Category: vr shopping

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Walmart Applies For ‘Virtual Show Room’ VR Shopping Patents

Walmart Applies For ‘Virtual Show Room’ VR Shopping Patents

We’ve already seen a few examples of brands dabbling in VR shopping, such as Vera Bradley, Alibaba, and even the mother-of-all online retailers, Amazon, but no physical retail companies the size of Walmart have stepped into the arena. However, according to a recent report from Bloomberg, that could all be about to change.

It appears that the retail giant has recently filed for patents with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that would entail a “virtual show room” and digital replica of a Walmart store, including a platform for shoppers to explore via the use of VR headsets.

The patents even cover things like grabbing items from virtual shelves into a digital shopping cart in front of them. And once you buy something in VR, you actually would have bought it in real life as it’s shipped to you automatically from a distribution center. Basically, it’s just like shopping online, but everything is represented in 3D space instead on a flat computer screen or mobile device.

“Walmart knows that its stores are too big and unwieldy for people,” Zoe Leavitt, a managing analyst at patent researcher CB Insights, told Bloomberg. Leavitt then goes on to say that so far the company has filed for more than a dozen VR-related patents over the years.

What do you think of this news? Is VR shopping you want to become a thing? Let us know down in the comments below!

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The post Walmart Applies For ‘Virtual Show Room’ VR Shopping Patents appeared first on UploadVR.

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Williams-Sonoma Acquires Outward for $112 Million to Expand 3D, AR, and VR Retail Visualization

Williams-Sonoma Inc has announced that an agreement has been reached to acquire Outward Inc for an all cash consideration of $112 million. Williams-Sonoma Inc is a US-based high-end retailer of home furnishings and kitchenware, associated with stores such as Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, PBteen, West Elm, Rejuvenation, and Mark and Graham. Outward, founded in 2012, is a 3D imaging and augmented reality technology company focused on applying this technology to the home furnishings and decor industry. Outward provides visual merchandising to make shopping experiences more interactive and engaging.

Following the completion of the acquisition and melding of the two companies, expected prior to year’s end, Outward will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Williams-Sonoma. The headquarters will remain in San Jose, CA (Williams-Sonoma is headquartered in San Francisco, CA), and will be managed by Outward’s current leadership team.

Both companies expressed positive enthusiasm with regards to the acquisition. Williams-Sonoma stated that it is looking to implement and further develop Outward’s technology to create applications for product visualization, digital room design, and use of augmented and virtual reality for retail. Outward commented that due to the various channels available to Williams-Sonoma it will allow for many opportunities in creation of their design experiences and they will be able to apply those to their existing customer base.

Statements from the companies suggest that Williams-Sonoma is looking to add experiences similar to those being developed by IKEA, Target, Wayfair, and Amazon to their apps through their different brands. These apps use AR technology to allow users to place virtual representations of items in their homes to see if they match the decor or fit in a specific location thus, expediting the time between consideration and purchase (no need to visit a store for confirmation). Walmart also has shown interest in how AR and VR might improve shopping experiences, though they have not rolled out such a feature to their applications just yet.

SEE ALSO
Walmart Focuses On Future of VR/AR at New Silicon Valley Tech Incubator

Though AR apps similar to the ones described above are currently only available on iOS devices these sorts of AR apps are expected to expand to Android devices as Google’s ARCore tech matures and rolls out to the public. Further down the road it’s expected that the apps will find their way to consumer AR headsets.

As AR headsets improve one would expect retailers to present their entire furniture catalogue online and allow users the ultimate shopping and design experience using AR to directly in the home. An appealing prospect to be sure: instead of hiring a home designer you become your own home designer and can arrange a room exactly how you would like and preview it. It’s foreseeable that such experience could extend beyond goods like furniture and kitchenware and even into clothing, electronics, and more.

The post Williams-Sonoma Acquires Outward for $112 Million to Expand 3D, AR, and VR Retail Visualization appeared first on Road to VR.

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Williams-Sonoma Acquires Outward for $112 Million to Expand 3D, AR, and VR Retail Visualization

Williams-Sonoma Inc has announced that an agreement has been reached to acquire Outward Inc for an all cash consideration of $112 million. Williams-Sonoma Inc is a US-based high-end retailer of home furnishings and kitchenware, associated with stores such as Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, PBteen, West Elm, Rejuvenation, and Mark and Graham. Outward, founded in 2012, is a 3D imaging and augmented reality technology company focused on applying this technology to the home furnishings and decor industry. Outward provides visual merchandising to make shopping experiences more interactive and engaging.

Following the completion of the acquisition and melding of the two companies, expected prior to year’s end, Outward will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Williams-Sonoma. The headquarters will remain in San Jose, CA (Williams-Sonoma is headquartered in San Francisco, CA), and will be managed by Outward’s current leadership team.

Both companies expressed positive enthusiasm with regards to the acquisition. Williams-Sonoma stated that it is looking to implement and further develop Outward’s technology to create applications for product visualization, digital room design, and use of augmented and virtual reality for retail. Outward commented that due to the various channels available to Williams-Sonoma it will allow for many opportunities in creation of their design experiences and they will be able to apply those to their existing customer base.

Statements from the companies suggest that Williams-Sonoma is looking to add experiences similar to those being developed by IKEA, Target, Wayfair, and Amazon to their apps through their different brands. These apps use AR technology to allow users to place virtual representations of items in their homes to see if they match the decor or fit in a specific location thus, expediting the time between consideration and purchase (no need to visit a store for confirmation). Walmart also has shown interest in how AR and VR might improve shopping experiences, though they have not rolled out such a feature to their applications just yet.

