Are Internet Providers Ready for VR?
by Zen @ ThisIsMeInVR.com
Virtual Reality is here.It’s awesome, and you access it through the internet. Whether you are on your phone, your PC or a standalone VR device you need to download VR games to play, 360 videos to watch and maybe access to live VR streams. (Yes they exist) The bandwidth required to provide this is HUGE.
Are internet providers ready for VR? Not really.
There is already a rapidly growing demand for recorded (or live): VR telepresence attendance to: classrooms, concerts, sporting events, weddings, music videos, movies, scenic travel locations, adventures, excitement, relaxation, therapy, sensory illusions., training lessons, or just plain social media communication. .
Here’s “the Rub”. For you to be immersed in these VR and 360VR experiences an entire environment is create or captured for you. It is 360,meaning there is data for you everywhere you could possibly look. 360 is the type of camera you use to capture VR video content,like a black hole it records everything everywhere around the camera so the content files are HUGE. 1 gig/ per minute for a 4k resolution video, and 4k is frankly the minimum standard for good content. That’s 3–5 times what the current internet networks are prepared to process! They are going to have to make some significant upgrades to handle these changes, yet unfortunately, they will only do so AFTER the demand, not before. This is known as a bottleneck, and perhaps by this xmas, you’ll take notice when you’re internet slows down.
Efforts are already being made to reduce the VR file transfer sizes. But with minimum quality being around 4k resolution and 60+ fps there is only so much that can be done.
How could the ISP’s prepare?
“Last mile” broadband infrastructure need to be upgraded (preferably with emphasis on Wifi). This has been accomplished already in many places with wifi routers, and public wifi hotspots being accessed by a single account.(See Shaw BC) Wifi is not necessary ideal (speed limitations and interference), but it certainly has benefits. Especially in an age of mobile VR, Augmented reality devices and live streaming 360. Cell providers, simply can’t handle the volume. (also your data costs will skyrocket if you attempt to do everything on cellular plans)
Streaming video services and new gaming systems will just keep adding to the load.
What should ISP’s be doing?
Broadband networks need Fiber node splits, full sweep, noise hardening and amp upgrades throughout all their systems. This means to simply do some plumbing to the system eliminating the leaks caused by weather and squirrels (they love chewing cables) and upgrade the equipment capacity. Fiber backbones needs to be extended, (currently they cover only the main roads of a city), their coverage will need to be doubled at the very least. As for rural areas? Good luck, if you like VR AR and 360 video, it’s time to move to the city. Providing High Speed internet to all Rural areas for low cost is a pipe dream at this time. Trust me, it’s been my job for nearly 20 years.
(thousands of low earth satellites (Tesla) or wifi relay drones (Google) are effective solutions, but they aren’t cheap and will most likely be deployed to cover third world nations before rural North america.
The costs aren’t cheap for ISPs either. There is a need to improve Head End (central office) equipment with the latest color laser technology. Upgrade field amplifiers to have a larger return spectrum (it’s currently only apprx 50 mhz wide right now). You may not realize it but that’s a lot of work to do before the network will be able to handle the 360VR content that is about to hit consumer demand around the world like a wildfire. With the current trend of “cord cutting” internet profit margins are tighter than ever. So it should come as no surprise that you should expect pay-per-gig costs to make a comeback as internet speeds begin to lag in response to VR consumer adoption.
There are solutions to these upcoming problems, but ISP’s are not well known for preventative maintenance. The systems are in worse condition than you know. It’s been low budget, “repair only what you have to” for so long. Worse since Netflix and the reduction of ISP income. The networks are held together by electrical tape and tie wraps in some places. Before any major upgrade, there are a lot of repairs to do, and at this time, they are choosing to wait.
For more, Read my 1 year of 360/VR tech predictions.
Follow and Subscribe to my YouTube 360Vlog for VR viewing
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