NEW YORK — The San Jose Sharks are the first NHL team to have its own Oculus Gear VR application.
Thanks to the immersive media platform Zeality, the team can use the app to deliver virtual reality, 360-degree videos and photos to fans everywhere and take them right up against the glass at the Shark Tank and behind the scenes at SAP Center after games. Zeality co-founder and CEO Dipak Patel said Monday at the Virtual Reality 20/20 summit that the Sharks now effectively had an OTT platform.
“As they produce more content, it’s not only going to go to their mobile application,” Patel said. “It’s going to go to their Oculus Gear VR app, and inside of that, people can create reaction videos. Soon we’re going to be launching some capabilities that allow them to monetize some of that content against their existing sponsorships.”
“The Sharks are pleased to be innovators in the world of sport by bringing virtual and augmented reality to our fans via the Sharks app,” Sharks vice president of marketing Doug Bentz said in a statement. “We are constantly looking at ways to bring new and dynamic content to our fans through our digital platforms. Working with Zeality and Oculus, we have developed a cutting-edge way to bring our fans closer to our team and our brand. From Zeality’s publishing and management system, we can easily deploy our interactive and immersive experiences to both our mobile applications and now our Oculus App.”
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Earlier this year, the Sharks app was updated with the Zeality mobile SDK, which also allowed fans to view VR/ 360-degree content from within the app. By incorporating Oculus and Samsung Gear VR devices, it will open up additional possibilities to engage and reach more fans and deliver more tech-savvy experiences for fans.
Patel noted the Sharks were looking for new ways to engage younger audiences around the world with virtual reality and also augmented reality.
“We continue to be inspired by how the Sharks are embracing and enabling new content formats, experiences and technology,” Patel said in a statement. “This mindset allows the community, fans and partners to deepen their connection with the San Jose Sharks. We’re excited to have the Zeality Interactive Immersive Media Engine (IME) be the backbone of this new category of experiences.”
— Diamond Leung contributed reporting to this story.