Facebook forms virtual reality team in wake of Oculus Rift launch
Facebook has formed its own virtual reality team as part of its ‘social VR’ push as it launches the long-awaited Oculus Rift headset and a streaming video enhancement for the Gear VR.
The team will be tasked with investigating how people can ‘connect and share’ using today’s technology whilst also investigating its future potential and is being led by two game developers; Daniel James, co-founder of Three Rings Design and Mike Booth who led development for Valve’s Left 4 Dead.
Commenting on his Facebook role via LinkedIn Booth said: “I'm building a team to explore how Virtual Reality can empower the 1.5+ billion people on Facebook to share their experiences and connect with each other in amazing and powerful new ways.
“If you're a veteran game developer experienced in building multiplayer online 3D games, come help me build the future of Social VR!”
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been a principal evangelist for virtual reality, describing immersive media as the natural successor to video, developing a technique to stream high-quality VR video for Samsung and Oculus’ Gear VR headset.