Will Sony and Meta Make VR and AR Mainstream? Microsoft Downsizing Their Mixed Reality Efforts

[GoldenGlove]

AltspaceVR is shutting down as Microsoft’s mixed reality division shrinks

AltspaceVR goes dark on March 10th.

www.theverge.com

Microsoft will shut down AltspaceVR, the social virtual reality (VR) platform it acquired in 2017 (via VentureBeat), on March 10th, 2023. The company shared the news in a blog post just days after it announced job cuts affecting 10,000 workers, stating the move will help shift focus “to support immersive experiences powered by Microsoft Mesh.”

AltspaceVR emerged as one of the very first social VR experiences in 2015 alongside other platforms like VRChat and Rec Room. While the startup nearly shut down in 2017 due to financial issues, Microsoft scooped up the platform as part of its efforts to build out its own mixed-reality ecosystem. Microsoft says users can download their data from AltspaceVR before the shutdown.

“We look forward to what is to come, including our launch of Microsoft Mesh, a new platform for connection and collaboration, starting by enabling workplaces around the world,” AltspaceVR writes in its announcement. “In the near-term, we are focusing our VR efforts on workplace experiences, learning from and alongside our early customers and partners, and ensuring we deliver a foundation that enables security, trust and compliance. Over time, we hope to extend to consumer experience a well.”

Unlike AltspaceVR, which hosts events and social spaces that people are free to join, Microsoft Mesh is geared toward companies looking to collaborate remotely. Microsoft has been gradually building upon Mesh since it first announced it in 2021, a platform my colleague Tom Warren says “feels like the future of Microsoft Teams.”
But now Microsoft’s scaling back on its metaverse ambitions as it looks to make adjustments to its “hardware profile.” The employees working on Microsoft’s open-source Mixed Reality Toolkit say they’ve all been laid off, and a report from Windows Central indicates that Microsoft cut the entire team behind AltspaceVR as well. The Verge reached out to Microsoft with a request for comment, but it declined to comment.

In addition to the shutdown of Altspace, Microsoft’s massive layoffs also reportedly impacted the team behind the company’s HoloLens VR headset. The division has faced numerous setbacks over the past year, with HoloLens boss Alex Kipman leaving the company last year after facing allegations of sexual misconduct. It also doesn’t help that Congress recently denied the US Army’s request to purchase up to 6,900 headsets based on the HoloLens platform.

We all know that Meta is going all in on this and Zuckerberg feels like VR is the next evolution of the internet... on the flip side, you have Microsoft bowing out and letting Meta and Sony and potentially Apple (who is rumored to announce a headset/glasses soon) take the lead on this.

I can see AR augmented reality being more prevalent than VR when the tech is able to catch up. I just feel like smart glasses, smart phones and projector style accessories are going to be easier for people to use/adopt than a big ass VR headset for regular use.

Will VR just be a niche thing for gaming, will it be big for the workforce? Will it be the next evolution of the internet? Or will it be a waste of billions in resources and ultimately flop

 

[Gizmo_Duck]

One thing we can be sure about, if they do, xbox stans will claim VR was mainstream before sony invested millions into it and xbox started it with Kinect

 

[Big Jo]

COVID/ quarantine/ lockdown was the chance for VR to get embraced in the mainstream.

and for whatever reason it didnt really get there.

Though I for one bought an Oculus during lockdown and still love it, something about it didnt quite stick.

I am not sure what the disconnect is/ was and why it felt short... it really is impressive/ fun technology and most people that experience, love it

 

[CoolinInTheCut]

It's gonna take Fortnite or GTA Online getting a VR version for VR to become mainstream.

 

[Kamikaze Revy]

1st off: A couple xbots on here swore up and down XBOX was going to have VR.
A certain monster has laughably argued that VR is the same as Kinect.

That aside:
Use it once with a proper game/experience and you'll see it's the future of entertainment with cases to be made for the future of remote workplaces.
Ease of use is important but the cable and/or size of the headset isn't the most critical issue.
Just like any other new platform, the mountain in front of them is cost/price and consumer behavior.
You aren't going to force anyone onto a new platform, especially one that is very cost prohibitive to experience and doesn't have another comparable modern experience to draw from.
$500+ is outside of discretionary spending for most people. You'd have to price it at $200 or less to be the "oh what the heck, I'll give it a try" peripheral device but that isn't going to happen. The only real chance it has is for devs to dump countless hours into developing amazing exclusive content for the platform and eat the loses like Tesla until you get enough consumers to advocate for it and convince others to take the plunge. Problem is, Sony doesn't have the pockets for that uphill climb and Microsoft isn't interested.

