搶攻虛擬實境 臉書20億收購Oculus
摘錄自：天下雜誌 經濟學人電子報 2014/3/28
2014-03-27 Web
only 作者：經濟學人
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| 圖片來源：flickr.com/photos/sergesegal/ |
Facebook以20億美元的代價收購Oculus VR，祖克伯（Mark Zuckerberg）表示，目的是為了運算的未來而下的長期賭注。Oculus製作讓玩家得以親臨奇幻世界的頭戴裝置，雖然它並不是第一家將虛擬實境技術運用在大眾化商品而獲利的公司，但與社群網站巨人結合，確實十分令人驚奇。
玩家一直夢想著能有個頭戴式裝置，讓他們能夠彷彿置身於栩栩如生的世界。拜運算能力和軟體的發展之賜，這個夢想已經更為接近現實；Oculus開發的原型Oculus Rift，最近曾在科技盛會SXSW上展出，讓有幸試戴的與會者極為讚嘆。
其他企業也將目光對準了虛構實境。索尼最近公布了Morpheus計畫，他們開發的虛擬實境頭戴裝置原型，可以與PlayStation 4主機連結，讓遊戲體驗更加真實；謠傳微軟也在為Xbox主機開發頭戴裝置。
部分老玩家必定會覺得有些厭煩，畢竟，1990年代之時，個人電腦上的虛擬實境遊戲也曾被捧為下一個重大商機，但最後Sega VR等設備皆以失敗收場，因為技術實在不夠成熟。
不過，隨著圖像運算能力大幅進展、小型攝影機價格走低、超薄高解晰螢幕問世，已然讓情勢大幅改善；這正是為何Facebook相信Oculus在遊戲方面極具前景。約7.5萬台Oculus Rift已經搶購一空，讓遊戲開發者得以好好利用其性能。Facebook財務長艾伯斯曼（David Ebersman）指出，Oculus和Facebook未來光是在遊戲方面的利潤，就足以讓20億美元值回票價。
不過，Facebook收購Oculus的主要動機並不是虛擬實境遊戲，而是抓住這個有機會成為下一個重要運算平台的技術；這才是祖克伯所謂的「長期賭注」。Facebook並不是唯一一家深受先進頭戴裝置吸引的網路公司，例如，Google就將Glass智慧型眼鏡視作全新的運算平台。Google本周宣佈與Luxottica成為策略夥伴；Luxottica擁有雷朋、Oakley等高檔眼鏡品牌，將協助設計和開發未來的Glass。
Google的眼光在於將資訊疊加到真實世界之上，Facebook的則是讓人完全進入虛構世界，利用裝置與身在遠處、又彷彿站在同一個房間的朋友連繫。兩間公司對未來的看法不同，不過，沒有人可以說它們目光短淺。（黃維德譯）
©The Economist
Newspaper Limited 2014
The Economist
Facebook buys Oculus VR
Game of
goggles
By The Economist
From The Economist
Published: March 27, 2014
Mar 26th 2014,
8:27 by M.G. | SAN FRANCISCO
A LONG-TERM bet on
the future of computing. That is how Mark Zuckerberg, the boss of Facebook,
described the newson March 25th that his firm had splashed out some $2 billion
on Oculus VR, a company that makes headsets that let gamers immerse themselves
in fantasy worlds. Oculus isn't the only firm trying to turn virtual-reality
technology into real money by bringing it to the masses. But its combination
with the giant social network is certainly eye-opening.
For a long time,
gamers have dreamed of wearable headsets that make them feel like they are
actually inside lifelike worlds. Thanks to big advances in computing power and
software, that dream is much closer to becoming a reality. Oculus Rift, the
prototype headset that Oculus has developed, was recently on show at SXSW, a
techie fest in Texas, and wowed delegates lucky enough to wear it and
experience the company's digital rendition of the 700-foot Wall that protects
the Seven Kingdoms in HBO's fantasy series "Game of Thrones".
Other companies
have also set their sights on the virtual-reality arena. Sony recently unveiled
Project Morpheus, a prototype of a virtual-reality headset that is designed to
work with its PlayStation 4 gaming console so that, say, zooming around in the
popular Gran Turismo driving simulator becomes even more compelling. Microsoft
is also rumoured to be developing a headset of its own for its Xbox console.
Some gaming
veterans will no doubt roll their eyes at all of the hype. After all, in the
1990s there was a period when PC-based virtual-reality gaming was touted as the
Next Big Thing, but devices such as the Sega VR flopped because the primitive
state of the technology left much to be desired. Gamers were often left feeling
sick rather than elated after using their headsets.
Now, however, huge
leaps forward in graphics processing power, cheap miniature cameras and
wafer-thin, high-resolution screens have dramatically improved matters. That is
why Facebook is confident that Oculus has a bright future in gaming. Already
some 75,000 kits have been snapped up that help developers create games that
will take advantage of Oculus Rift's capabilities. David Ebersman, Facebook's
chief financial officer, reckons the future profits Oculus and Facebook make
from gaming alone will justify its $2 billion price tag.
Perhaps they will,
but the social network's main motivation for buying the firm isn't to zap the
competition in virtual-reality gaming. It is to get its hands on a technology
that it thinks could become one of the next big computing platforms to follow
the personal computer and mobile phone. This is the "long-term bet"
that Mr Zuckerberg was referring to.
Facebook isn't the
only big web firm that is fascinated by sophisticated headgear. Google, for
instance, is touting its Glass smart specs as a new computing platform perched
on the end of people's noses. This week the company, which hopes to roll out
Glass to the masses this year, unveiled a strategic alliance with Luxottica,
the owner of high-end eyewear brands such as Ray-Ban and Oakley. Luxottica will
help with the design and development of future iterations of Glass.
Google's vision of
the future involves overlaying the real world seen through its specs with
information from its search engine and other services. Facebook's is of people
totally immersing themselves in virtual worlds where they will be able do
everything from taking virtual classes together to communicating with distant
friends as if they were standing in the same room. The two firms may not see
exactly eye-to-eye on how this will all play out, but neither can be accused of
being shortsighted.
©The Economist
Newspaper Limited 2014
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