Sling TV Becomes First vMVPD To Launch In Virtual Reality

The streaming video wars are heading to another platform: virtual reality.

Sling TV, the Dish Networks-owned streaming virtual multichannel video provider (vMVPD), says it will launch on Oculus Go, the VR headset platform owned by Facebook.

In addition, ESPN will be bringing an app (including its ESPN+ subscription service) to Oculus Go, as will Fox’s Fox Now app.

Oculus Go owners will be able to download the Sling, ESPN and Fox apps in the Oculus app store this week. In addition, new buyers of the Oculus Go headset will receive an $80 credit toward Sling TV.

Watching Sling content through the headset will be equivalent to watching it on a 180-inch TV screen. Once they have opened the app, the headset will transport the viewer into “a modern lounge with a mountain view,” Sling says. On the wall of the lounge will be the virtual TV set.

In addition to being a more immersive experience, the app allows the user to watch TV even if they don’t have access to a TV set. Only power and an internet connection are required.

Sling is the first vMVPD to launch on Oculus, which counts Netflix, Hulu and Showtime as developers on its platform. Sling provides live streams of select broadcast and cable networks, as well as on-demand content.

While Oculus is not yet a big business, the addition of these TV apps to the VR ecosystem suggests media companies and streaming video players think the platform has potential.

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