Varun Nair of Two Big Ears Ltd. and Jean-Pascal (JP) Beaudoin of Headspace Studio gave an excellent primer on “Audio for Cinematic VR” at this week’s GDC VR Developers Conference at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. Beaudoin started by making two overarching points: the sense of presence in VR is proportional to the amount of immersion, and it is important to understand the Field of Audition (FoA – the sound space). The session also addressed three key types of sound space designs: diegetic audio, acousmatic audio and non-diegetic audio. Continue reading Cinematic VR Audio Discussed at Game Developers Conference

The SXSW Festival kicked off in Austin on Friday and runs until March 20. VentureBeat has identified five trends at the fest expected to have a significant impact on how brands and consumers interact in the near future. Virtual reality is at the forefront with panels “on tap to discuss everything from Cinematic VR, virtual football, and VR storytelling to city planning using social VR.” SXSW will also focus on the shift from social media to social messaging, the growth of artificial intelligence and emotive robotics, connected wearables and IoT-based devices, and the sharing activity known as “dark social,” which addresses “the culmination of referrals and sharing of content that originates from instant messages, emails containing links,” and the rise of “platforms such as Snapchat, WeChat, and WhatsApp.” Continue reading VR, Messaging, AI, IoT and Dark Social Lead Charge at SXSW

Startups are hoping their mobile apps will make a major splash at this year’s SXSW Festival. Anchor, for example, is an audio app that serves as an audio message board that allows users to publish recorded “waves” to interact with the masses. Other hopefuls include Nom, a livestreaming food app and MeWe, which enables users to send disappearing, encrypted messages to friends. However, not all buzz-generating apps continue their trajectory post SXSW. “Last year was Meerkat’s moment, but the live video app fell out of vogue soon after the party in Austin ended, partially as a result of Twitter’s acquisition of its competitor Periscope,” reports Bloomberg. Continue reading Mobile App Startups Compete for Attention at SXSW Festival

LA-based virtual reality startup Immersv launched its ad platform yesterday, which offers VR some of the same advertising techniques common to mobile apps. According to Variety, “Immersv ad units respond to the gaze: Look at them long enough, and you’ll be taken to a virtual movie theater where you got to see video ads for other VR games and experiences.” Users can also visit the VR platform’s app store without taking off their headset. Co-founder and CEO Mihir Shah claims Immersv has seen completion rates of 80 percent, about double the effectiveness of traditional mobile ads. Continue reading Immersv Launches Mobile Ad Platform for Virtual Reality Apps

Yahoo is partnering with the National Hockey League to stream live broadcasts online starting today. Yahoo Sports plans to live-stream a free NHL “Game of the Day” and game highlights up to four days per week. “The new partnership is in addition to the NHL games promoted on Wednesdays and Sundays in partnership with NBC Sports Group,” reports The Wall Street Journal. “Viewing the games on Yahoo Sports won’t require a cable subscription or authentication.” Yahoo already has deals for live and on-demand content with Major League Baseball and the PGA Tour. Continue reading Yahoo Teams with NHL to Stream Free Online Hockey Games

AT&T’s DirecTV plans to produce its first live 4K broadcast when golf’s Masters Tournament returns to Augusta, Georgia April 7-10. The broadcast will mark the first time a U.S. audience will have the option of tuning in to a live UHD broadcast. The amount of on-demand content for 4K TVs is growing, but live broadcasts are just beginning (a January NBA game was broadcast live in Canada and the UK). “To see golf’s big event in 4K, you’ll need DirecTV’s latest Genie HD DVR box and a subscription to either the Ultimate or Premier channel package,” reports The Verge. Continue reading DirecTV to Debut Live 4K Broadcasts with Masters Tournament

In the wake of Facebook revealing it would bring its 360 dynamic streaming to Gear VR, Oculus announced that the Oculus Video app on Gear VR would feature a Facebook video tab for connecting Facebook and Oculus accounts. Users will be able to view and browse VR content and share videos while in the Gear VR headset. “By integrating personal info from Facebook, this is a massive first step for parent company and child that will be sure to give individual VR users a more custom experience across virtual reality verticals that will undoubtedly grow beyond social video,” suggests TechCrunch. Continue reading Facebook Aims to Expand Social Interaction in Virtual Reality

Led by Google and Facebook, U.S. digital ad spending is projected to reach $77.4 billion next year, surpassing TV ad spending for the first time, according to eMarketer. Digital ad spending is expected to represent 38.4 percent of total ad spending, while TV ad spending will comprise 36 percent of total media ad spending. The growth of mobile is expected to drive digital to continue its lead over television. “By 2020, TV ad spending share is expected to reach $77.2 billion — dropping its share to one-third of total media ad spending,” reports Variety. “Digital ad revenue will exceed $105 billion, representing 45 percent share.” Continue reading Digital Ad Spending Poised to Exceed TV for First Time in U.S.

