WHITEFISH, MT / ACCESSWIRE / May 27, 2015 / Next Galaxy Corp. (NXGA), a developer of fully immersive consumer virtual reality technology, recently announced a multi-year agreement with Miami Children's Hospital to help educate and train medical staff using virtual reality. While the company's focus has been largely on entertainment, the move could open up an entirely new vertical that's ripe for commercialization.
Shortly after that agreement, the company announced that it would be providing Richline Group Inc. - a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary - with a virtual reality experience to showcase its wearable jewelry collection at the JCK Show in Las Vegas to retailers around the world. This agreement signals entry to yet another vertical - enterprise promotions - in addition to its mainstay sports and entertainment and business.
These two agreements represent opportunities to generate near-term revenue in the virtual reality space as the consumer-side of the business gains traction.
A New Approach to Training
Miami Children's Hospital is the only licensed specialty hospital exclusively for children, with more than 650 attending physicians and over 130 pediatric sub-specialists. As a non-profit organization, the hotel has 289 beds and is renowned for excellence in all areas of pediatric medicine, routinely ranking among the nation's best pediatric hospitals by U.S. News & World Report.
Under the terms of the agreement, the company will develop immersive virtual reality medical instructional content for patients and medical professionals. The initial programs will focus on virtual reality instructional content covering cardiopulmonary resuscitation ("CPR") and other lifesaving procedures that will be released in the form of a smartphone app.
"In addition to being one of the nation's most esteemed hospitals for its clinical outcomes, MHC is building a legacy as a pioneer in healthcare with its unabated efforts to connect, educate, and reinvent the healthcare experience," said Next Galaxy Corp. President Mary Spio. "We are proud to be integral to these revolutionary efforts and look forward to working [together]."
By working with a leading institution, the company has secured a solid basis for future expansion in the distance learning and education market. The possibilities for virtual reality in other areas are virtually endless, with practically any industry potentially benefiting from the virtual "hands-on" learning that its technology enables in order to improve knowledge retention.
The virtual reality CPR instruction will measure metrics and provide real-time feedback ensuring that participants accurately perform the techniques. Moreover, the instructional content will explain any mistakes in detail and prompt users to try again when errors are made, while delivering supportive messages upon success to encourage additional learning measures and enhance memory retention.
The app will use a combination of eye gaze control, gestures and voice commands to guide users as they navigate a medical emergency. By providing a more immersive experience, the technology promises to help train medical professionals in a more memorable and effective way than traditional methodologies involving passive video and written testing as primary learning procedures.
In addition to smartphones, the app will be available through desktop computers and laptops, as well as via virtual reality devices like Google Inc.'s (NASDAQ: GOOG) Cardboard, VR One, and Facebook Inc.'s (NASDAQ: FB) Oculus Rift. The multiplatform nature of the app provides greater flexibility to educators that may use a variety of different classroom mediums for instruction.
Redefining the e-Commerce Experience
Richline Group Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway since 2007, is a leading manufacturer, distributor, and marketer of jewelry around the world. As an early pioneer in wearable technology, the company plans to introduce a wide range of "smart" jewelry products at the JCK Show in Las Vegas in collaboration with companies like Cuff and Omate, as well as third parties like FitBit(R).
Under the terms of the agreement, Next Galaxy will create a virtual experience that will be navigated using its CEEK platform with audio provided by its CEEKARS 4D audio headphones paired with a Zeiss VR One headset. The incorporation of immersive virtual reality in promoting its new jewelry line could help set it apart from the competition at the JCK Show and potentially future venues.
"We believe that shopping represents one of many potential applications for virtual reality technology and we're excited to be working with some of the foremost pioneers in the field to bring the technology to everyone," said Zeiss Multimedia Director Andreas Klavehn in a press release announcing the agreement. Zeiss' VR One is a lightweight, wireless, and affordable VR headset starting at $129.
The company envisions having entire retail stores within a virtual reality environment on its CEEK platform. By enabling consumers to shop from the convenience of their own homes, but with the immersive experience of seeing products in 3D, the platform could help retailers significantly improve their conversion rates and ultimately increase their revenue over time.
While Next Galaxy is an early pioneer in the fully immersive VR space, several companies have been working on ways to help consumers virtually “try on” clothes and products. Warby Parker, for instance, lets consumer upload an image of their face and see how glasses and lenses look on them. London-based start-up Bodi.me is also working on a whole-body scanner that could be used to "try on" clothing.
The CEEK platform represents the natural endpoint for these ambitious efforts, by creating a place where consumers can virtually explore different stores, try on clothing and accessories, and ultimately make purchases. In addition, these same consumers will be able to access a number of other verticals, including movie theaters, virtual concerts, and a number of other entertainment venues.
Looking Ahead
Next Galaxy is uniquely positioned as a pioneer in virtual reality. Unlike many hardware companies in the space, the company is dedicated to becoming more of a content leader, similar to what Remark Media Inc. (NASDAQ: MARK) is to Internet properties or Bazaarvoice Inc. (NASDAQ: BV) is to shopping. As a result, investors may want to take a closer look as the VR industry continues to grow.
For more information, visit the company's website at www.nextgalaxy.co.
Correction/Retraction:
In a recent article on Monday May 11th 2015, TDM Financial erroneously reported that Teddy Riley was involved with Next Galaxy to produce a performance using their virtual reality platform. Next Galaxy has advised TDM that the project announced in the December 4, 2014 news release relating to a proposed performance by Riley at the BIG Summit of January 20 never materialized and that there was/is no relationship between Next Galaxy and Riley at this time.
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