SEE ALSO
Walmart Focuses On Future of VR/AR at New Silicon Valley Tech Incubator

Though AR apps similar to the ones described above are currently only available on iOS devices these sorts of AR apps are expected to expand to Android devices as Google’s ARCore tech matures and rolls out to the public. Further down the road it’s expected that the apps will find their way to consumer AR headsets.

As AR headsets improve one would expect retailers to present their entire furniture catalogue online and allow users the ultimate shopping and design experience using AR to directly in the home. An appealing prospect to be sure: instead of hiring a home designer you become your own home designer and can arrange a room exactly how you would like and preview it. It’s foreseeable that such experience could extend beyond goods like furniture and kitchenware and even into clothing, electronics, and more.

The post Williams-Sonoma Acquires Outward for $112 Million to Expand 3D, AR, and VR Retail Visualization appeared first on Road to VR.

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South Korea to get Virtual Shopping Mall

The creation of the internet changed the way that commerce worked forever. Some companies rode the wave to make millions, such as Amazon, others failed to adapt to the changing times and feel by the wayside. Several companies in Korea has recently agreed to participate in the creation of a virtual reality (VR) shopping mall in an attempt to be at the forefront of the rise of VR in commerce.

The VR Shopping Mall will open to consumers for the first time during the Korea Sales Festa at the end of September, 2017. Companies that have agreed to participate in the VR Shopping Mall include well-known Korean names such as Hyundai Department Store, E-Mart, LG Electronics and Lotte Department Store.

The South Korean Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy announced that the ministry held a business agreement ceremony for the creation of the virtual shopping mall on the 24th Jul, 2017. The companies involved in the project have agrees to offer discounts to customers of the VR shopping mall. It isn’t just big businesses that are involved with the VR shopping mall, however. Traditional markets such as the Dongdaemun and Jagalchi Markets are also getting involves, allowing shoppers to experience a more diverse product range.

The creators of the VR Shopping Mall are claiming that there has never before been such a project involving such a diverse range of industry participations. Korea’s businesses are hoping that this milestone will pave the way for further developments for South Korean industry as a whole.

The VR Shopping Mall will officially open during Korea Sail Fest, which lasts from 28th September to 31st October, 2017.

VRFocus will continue to report on new regarding VR Shopping Mall and other industry VR projects.

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Amazon May Look to VR to Enhance Shopping Experience, Job Ad Indicates

A new job opening at a division of the online retail giant Amazon my indicate the firm is looking to immersive technology to enhance its shopping experience.

Amazon has up to now only tentatively dipped its substantial corporate toe in the waters of virtual reality. The online retail giant did fire up a VR hub back in 2015, with the help of Road to VR and later introduced VR support to its open source game engine Lumberjack, but as far as VR being integrated into its core offerings, there’s been nary a whisper.

Now, a new job opening, spotted by Variety, may indicate the company is looking into the opportunities immersive technologies may offer for its online retail presence. The job, which had appeared via LinkedIn has since been removed, was for the firm’s A9 division, ordinarily tasked with product search and advertising. The new “Creative Director, Virtual Reality” would “envision the future of Amazon’s VR solutions and guide our creative and technical teams to produce compelling, world-class experiences,” according to Variety, which reported on the opening before it was pulled – perhaps after gaining unwanted attention from online media.

In addition to its VR retail hub, Amazon also recently made noises about expanding its video entertainment offerings when it confirmed hiring ex Tribeca Film Festival director Genna Terranova to head up a new VR film division at Amazon Studios, possibly to extend its online streaming services. No other details about the move were shared however.

It’s clear Amazon has an eye on covering its bases as immersive technologies makes its way into people’s homes, and as one of the world’s in online media and retail, we’ll follow their progress with great interest.

The post Amazon May Look to VR to Enhance Shopping Experience, Job Ad Indicates appeared first on Road to VR.

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Alibaba Teases VR Shopping Experience

Alibaba Teases VR Shopping Experience

Online shopping is the ultimate convenience when indulging in our retail obsessions or just seeking out the essentials. With only a few clicks, we can compare prices, designs, and features without having to brave vehicular traffic, foot traffic, or the ever unpredictable attitude of the employees tasked with guiding our perusing. While the absence of those things is a relief, there are aspects of a brick & mortar building that are missed when shopping online and Alibaba may have a solution with their Buy+ service.

A recent tweet from the Alibaba Group, the Chinese e-commerce company, showed off the Buy+ virtual reality device. The video teases the promised functionality from putting on the goggles to making a purchase. At the start, the video’s protagonist dons the goggles and watches as a small room is digitally created. After looking around, he notices a wall of moving pictures, like Harry Potter, and each one depicts a different major city around the world. The user mistakenly chooses one of the images and drops into a lowrider traveling through New York City, eventually ending up in a Macy’s department store. Once there, he wanders down an aisle and chooses a purse that his girlfriend may like. This prompts a new layer to pop up on the VR interface, showing all angles of the purse, price, and purchase options. The interface is mostly in Chinese, so there are some smaller elements that we’ll have to wait to understand (we reached out to Alibaba for comment and will update if we receive a response).

The video is likely a goal concept, showing what they hope Buy+ will be in its final form.