Page1of2 ©2019Factiva,Inc.Tousdroitsréservés. Getusedtoit:VIRTUALREALITY;Google’sgogglesopenupnewworldforautomarketers VinceBondJr.;[anonimizat] 993mots 14décembre2015 AutomotiveNews AUTN 37 Volume89;Number6703 Anglais (c)2015CrainCommunications,Inc.Allrightsreserved. Whenadiamondheistgoesawry,there’sonlyonecartoturntoforthegetaway:the2015MiniCooper hardtop. Atleastthat’showitplaysinMini’svirtualfantasyworld. Mini’ssmallcarhasbeencastintwovirtualrealityenhancednarrativesthattheautomakercommissioned andsharedinNovemberonTheNewYorkTimes’freshlylaunchedVRapp.TheshortfilmBackwateris centeredonaheist,whileRealMemoriesfocusesonamancopingwithapparentamnesia. Thefilms,initiallyreleasedbyMiniinSeptemberonYouTube,receiveavisualboostwhenviewedontheapp throughthehand-heldGoogleCardboarddevice,whichturnsasmartphoneintoacheapsetofvirtualreality goggles.(WhenviewingwithoutGoogleCardboard,userscanrotatetheirphonesortabletstogeta 360-degreeeffect.Computerviewerscanclickontheirscreenstoexploretheenvironment.) Aspartofthecampaign,Miniplannedtodistribute140,000freecardboardviewersworldwidethatarebased onthenewversionofGoogle’ssetthatcameoutthissummer. “It’sthefirsttimewe’vetoldanystoriesinvirtualreality,”saidTomNoble,MiniUSA’smarketingchief. Mini’spartnershipwithTheTimesillustrateshowvirtualrealityisreachingthemassesinautomarketing. WhileGoogleCardboardisn’tnearlyasadvancedasotherupcomingoptionssuchastheOculusRiftVR headsetfromFacebookorMicrosoft’sHoloLensaugmented-realityglasses,itallowsautomakerstodabblein adevelopingmarketwithengagingcontentthat’saccessibletoawiderangeofsmartphone-owning consumers. Googlehasbroadenedthereachofsmartphone-basedvirtualrealitybymakingthespecificationsof Cardboardopensource.Thatmeanscompaniescanmanufactureandselltheirownsetsbyparticipatingin thetechcompany’sthird-partycertificationprogram,saidAaronLuber,Google’sheadofpartnershipsforVR. “VRisprovidingabrand-newwayforconsumersandfanstoengagewithbrands,”Lubersaid.“It’snot necessarilyanadvertisingthing.”It’saboutshowingconsumers“anewperspectiveofabrandand experience[they]aregoingtoseeandenjoy.” TheTimesdeliveredaround1millionGoogleCardboardsetstosubscriberslastmonth.Googledoesn’tsell thedevices,butthethird-partyversionscangoforafewdollarstothe$30rangedependingontheversion. Forcomparison,theRiftwillcomewitharumoredpricetagofmorethan$350whenitgoesonsalein2016, whilereportssaythedevelopereditionsforHoloLenswillcost$3,000whentheyrolloutin2016. Thosepricieroptionsmightstillhaveaplaceindealershowrooms.DuringVolvo’sHoloLensdemonstrationin November,journalistsinteractedwithholographicversionsoftheS90—thinkTonyStarkinIronMan— aheadofthesedan’sphysicaldebutnextmonthattheDetroitautoshow. Butit’stoughtoenvisionanautomakersendingmorethan1millionofthosesystemstoconsumerstogive themuniqueexperiences. Page2of2 ©2019Factiva,Inc.Tousdroitsréservés.VolvoistheonlyautomotivecompanyworkingwithMicrosoftinthedevelopmentofHoloLens,butitsvirtual realityflirtationsgobeyondthattechnology. Volvoreleasedanappin2014offeringtestdrivesoftheXC90crossoverthatpeoplecanviewwithGoogle Cardboard,acontraptionthatconsumersconsidered“newnews”atthetime,saidThomasAndersson,vice presidentofglobalmarketingforVolvoCarGroup. “Wearenotlockedintoonetechnology,”Anderssonsaid.“We’reaftertheexperienceyoucanget.” LexusandInfinitiarealsotrying360-degreevideosandvirtualappsthatcanbeviewedonYouTubeon computersorwithintheGoogleCardboardformat. JoeLaszlo,vicepresidentofindustryinitiativesfortheInteractiveAdvertisingBureau,saidpartnershipssuch…