Singapore – With tennis fever gripping Singapore this October, StarHub and Nokia are serving up a tennis showcase like no other at the Singapore Sports Hub. Using match footage captured at a top-tier professional women’s tennis tournament, the showcase will let tennis fans share the court with world class tennis players through the power of 360 3D virtual reality. Tennis fans can simply enter the StarHub VR Tennis Zone in the OCBC Square, don a VR headset and be transported to the umpire’s chair at a professional women’s tennis match. From this vantage point, tennis fans will be treated to three minutes of riveting match action from the best seat in the house.
Captured using a Nokia OZO Camera mounted above the chair umpire in the Singapore Indoor Stadium, the feed in the VR headset is updated daily with fresh tournament footage. The OZO shoots from multiple angles to create 3D video clips summarising the matches of the day for each day of the eight-day tournament. With footage filmed in 360, tennis fans will be able to catch everything happening in the stadium from the players making their shots to the reactions of the spectators in the stands.
“This is the first time that virtual reality has been harnessed at a major sporting event in Singapore and we are excited to give tennis lovers an absorbing firsthand experience of the technology. 360 3D virtual reality allows us to centre the entire experience on the fans by giving them full control of what to see in the headset. As the technology develops, we will continue exploring its application and engaging consumers with even more unique experiences,” said Howie Lau, Chief Marketing Officer of StarHub.
Sandeep Girotra, Head of Asia Pacific and Japan at Nokia, said: “We are thrilled that StarHub has selected Nokia OZO to offer immersive 3D Virtual Reality experience to Singaporeans at this prestigious event. OZO’s feature of 3D 360 video capabilities along with spatial audio creates a `sense of presence’ for the viewers, offering a unique out-of-the-world experience.”
Launched last year, the Nokia OZO is the only product in the market to capture sound through eight microphones, which enables the reproduction of three-dimensional audio. By eliminating the requirement of complicated wires, long setup time and separate memory cards, OZO’s innovative approach ensures ease-of-use and brings down barriers to the adoption of virtual reality.
