Immersive Tech Economy

The latest use of 3D billboards have left quite an impression on consumers and they can be seen installed on large digital advertising screens located in famous landmarks such as Times Square in New York and Shinjuku Station, Tokyo. The influence of using 3D optical illusions in billboards has now convinced Meta Reality Lab in creating their first ever 3D Piccadilly lights advertisement in London. 

Popularity of applying 3D technology within the creative industry continues to grow. Immersive technology is reported to be following an upward trajectory, becoming the 3rd fastest growing sector in the UK with an estimated turnover of £1.4bn.  Categories within this sector include Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), 360 and Mixed Reality (MR). Extended Reality (XR).

What does the latest data say about our immersive economy? According to the latest figures from the 2022 Immersive Economy Report: 

• There are an estimated 2,106 immersive technology companies in the UK, representing an 83% growth in the last five years.
• London contributes around half the total immersive company turnover, 41% of all companies and 55% of employees in the industry.
• Gaming (£142m), media and entertainment (£164m), and education and training (£156m) were the immersive application sectors with the highest turnover.
• Healthcare was the fastest growing sector, which saw 88% growth in immersive companies in the last five years.

Additionally, augmented reality (AR) also plays an enormous role with regards to smartphone upgrades, with the core functionality of the camera playing an important role in bringing the best AR experiences to your photos and video. For some time now an integration of a world facing 3D camera to next gen iphones, had already been announced. A 3D depth camera changes everything because it will bring an extra dimension to the user’s understanding of distance and object positioning. 

The constant improvement to camera capabilities is a familiar trend in the mobile industry and has been rather interesting, since it highlights the motivation of smartphone companies. Just from their allocation of investment on camera quality alone is an indication that digital content creation will likely be the next frontier. Whether this is for 3D space mapping or photography, a 3D depth sensor will always be handy in determining the distances of objects and for AR this information will be essential in creating more accurate approximations with real-time feedback of the background in reality.

In conclusion, UK investments into immersive have been substantial over the past five years and the resulting outcome is an upward trajectory within the immersive technology economy. According to the latest data, the UK immersive technologies sector is predicted to be worth approximately £2.6bn by 2027. Based on this simple observation, the overall outlook seems very positive ahead and the likelihood is that the UK will be seeing more creative studios and start-ups expanding into this new area of growth anytime soon.