[Presence isn’t referenced explicitly in this interesting piece from Forbes about the role of VR in the music industry, but both applications discussed – VR as an experience and a tool – involve evoking compelling presence illusions. –Matthew] [Image: A screenshot of StubHub’s immersive virtual-reality content that gives ticket buyers a full, 3D preview of available seats. (Photo courtesy of Re/code)] Virtual Reality In The Music Industry Needs To Be A Tool, Not Just An Experience Cherie Hu, Contributor April 23, 2016 Last month, I found myself at the Made in NY Media Center in Brooklyn, testing a prototype of…

[It’s easy to be blasé about technology events, but this surgery experienced remotely in VR in real time by thousands of people around the world last week is pretty amazing. Our colleague Skip Rizzo is quoted extensively in this story from CNN, which features a photo gallery and a 1:00 minute interactive video. –Matthew] Step in the operating room, wherever you are in the world By Meera Senthilingam, for CNN Thursday April 21, 2016 (CNN) All you need is a headset and smartphone to enter a virtual world of gaming, movies, travel — and now surgery. Health care company Medical…

[This brief story from Venture Beat describes a novel application of presence; the fact that the content users experience is created in the same (or at least a similar) physical space may heighten the illusion. –Matthew] VR Bangers and AuraVisor to offer adult virtual reality content in hotel rooms Dean Takahashi April 18, 2016 Virtual reality porn company VR Bangers has partnered with headset manufacturer AuraVisor to offer a headset preloaded with adult content in hotel rooms. The headset will combine AuraVisor’s wireless VR headset technology with VR Banger’s “immersive porn.” It will initially be available in Las Vegas hotels,…

[This story about the Ossic X 3D headphones includes first-person descriptions of the “real-life” sound the device produces; it’s from Tech Insider, where it includes more images. In coverage by Wareable, Ossic a quote from co-founder and CEO Jason Riggs explicitly refers to presence: “Accurate 3D sound is going to be key. You don’t want to break the sense of presence, or break the illusion. The sounds that are coming from outside your FOV (field-of-view), will make you turn and look at them – and when you do, you want to turn and know exactly what and where it is.…

[This story from The Stack describes a new IMAX venture that combines its presence-evoking film presentation technology with the group cycling experience. The original story includes a 4:31 minute video report from the program CBS This Morning. More information is available from the press release and the IMAXShift website, which features this promotional text: “Let The IMAX Experience® change the way you think about fitness. Crystal clear audio surrounds you as sharp, hyperreal visuals suck you into the massive screen. A unique ride that leaves you breathless before you even break a sweat.” –Matthew] IMAX launches IMAXShift, a virtual cycling…

[Even though most people won’t see Ang Lee’s new film in 3D, 4K resolution and 120 frames per second, this presentation is said to be historic and a glimpse into the possible future of cinema, and it clearly involves (tele)presence. As reported by Variety, the people who attended said it was “as though I was there,” it provided an “almost VR-like sense of presence,” “it was literally as if you were there,” and was “as immersive and involving an image play as I’ve ever seen.” Coverage in The Verge includes the assessment that “It truly was more like looking through…