During Oculus Connect 4 (OC4) in 2017, the company announced a new initiative called Oculus for Business, aimed at helping companies deploy virtual reality (VR) headsets at scale. It has been in closed beta since then, assimilating Oculus Go then Quest into the programme. This week the enterprise platform has been made generally available to help more organisations utilise VR.
Oculus for Business is a dual hardware/software solution where companies can buy Oculus Quest’s (128 GB model) for $999 USD with enterprise software, enterprise warranty and enterprise support. After 12 months it’ll cost $180 per headset, per year to maintain access to enterprise-grade software.
One important part to consider with the Oculus for Business solution is that employees will not be able to obtain software via the Oculus Store. They’ll only have access to internally developed VR content or third-party developer VR content tailored to specific use cases.
Built on Facebook’s enterprise collaboration platform, Workplace, which is developing new features catering to VR workflows, employees access content through a user interface providing approved content front-and-center. Plus, a new app launcher sends them directly to apps important to completing an assigned task.
“Since using Oculus Quest, we’ve seen a surge in interest from clients looking to use VR to help connect their teams working remotely,” says Angel Say, CEO & Co-Founder of InsiteVR in a statement. “Quest now accounts for over 50% of our usage and is the only device we consistently see teams using.”
As for Facebook’s other headsets, Oculus Rift S and Oculus Go, these can be purchased for commercial purposes – like a VR arcade – but they aren’t compatible with Oculus for Business. Therefore, they’re subject to normal consumer warranties and support, as well as accessing normal consumer edition software.
Plenty of companies had already begun deploying VR depending on their needs but with current coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown measures in place, interest has increased. This has been driven by the need to remote collaborate, with new software solutions arriving to make the online process feel more natural.
For further information head to the Oculus for Business website. As more VR enterprise announcements are made, VRFocus will keep you updated.
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