Guest blog written by Leon Horbach of high-end VR production company Scopic.
In a world that is more characterized by global connectivity than ever before, Cloud hosting providers such as Leaseweb play vital roles. The seamless transportation of data, in combination with rock-solid security and innovative products, are key factors when making both the private and professional world working smoothly. It was therefore no coincidence that we (Scopic, a high-end virtual reality (VR) production company), teamed up with Leaseweb in order to accomplish a riveting VR project.
The idea? Enabling thousands of fans from all over the globe to attend world-famous DJ Hardwell’s ‘Revealed’ party live during the Miami Music Week 2016. This was the first test for VBR (Virtual Broadcasting Reality), Scopic’s little sister that is solely focused on VR live streaming. By utilizing Leaseweb’s infrastructure and their know-how of cloud, encoding/transcoding and CDN, Scopic was able to stream exciting 360° content, uniting Electronic Dance Music enthusiasts by building virtual bridges. It was this shared idea of what technology should encompass, a means of uniting people instead of separating them, that brought Leaseweb and Scopic together.
We can see this cooperation as a prime example of a positive inter-complementary relationship between an international corporation and a young tech start-up, the former discovering new markets and outlets through collaborating with growing disruptive companies, and the latter benefiting from the experience and strength of the larger corporation. Also, there is a similarity in character between the two, seemingly different, companies. Both Scopic and Leaseweb present themselves, as cheesy as it may sound, as the ‘cowboys’ of their respective industries: international orientation, Dutch roots, innovative focus, and always exploring new markets. Just as Con Zwinkels, CEO and founder of Leaseweb, discovered opportunities in this business while being a pilot, both Justin Karten and Yori van Gerven saw VR’s potential and acted accordingly.
This project was merely the beginning of something that will hopefully become a beneficial partnership between Scopic/VBR and Leaseweb. Together, these companies can take an exciting new medium, virtual reality, to the next level. With VR broadcasting, internet connectivity, and solid products in the broadcasting pipeline, are key factors in producing a successful project. From optimizing servers, creating transcoding products, and smart data communication between the player and the hybrid cloud, Leaseweb is becoming part of the solid VBR product.
VR still is a growing, immature market. Therefore, partnerships like the one mentioned above and the synergy they provide, are necessary to generate innovative breakthroughs. With international sales of VR headsets (Gear VR and Oculus Rift) growing rapidly, the time is now to create market traction in an effective way. Leaseweb and Scopic are doing just that.