the country. Some virtual tours by Indian companies already available. Google Arts & Culture has a few India museums and railway stations, like Chhatrapati Shivaji station in Mumbai. For the moment, many of them are online galleries with panoramic photographs. Many of these could soon be converted into VR experiences.
Our armchairs appear to be the safest place in the world. And that is how many of us would be enjoying the sights and sounds of travel in the near future.