Tag: XR Industry News

Napster. Now there’s a name you haven’t heard in a few years… or more likely decades. Now, immersive web company Infinite Reality announced it’s acquired the brand for $207 million. Having just closed a $3 billion investment in January, Immersive Reality says the Napster music streaming service will soon include a “social music platform” that will include branded 3D virtual spaces for virtual concerts and listening parties. Additionally, the company says Napster will also sell both physical and virtual merchandise, exclusive digital content, and event tickets. “By acquiring Napster, we’re paving a path to a brighter future for artists, fans, and the music industry at large,” said John Acunto, Infinite Reality co-Founder and CEO. “This strategic move aligns with Infinite Reality’s vision to lead an internet industry shift from a flat 2D clickable web to a 3D conversational one – giving all creators modern tools to better engage, monetize, and measure their

Google has acquired a number of HTC’s XR engineers, something the company says will “accelerate the development of the Android XR platform across the headsets and glasses ecosystem.” Google’s announcement of Android XR last month represents a critical shift in the competitive landscape, as Samsung will ostensibly be the first to launch a headset running Android XR. Excitement for familiar faces offering up competition in the consumer XR space was tempered somewhat by the usual questions surrounding Google’s ability to commit to the project long-term. While Google has addressed some of those underlying concerns in a Road to VR exclusive, which you can read more about here, that doesn’t reduce the laundry list of products and services killed by the company over the years, one of which includes Google Daydream, the company’s first real attempt at entering the XR space proper back in 2016. Google Daydream View (2017) | Image courtesy Google