Welcome to the VR Industry Forum Newsletter!
Keeping you updated about our activities! Here we highlight our latest
work and focus on areas that are most critical.
A Message from the President
The new normal is digital; lets help society to get closer with (Social) Virtual Reality.
As the world is being forced to keep social distancing, we all have an important duty to try to keep people connected; it is no question that Virtual Reality can help people to minimize the feeling of isolation and at the same time increase the experience of digital socialization through “Social VR.”
VRIF has a dedicated track to address how VR and AR technology can overcome the effect of social distancing and make digital communication and interaction more natural. There is a long way to go, and our VRIF members are committed to educate the industry on how to use new immersive technologies to achieve better experiences. We are constantly looking for new ideas and people to become part of our organization, so we welcome new members to join VRIF.
Prior to the global pandemic, VRIF had planned to be present at many important events, such as NAB and IBC. We are still keeping focus on how to be present at different, upcoming virtual events. Please stayed tuned for details of our participation.
We are pleased to announce our new partnership with Streaming Video Alliance (SVA) where we have agreed to test VR quality.
For more information please see below.
VRIF Working Group Activity
Highlights from the Guidelines WG
In March the Guidelines WG organized two expert sessions.
1. ISO/IEC 23090-5 (V-PCC) Codec Overview: full presentation available to members on https://www.vr-if.org/get/562
In this presentation Sebastian Schwarz from Nokia explains how Video-based Point Cloud Compression works. Specifically he points out the benefits of V-PCC, utilizing well-known video coding principles to compress the Point Cloud.
Further in the presentation Sebastian provides performance statistics for different encoders and decoders, running on specific mobile phones. He explains how V-PCC consists of Profiles, Tiers and Levels and what different options are available.
2. Overview on Carriage of V-PCC Data (ISO/IEC 23090-10): full presentation available to members on https://www.vr-if.org/get/563
In this presentation Emre Aksu from Nokia explained how V-PCC data is carried. He explains the container format, based on ISOBMFF container, the encapsulation as single-track or multi-track (texture, geometry, occupancy) and alternatives. Emre also explains how DASH streaming of this V-PCC data is done and why partial access of V-PCC data is useful.
VR Trials with Streaming Video Alliance
The Streaming Video Alliance (SVA, https://www.streamingvideoalliance.org/) is an industry association promoting the adoption of efficient media streaming over the internet. Their VR group had been tasked to look at the impact of networking aspects for VR delivery. After establishing a liaison relationship 2 years ago, the SVA has recently contacted the VRIF through its common members (Harmonic and Ericsson) to run a trial on its fiber network testing the techniques specified by SVA, such as the Open Caching (deep intelligent caching in the ISP network). The VRIF has agreed to test the following technologies in the first phase:
| Mode | Spec | Contributor | Content | Player |
| 4K Viewport Independent | OMAF 1.0 | Harmonic | F3/4K | GearVR/S10 (1) + Oculus Rift (DASH) + HTML5 on PC/Mac |
| 4K Viewport Dependent | OMAF 1.0 | Fraunhofer HHI | F3/8K | Mac OS |
| 4K Viewport Dependent | OMAF 1.0 | Nokia | F3/8K | Windows 10, Android |
| 8K Viewport Independent | OMAF 1.0 (w/8K extension) | Harmonic | F3/8K | GearVR/S10 (1) + HTML5 on PC/Mac |
This trial is the first open testing of different technologies, detailed results will be available to the VRIF members. A white paper on the findings will be published.
In a second phase the test will be extended with additional use cases as highlighted below:
| Features | Phase I | Phase II |
| Test bed | 4 technologies | |
| Mode | VOD | Live |
| DRM | No | Yes |
| VR Quality | Subjective (3GPP) | Objective (OMAF) |
| Analytics | IP level | OMAF based |
| Network | Fiber | 5G |
| Scale | Lab | Nationwide |
| Timing (COVID-19 built in) | Q3’20 | Q4’20 |
VRIF Member Testimonial
Member Testimonial: TNO
TNO is a Dutch Institute for Applied Research and is one of the founders of the VR Industry Forum. As an Applied Research Institute, TNO needs to stay closely connected to the industry, on one hand to get relevant research questions and on the other hand to disseminate its work. VRIF is seen as the most relevant industry body to meet these needs.
TNO has been studying, experimenting with and developing virtual reality for almost 10 years. Back in 2010 TNO pioneered the stream-what-you-watch concept creating the tiled streaming technology.
While tiled streaming technology is now available through our spin-off TiledMedia, TNO continues its research on virtual reality technology and applications, now with a focus on Social VR.
The contacts and network of peers in the VR industry that the VRIF provides is of most value for TNO: research results can be validated quickly and proof-of-concepts are built with the participation of the top VR players. This rapid and in-depth collaboration between industry and research would be much harder without the VRIF.
Upcoming Topics
We will be focusing on the following topics in the near future and invite you to actively participate. If you are already a member, watch for announcements via our mail lists. If you’re company is not a member, please see below for details on how to join.
- 8k 360VR
- VR and 5G
- Cloud VR
- Social VR
If you’re not already a Member – Join Today!
Membership Information
VRIF was established to further the widespread availability of high quality audiovisual VR experiences, for the benefit of consumers. We:
- Advocate voluntary industry consensus around common technical standards for the end-to-end VR ecosystem, from creation to delivery and consumption.
- Advocate the creation and adoption of interoperable standards promoting the use of common profiles across the industry and promoting and demonstrating interoperability.
- Develop voluntary guidelines that describe best practices to ensure high quality VR experiences including Guidelines that go beyond interoperability (e.g. Production, Human Factors).
- Describe and promote the use of VR services and applications.
Many industry leaders already see the importance and value of VRIF. Join today and add your voice. We welcome your participation and look forward to meeting you at an upcoming industry event.
