XR Solutions Provider Continues to Break Down Software, Hardware Implementation Barriers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ROYAL OAK, Mich. — Extended reality (XR) solutions provider, PIXO, whose content distribution platform, PIXO Apex, enables simplified deployment and management of virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR) applications and data analytics for enterprise, has announced its XR content launcher, PIXO Apex Hub, is now available as a free download on both HTC and Pico devices.
Enterprise XR has enjoyed staggering growth in recent years, particularly in the wake of the COVID pandemic, which has accelerated the need for remote work, training, and collaboration solutions. HTC has made enterprise VR a major focus, having just released their new business-facing VIVE Focus 3 at the company’s VIVECON 2021 event this week. As an industry, XR is projected to reach a global market size of $30.7 billion this year and is poised to contribute $1.4 trillion to global GDP by 2030. But despite rapid growth, businesses have routinely faced implementation challenges when deploying the technology at scale, creating barriers to wider adoption.
As a company, PIXO has made overcoming those barriers its mission, and the time-consuming process called ‘sideloading’, often needed to install VR, AR, or MR software applications on compatible hardware, is their latest focus. To sideload, users and admins must first download typically large, executable files containing the software programs to their desktop or laptop. Next, they must physically connect a headset to their computer with a USB cable to initiate a file transfer, waiting for the bulky packages to upload, only to repeat this process for every device in their fleet.
It is exactly this tedious process PIXO Chief Product Officer Scott Oliverio and his R&D team have sought to render obsolete, and now, with the debut of the Hub app in both HTC and Pico enterprise stores, that vision is being realized. “We built PIXO Apex Hub so businesses, including ours, could smartly and efficiently deploy XR content to devices anywhere in the world without sideloading, downloading directly from the cloud to end-users”, Oliverio said.
After registering with PIXO Apex, HTC users gain access to the Hub simply by logging in with an existing HTC VIVE Enterprise account or creating a new account, at which point they can navigate to the ‘VIVE Enterprise’ area, in-headset, and download the launcher directly to their device and begin accessing and using their content. In this same area, users are notified when updates to the Hub become available for download, straight from the cloud.
For Pico users, the process is even easier, allowing them to skip another step by simply browsing the Pico enterprise store, in-headset, and downloading PIXO Apex Hub, as well as available updates.
In both cases, the result is the same: a free app that makes enterprise XR more accessible and scalable than ever. Upon logging into the Hub, admins see both licensed and available XR titles from the PIXO Content Collection, or, in the case of organizations using Apex to securely distribute internally developed or custom content, their own private content library. With the PIXO Apex platform, the entirety of an organization’s XR content can be centrally managed, and titles provisioned to thousands of authenticated end-users worldwide, then downloaded directly to their devices — all without a single sideload.
“Some say we’re like Netflix for XR, and it’s not a bad comparison. We want it [XR] to be that easy”, Oliverio said. “For us, this is a bit like when Netflix went from a mail-based DVD rental company to a streaming service. We think it’s that big. I’ve been asked, ‘how long does it take to download and start using it?’ And my response is, ‘how’s five minutes?’”
Register here to create a Pico account and download PIXO Apex Hub free, or visit pixovr.com for PIXO Apex Hub for HTC.
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