The applications for virtual and augmented reality technology, or VR and AR, should be plentiful, according to a report by Goldman Sachs.
The firm’s researchers predict that the AR and VR technology industry will have an $80 billion value by 2025, $35 billion of which will come from AR and VR software.
Applications related to a number of different sectors will benefit from the VR and AR industry, but none will come close to cashing in as much as video game-related applications, which are slated to account for $11.6 billion of the market in 2025.
Two other consumer-oriented applications, live events (as it relates to ticket sales for concerts, plays, and sporting events) and video entertainments (online streaming) are also expected to take great advantage of the technology. In fact, live events and video entertainment are projected to hold a $4.1 billion and $3.2 billion share of the market respectively.
While applications tailored to consumers are expected to account for nearly $19 billion of the $35 billion VR and AR software market in 2025, applications related in the enterprise and public sector are predicted to account for a healthy $16.1 billion share of the market. The two most popular uses for VR and AR software in these sectors are expected to be healthcare and engineering. Of all the top applications cited, education is predicted to get the least use of the software.
Goldman Sachs predicts that AR and VR hardware will account for $45 billion of the $80 billion industry in 2025, with 125 million shipments of the devices predicted annually by that time.
The company thinks four types of devices, head-mounted displays, host systems, tracking systems, and controllers will be used for VR and AR activities.
[Via TechCrunch]