According to Kaspersky Lab Antimalware Research, the volume of malware targeting mobile devices grew more than threefold in 2015 over the previous year. Ransomware, malware that obtains unlimited rights on a device, and data stealers such as financial malware served as significant threats. “The number of ransomware app modifications has increased by 3.5 times, proof that fraudsters are seeing ever more advantage in earning money from users via blackmail,” notes Network World. “2016 is likely to see an increase in the complexity of the malware and its modifications, with more geographies targeted.” Continue reading Study Reveals New Malware Targeting Mobile Tripled in 2015

During March 11 spring training games, Major League Baseball plans to suspend its social media rules for one day by allowing players to post on video messaging app Snapchat. “Encouraging live, in-game posts — called Snaps — is part of an expanded agreement between the league and the $16 billion social media network,” explains Bloomberg. While Snapchat also has deals with the NBA, NFL, NHL and NCAA that typically involve shared ad revenue, the leagues currently prohibit athletes from posting on social media during games. Continue reading MLB Players to Test Snapchat During Spring Training Games

Virginia has become the first state to formally legalize daily fantasy sports by signing a bill detailing how DraftKings, FanDuel and related services can operate legally in the state. Governor Terry McAuliffe signed the Fantasy Contests Act yesterday. “Alongside undergoing two independent audits every year, fantasy sport sites must pay a $50,000 fee to operate in Virginia, impose policies to ensure all players are 18 years or older, and ban employees of fantasy sites from participating in public contests, among other consumer protection measures,” reports The Verge. Continue reading New Bill Makes Daily Fantasy Sports Sites Legal in Virginia

Sony announced the launch of its Future Lab Program, a new research and development initiative “that emphasizes an open creative environment and direct lines of communication with society, through which it aims to co-create new lifestyles and user value in the future.” Sony’s program will share prototypes with the user community during development and welcome feedback to help refine projects. The first project — a hands-free interface that offers a new way to experience audio — will be featured in Austin at the SXSW Interactive Festival. Continue reading Sony’s Future Lab R&D Program to Showcase Tech at SXSW

Internet retailer Amazon introduced two new Echo-related products yesterday: the $130 Amazon Tap — a smaller, portable version of the Echo; and the $90 Echo Dot — a hockey puck-size version of Echo, minus the powerful speaker. As is the case with the newly popular Echo, users interact with both devices via the Alexa voice service. Amazon Tap features a rechargeable battery and uses Bluetooth and Wi-Fi to connect with mobile devices and the Internet. The Dot, which connects via wire or Bluetooth, is designed to provide Alexa for existing speaker systems. Continue reading Amazon Announces Alexa Voice-Controlled Household Devices

While the future of Yahoo’s media operations remains in flux, the company continues to invest in key vertical segments, the latest of which is an eSports gaming news and video site. Yahoo Esports initially plans to cover “League of Legends” (Riot Games), “Heroes of the Storm” (Blizzard Entertainment), “Street Fighter V” (Capcom), and “Counter-Strike: Global Offensive” and “Dota 2” (Valve). With the growing success of eSports, media companies such as ESPN and Turner Broadcasting are also entering the market. Continue reading Yahoo Targets Growing eSports Audience with New Video Site

Santa Clara-based startup SoundHound has developed a voice-powered digital assistant that could take on early players in the field, including Siri, Google Now and Cortana. Like the others, the Hound app (for iOS and Android) allows users to interact via voice so that it can perform requested tasks. However, Hound claims to be faster and smarter than its competitors. The app has been in beta with 150,000 testers since last summer, and is now publicly available along with new Yelp and Uber partnerships for restaurant info and ride hailing from within the app. Continue reading New Voice-Powered App Takes On Leading Digital Assistants