IT Trends
Education to Help Drive VR Growth
Education is one of the
categories that will help propel the massive growth of virtual
reality over the next five years. According to a
new market forecast from ABI
Research, the virtual reality market will grow 45.7 percent year
over year, reaching $24.5 billion in 2024. Standalone
VR gear will account for 70 percent of the market.
ABI noted: “While VR has
yet to live up to its early expectations, there is positive momentum
and strong activity beyond the mainstream’s vision.”
According to ABI Principal
Analyst Michael Inouye: “Gaming remains the main driver on the
consumer side and with titles like “Half-Life: Alyx” soon to be
released. Coupled with Sony’s continued support of VR, gaming is
buoying the consumer side of the market. VR had a less than stellar
start, and while it’s still a long-time horizon, some of the
building blocks have solidified, affording VR the time it needs to
reach its potential across verticals.”
However the consumer market
will be overshadowed by commercial and enterprise applications,
according to ABI, with education emrging as one of the key segments
for growth. “By revenue, the commercial and enterprise markets are
expected to eclipse the consumer segment by 2021, with healthcare,
retail, AEC, education, and location-based VR seeing early traction
and expected to continue pushing this market forward,” ABI noted.
“Overall, 2019 was a mixed
bag for VR, but the good were solid steps forward. Some highs from
new products like Oculus Quest and Rift S, HTC Vive Cosmos, Valve
Index, and Varjo’s impressive enterprise HMDs, came along with some
new lows, like Google ending development of Daydream and
open-sourcing Cardboard, which leaves this segment in a bleak
situation. But HMD viewers could, in time, help bring this segment
back from the brink. The standout is standalone VR, which is shaping
up well, addressing many of the early issues and is meeting early
expectations, which bodes well for both the consumer and enterprise
markets,” Inouye said.
Further details can be found
at abiresearch.com.
About the Author
David Nagel is editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Technology Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal and STEAM Universe. A 25-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art and business publications.
He can be reached at [email protected]. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at or follow him on Twitter at @THEJournalDave (K-12) or @CampusTechDave (higher education).