Today we are sharing an interesting infographic on The Future of Virtual Reality, put together by a marketing researcher at Fullestop, a web design, and development agency. The data is based on multiple sources which we will touch on at the bottom of the article.
The Future of Virtual Reality
One of the most valuable takeaways from this infographic on the future of the VR industry is the undeniable growth numbers in users. From 2017 to 2018 VR users will essentially double from 90 million to 171 million globally. In 2015 VR users were only 6.7 million.
Key Takeaway
After sluggish growth in VR headset adoption in 2018, the VR industry is picking up steady double-digit growth as new modalities for its use spring forth in multiple industries. The Engineering industry (AEC included) will be the VR market’s 3rd biggest industry and the HTC Vive is the third most dominant VR headgear.
Let’s look at some of the stats in the infographic (and you can click on the image below to see the whole infographic).
Size of VR Market
The data suggest that the size of the VR market in 2020 will reach $30 billion USD, up from $7 billion in 2018. The estimated breakdown for 2018 dollars is $2.3 billion in the hardware and $4.7 billion in the software. We imagine that the software number is much higher because every single piece of existing software application line that expands into the capacity to power VR immersion is counted in the numbers. This isn’t about strictly new VR software but rather the existing software lines gaining VR capacity.
Top VR Hardware Market Share
In the AEC and CAD industry space, we at Architosh already know that the HTC Vive dominates its peers. But it is not the top dog overall. Samsung’s Gear VR hardware has 21.5% market share, over Sony PlayStation VR at 18.8% market share.
01 – Engineering and Healthcare are expected booming industries for VR adoption.
The HTC Vive is third in overall market share with 8.40% of the market, ahead of Oculus Rift at just 4.4% Importantly, there are 188 virtual reality headsets being sold at Amazon.
Future of VR by 2025
According to the research, 73% of Gen Z users say they are interested in VR. And 81% of people found VR captivating and would tell their friends about it. And here is a key statistic that needs deeper research as it applies to professional services. 53% of adults would prefer to buy from a brand that offers VR functionality.
Somewhat backing up that last stat is another set of stats from the infographic. Citing successful VR adoption, Marriott hotels offered VR room service and VR postcards and 51% of those who experienced that offering said: “they wished they stayed at Marriott hotels more.”
A VR flyover of the Manhattan skyline by Thomas Cook resulted in 190% increase in NYC excursions and a 40% ROI.
In terms of projections by industry, the Engineering industry is estimated to have $4.7 billion devoted to VR in by 2025, exceeded only by Healthcare ($5.1 billion) and Gaming ($11.6 billion). To see the whole infographic click on the image below.
Architosh Analysis and Commentary
The projections for the VR and AR markets are both interesting and varied. Key statistics are the current user counts and spend counts for years in the bank. Here at Architosh, we have covered news items that made note of others saying the VR market will be dwarfed by the AR market. We don’t really doubt that. That being said we think the VR market has many superb enterprise and industrial potentials, clearly supported here in this infographic’s data. Take note that by 2025 the gigantic Real Estate market has a projected VR spend of $2.6 billion, essentially half of Healthcare. And the Retail market is even smaller but that is because AR is estimated to dominate that space.
02 – The Future of Virtual Reality Research Infographic.
Getting back to some of the research behind the infographic, a key one is an article by The Register discussing IDC’s worldwide tracking of VR and AR shipments from nearly a year ago. That article was discouraging somewhat for folks like HTC and Oculus—saying that the bulk of the growth was in low-end devices like Google Cardboard using smartphones as the VR screen. A more recent report on IDC’s figures shows a rebound and more enthusiasm.
And there should be more enthusiasm. Apple is rumored to have entered the market and is working on a revolutionary VR headset for 2020. (see: Architosh, “VR-AR Plans Inching Closer?—Apple Engineers Host AR-VR Sessions at May Event,” 15 Mar 2018) But perhaps the biggest thing that will change people’s growing awareness of VR gear is the virtual reality shopping experiences that will begin popping up. Check out eBays in the video below. And then there is IKEA and its jump into VR and kitchen design. Additional research references behind the infographic are in the footer of the graphic itself.
https://youtu.be/yAuiXhJPnr8