Intel announced at CES that it will power the largest scale Virtual Reality event to date with the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 using its True VR technology.
Working with the Olympic Broadcast Services (OBS), they will capture a record 30 Olympic events, with both live and video on-demand content available. This marks the first-ever live Virtual Reality broadcast of the Olympic Winter Games.
Mobile users will be able to view interactive 360-degree content on iOS and Android via Google Cardboard, while PC and Mac users can view interactive 180-degree and 360-degree video via NBC.com, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
Available in VR across Samsung Gear VR, Google Daydream and Windows Mixed Reality headsets, fans will experience:
- User Selectable View Points: With three to six camera locations per event, viewers can customize their experience by switching between multiple vantage points during events in VR.
- Fully Produced VR Cast: Fans also have the option to lean back and enjoy a more immersive and fully produced VR Cast, curated to take advantage of the best view of the action and featuring graphics and picture-in-picture overlays.
- On-Demand Highlights: Post-event, on-demand 3- to 5-minute features will be available showcasing the best moments from each event.
- Real-Time Stats and Leaderboards: During live video or full event replays, users can access real-time leaderboards and post-event results.
- Audio Integration: Viewers will hear the natural sound as captured at each camera location allowing them to experience the sound as if they were there. Exclusive Behind-the-Scenes Content: Viewers will be able to tour the Olympic venues. Headset viewers will also be able to ‘fly’ through the world of the Olympic Winter Games, giving the user a sense of the layout of the different locations of specific venues. The experience will also follow Team Intel athletes as they prepare and compete.
Global Games
As the Official Virtual Reality Experience Provider of the Olympic Games through 2024, the service will be available in the US via the forthcoming NBC Sports VR app and globally through 10 Olympics Rights Holding Broadcaster channels around the world, including CBC (Canada), Radio Canada (Canada), Discovery (Europe), NHK (Japan), ZDF (Germany), SBS (Korea), CCTV (China), NBC (U.S.), AMX (Latin America), and OCS (global).
