As I predicted in the start of 2017 in my article Virtual Reality Predictions 2017 that virtual reality will make its way towards social media platforms and new VR social networks will emerge.
I was right :-)
Its all happening and now industry experts are saying virtual reality is the future of social networking. Where you can virtually have conversations with your friends just like you do in real life.
And not only conversations you can play games, celebrate birthdays and even can take selfies.
Social networking over virtual reality seems like fun and it can be a great companion in leisure time. There are lot more other useful cases which it can be very beneficial.
I think education can have a great impact through it.
Imagine you can take classes at Harvard or Stanford and interact with other students and teacher while siting on the other side of world.
Education is just one thing, many industries can take advantage with virtual reality social media just like they are taking now with Facebook and Twitter.
So today I am sharing you top five companies who are working on social network over virtual reality.
Facebook Spaces
Social VR or later named Facebook Spaces is Facebook’s virtual reality social app. If described in few words its not just Facebook in virtual reality.
Social VR has amazing social networking features like customize avatars, sharing memories, drawing objects, taking selfies and video calling. Currently its in Beta and available for Oculus.
I wrote an article for Facebook Spaces when it was launched. You can find more information about it there and can also watch demo videos of it.
Enjoy Facebook in VR with Facebook Spaces
AltSpaceVR
AltspaceVR was the first to launch VR social app in 2013. The whole app is based on spaces which you can join just like chat rooms and play games and socialized with others.
You can create your own avatars and can also create your own spaces.
AltspaceVR have own VR web browser within its app from which you can also explore world wide web. Watching Netflix and Youtube videos with friends is one the amazing stuff you can do in AltspaceVR.
There are lots of multi-player games available like Chess, card games, air hocky, Flappy Dragon and a lot more.
AltspaceVR is available on Oculus, HTC Vive, Samsung Gear VR and you can even use it on your PC or laptop because its also available in 2d version. Cool isn’t it? 😉
vTime
vTime is also a virtual reality social platform just like Altspacevr. It has similar features like avatars, virtual worlds and chatting.
One thing that distinguish vTime is that it is available for smartphone too. You can download it on your Android or iOS smartphone and enjoy socializing in VR with just smartphone virtual reality headset like Google Cardboard.
So these are top three virtual reality social platforms available.
Emergence of virtual reality disrupted many industries and social networking is one of them. VR is enhancing the way we communicate and interact with our friends and family on social networking platforms.
Originally published at retinavr.co on June 5, 2017.