South Korea’s three mobile carrier leaders are raising the bar and heating the competition in the virtual reality (VR) sector and related services by integrating 5G technologies to various fields as they aim to attract more users. Their 5G expansion would span services such as ultra-high-definition video streaming, educational and medical, and other entertainment content.
SK Telecom, LG Uplus, and KT commercialized 5G telecommunication last year, focusing their efforts on securing more 5G subscribers.
SK Telecom and KT recently announced their new VR services partnering with various gaming companies to develop VR content. SKT said it collaborated with VR game developer Pixelity Games Inc. and local game giant Nexon Co. developing the VR game dubbed “Crazy World VR.” The companies are currently beta testing the game until April 9.
Nexon would allow characters from its popular online games to be used in the game development lead by SK Telecom and Pixelity. Simultaneously, up to 50 people can, in real-time, enjoy four mini-games and diverse content seamlessly and from a single location.
In collaboration with Marvrus, SK Telecom launched its language education application “SPEAKIT,” which provides a learning environment based on videos of real-life situations. Users wear a head-mounted (HMD), enabling them to conduct conversations where in-game characters respond variously to situations depending on the user’s input. The SPEAKIT application will offer a collection of 12 episodes.
The largest telecom provider will provide VR video programs with 12 medically related pieces called “Mindfulness Exercise.” The program aims to lessen work-related stress through a guided meditation with beautiful natural scenery accompanied by soothing music and commentary.
SK Telecom will also provide VR movies through its “Jump VR” platform, which launched last year. Users will have the opportunity to experience 20 videos sourced from famous film festivals such as the Venice International Film Festival and Sundance in a 360-degree view.
Head of SKT’s 5GX service business division, Jeon Jin-soo, said to expand and pioneer the VR service market, SKT needs to partner with various companies from development through marketing.
LG Uplus signed a partnership with Google last year to collaborate on VR content creation and international distribution. It also expanded its business with Google to create augmented reality (AR) content.
The company has also been offering a VR version of “Why?” its popular educational comic book series.
KT also partnered with AVA Entertainment, a VR content creator, to develop 100 8K VR videos ranging from K-pop content to experiencing Korea’s traditional culture, by the end of December this year.
