BBC Taster, BBC’s experimental media arm, has launched the Taster VR app with all-new Planet Earth II and BBC Three content.
Ever been watching Planet Earth and thought to yourself, “I want to be there”? With the BBC Taster VR app—out today for free on both Android and iOS—that’s never been easier.
Our VR app is here! Great content from @bbcthree and @BBCEarth and there’s plenty more to come. Find it on Taster https://t.co/FG8vD90Jdx pic.twitter.com/NPdeQb9j10
— BBC Taster (@BBCTaster) July 5, 2017
BBC Taster has been pushing experimental media and ideas to audiences for the past two years; the app will function as a discovery and distribution platform for mobile content that extends beyond static 360 videos, “including animated VR, interactive 360° videos, dynamic binaural audio and branching narratives.”
“BBC Taster VR will be a fantastic showcase for some brilliant new commissions, as well as some new takes on some of the best BBC Taster VR experiences to date,” said Controller of BBC Research and Development Andy Conroy in a statement. “It gives audiences cutting-edge mobile VR experiences from the BBC and, crucially, gives our editorial and technical teams even greater insight.”
The app will be updated with new BBC VR experiences regularly. The app was also developed in conjunction with EEVO to help generate analytics and user feedback—including heat mapping to reveal where users look (and for how long) during the experience—so it doubles as a tool to help immersive content creators with the BBC in improving their storytelling capabilities over time.
