Fitness applications that utilize VR headsets are contributing to to VR's growth.
In my Forbes column I wrote in mid-November I suggested that the "Metaverse" is a work in progress.
That is very true. However, since Mark Zuckerberg declared that his company would be driving the Metaverse and even renamed his company to reflect this new focus, a lot has been written about the Metaverse in general and many companies have shifted their focus to add some level of Metaverse activity to their roadmaps.
I have stated in the past that I am highly skeptical of anyone wanting to live a second life in a VR headset. The idea of spending hours on end inside a VR world seems untenable. On the other hand, doing specific things for a dedicated time is highly plausible. Indeed, one segment of the Metaverse as envisioned by Zuckerberg has already proven to be a healthy one.
Gaming has become a big hit on Oculus Quest 2 as well as other VR headsets that support games. According to a report from Fortune Business Insights:
"The global virtual reality in gaming market is projected to grow from $7.92 billion in 2021 to $53.44 billion in 2028 at a CAGR of 31.4% in the forecast period."
One other segment of high interest in VR is Fitness. Companies like Fit XR and Supernatural have had strong demand and customers willing to pay monthly subscription fees.
As I survey the demand for VR headsets this holiday season, I am finding that people who are buying an Oculus Quest headset are not buying them for the main concept that Zuckerberg laid out in his Metaverse vision. That focuses on people meeting virtually, watching videos together, and even having meetings is only of mild interest to current VR headset buyers.
Last holiday season gaming was the driver for these VR headsets. This season we are seeing increased interest in VR exercise driving demand for these products. Together they are turning out to be the killer apps for VR that are driving the most interest.
This is not to say that Zuckerberg's vision for creating virtual meetings rooms and hangouts will never take off. Connecting people is at the center of Facebook's original mission and what he wants is to move their customers to the Metaverse and replicate the Facebook experience in a VR world.
However, even he sees the value of exercise to his Metaverse vision and recently bought Within, the creator of the Supernatural VR fitness app.
The other aspect of Zuckerberg's Metaverse vision is the fact that people will be represented as an avatar. But even if the avatar gets a virtual replication of you personally, it is still an avatar. I am of the school of thought that it would be more realistic if my actual person could be transported to this virtual world allowing me to inhabit the Metaverse as myself.
Now I realize the technology is not here to beam myself into the Metaverse at will and given the physics around this concept, it will never be something we will ever do in the future.
Although the Metaverse is a work in progress, I think 2022 will be a big year for gaming and fitness in VR. I will be watching Meta's developments as they try to build out their version of a connected Metaverse but will not be surprised if the two areas of gaming and exercise drive the VR headset growth in the new year.
