Virtual Reality has always had tremendous appeal and recently the sports industry has taken notice of its potential. To be transported from your bedroom and materialize on the floor of the Laker’s locker room is a prospect more enticing than almost any other. Being in two places at once is pretty special; toeing the line between reality and fantasy is magical. The promise has existed for a long time, but the technology is just beginning to catch up.
OneUp Sports is aiming to maximize VR’s boundless potential and revolutionize fan engagement on mobile platforms.
OneUp is a mobile sports platform that develops social and fantasy games to offer live-sport experiences for die-hard fans. One of the network’s most popular applications to date is NFL Connect, which has been officially licensed by the NFL.
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John McCauley, the new Vice President of Content and Strategy for OneUp, will manage the network’s innovation division and use VR to provide higher quality, more intimate mobile experiences for both users and brands. McCauley believes that VR will become the dominant storytelling tool for athletes and fans. With mobile technology, social media, and live sports content, OneUp’s ability to provide access to valuable VR content will give fans an innovative, interactive experience with professional sport teams and marquee athletes.
“VR is an amazing new tool for teams to tell stories about their stars,” explains McCauley. “It will take fans to places where they’ve never been before. They could receive exclusive access to behind-the-scenes content of their favorite sport teams. It’s a win for sports brands.”
As VR becomes more popular, McCauley expects OneUp applications to deliver unforgettable sporting moments and even more diverse experiences to users.
“As much as it is a bridge for fans to cross into the hearts of their favorite teams, VR is also an effective tool for brands to market themselves. Recognizable franchises like the Toronto Maple Leafs can shoot workouts of their top players or a particularly important pre-game pep talk from the coach. Our partners can provide the access and we will help them create and deliver the content.”
McCauley’s efforts to integrate VR into future apps will likely generate revenue for OneUp’s growing list of powerful partners including the Washington Redskins, Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers and Toronto Raptors, and Toronto Maple Leafs.