 

[Fatboi1]

I think eventually VR will be compact enough to be ubiquitous for the average person but for now it seems like it will be more so relegated to gamers/tech enthusiasts.

 

[Kamikaze Revy]

It's gonna take Fortnite or GTA Online getting a VR version for VR to become mainstream.

Yup. VR Warzone, Tarkov, Battlefield, etc.
It NEEDS that AAA support otherwise it'll be niche forever.
RE7 is all it takes to make the majority of people a believer in VR as a platform.
RE8 is about to take it to the next level but 1 or 2 games isn't enough to shift a market.
I'm surprised Disney hasn't jumped into the market with both feet and started to sell tickets to virtual live sporting events and concerts.
You could sell the same front row seat a million times for $20 and be sitting right next to people who paid a couple hundred to be there in person.

 

[Gizmo_Duck]

Yup. VR Warzone, Tarkov, Battlefield, etc.
It NEEDS that AAA support otherwise it'll be niche forever.
RE7 is all it takes to make the majority of people a believer in VR as a platform.
RE8 is about to take it to the next level but 1 or 2 games isn't enough to shift a market.
I'm surprised Disney hasn't jumped into the market with both feet and started to sell tickets to virtual live sporting events and concerts.
You could sell the same front row seat a million times for $20 and be sitting right next to people who paid a couple hundred to be there in person.

Just put pornhub premium on it free

 

[GoldenGlove]

COVID/ quarantine/ lockdown was the chance for VR to get embraced in the mainstream.

and for whatever reason it didnt really get there.

Though I for one bought an Oculus during lockdown and still love it, something about it didnt quite stick.

I am not sure what the disconnect is/ was and why it felt short... it really is impressive/ fun technology and most people that experience, love it

I got one for free, used it a few times, and was like... it's cool, but not really a must for me.

I think augmented reality eventually will be more common for every day usage once smart glasses are powerful enough to drive it.

 

[MeachTheMonster]

Use it once with a proper game/experience and you'll see it's the future of entertainment

VR stan’s been saying the same shyt for decades now. Stop it

VR ain’t never gone be shyt, but some niche product a couple of you spend way to much money on to sit in your closet.

 

[Gizmo_Duck]

VR stan’s been saying the same shyt for decades now. Stop it

VR ain’t never gone be shyt, but some niche product a couple of you spend way to much money on to sit in your closet.

Like the xbox

 

[MeachTheMonster]

Like the xbox

Spend $700 on an helmet you will play less than an xbox brehs

 

[Gizmo_Duck]

Spend $700 on an helmet you will play less than an xbox brehs

You bought a Kinect

 

[humminbird]

Sony will do VR right
Apple will do AR right

 

[CoolinInTheCut]

Yup. VR Warzone, Tarkov, Battlefield, etc.
It NEEDS that AAA support otherwise it'll be niche forever.
RE7 is all it takes to make the majority of people a believer in VR as a platform.
RE8 is about to take it to the next level but 1 or 2 games isn't enough to shift a market.
I'm surprised Disney hasn't jumped into the market with both feet and started to sell tickets to virtual live sporting events and concerts.
You could sell the same front row seat a million times for $20 and be sitting right next to people who paid a couple hundred to be there in person.

Those games don't really have the clout and pull that Fortnite and GTA Online have. Warzone maybe but that might be too chaotic / intense for VR. But providing familiar worlds for people to get lost in + a social aspect to connect with their friends / other people is probably key for getting a lot of people on board.

I think a big thing for VR is going to be how it requires you to be fully immersed, and with how people are becoming increasingly more attention deficient, its going to be hard for most people, and especially casuals, to use it for extended periods. I know its contrary to what VR is about, but people often check their phones during games / movies / shows / and even at events like concerts. They're going to need to make a way for your phone notifications to come through to the VR screen if they really want most people to adopt the technology and actually use it for extended periods.