Winter Olympics: China Mobile offers free virtual reality experience for Hong Kong users, providing on-demand Games highlights in VR 360 panorama format
- Beijing Games hopes to tap into a changing media landscape and younger viewers’ demand for digital engagement
- China Mobile said its virtual reality experience will be made available for free in Hong Kong throughout the Winter Games
Tokyo 2020 proved to be a watershed moment in the history of Olympic broadcasting, as digital platforms opened up the games to a whole new generation of viewers. China Mobile is now hoping to do the same in Hong Kong with the Beijing Winter Games.
The local arm of the Chinese telco giant has secured virtual reality (VR) broadcast rights to the Winter Olympics, offering Hong Kong viewers a new immersive perspective of the Games.
Under the deal, China Mobile will provide on-demand competition highlights in a VR 360 panorama format, giving viewers an “unprecedented” experience of key Olympic moments. The content will be on offer for the duration of the Games from February 4 to 28.
Social media posts on Olympics channels such as TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Weibo generated 3.7 billion engagements during the Tokyo Games – audience growth that is unprecedented for traditional broadcast platforms.
Like Tokyo, digital will be an important part of how people experience the Beijing Olympics and VR has an opportunity to transform how sports content is delivered. A recent PwC study found that VR content was among the fastest-growing media segment, outpacing film, traditional video games and music.