Which streaming giant has the best VR 360° video library?

VR 360° videos will revolutionize the way we watch and experience movies, TV shows, and much more. The emergence of affordable VR headsets has made consuming VR content more accessible than ever before. For streaming giants like YouTube and Netflix, this poses both an opportunity and a challenge to stay relevant in the future of streaming. The ones who cannot take advantage of this opportunity risk being disrupted by companies who grow their VR 360° video content the fastest. See Meta’s push with Oculus TV as an example of a company breaking into the streaming space via VR content.

So, what are 360° videos, who are the top 5 streaming giants, and who has the best VR 360° video library today?

What are 360° videos?

360° videos, also known as immersive videos, or 3D videos, are videos where you can see all around you (i.e., 360°). You feel you are in the video itself and surrounded by objects in the scenes. These videos are usually shot using a collection of 3D cameras that can sense the depth and record in multiple directions. The images captured by these 3D cameras are stitched together using computer software and rendered as 360° videos.

Who are the top streaming giants today?

Below are the top 5 video streaming giants by the total number of viewers in the US as of Mar 2022 per eMarketer and Insider Intelligence.

Source: eMarketer and Insider Intelligence, March 2022.

Who has the best VR 360° video library among these top 5 streaming giants?

YouTube

YouTube has an VR app called YouTube VR. You can watch videos without an account. It has hundreds of 360° videos that you can watch for free. You can also upload 360° videos to YouTube VR if you want to be a content creator. YouTube VR has both 360° and 2D videos. If you watch those 2D videos in YouTube VR, it will feel like watching a movie in the movie theater. Unfortunately, the streaming resolution on the YouTube VR app leaves a lot to be desired.

Amazon Prime Video

Amazon Prime Video has an VR app called Amazon Prime Video VR. You need to login using your Amazon Prime username and password to watch videos. Like YouTube, Amazon Prime Video VR has both 360° videos and 2D videos available through their VR app. However, Amazon Prime Video VR has a much smaller library of 360° videos, with only 16 VR short videos as of this writing. Like the YouTube VR experience, the streaming resolution of Amazon Prime Video VR on Oculus has a lot of room to improve.

Netflix

Netflix has an VR app called Netflix. You need to login using your Netflix username and password to watch videos. Netflix currently does not have VR 360° videos and only has 2D videos.

Hulu

Hulu does not have VR app for video streaming currently.

Disney+

Disney+ does not have VR app for video streaming currently.

In conclusion, YouTube has the best VR 360° video library among the top 5 streaming giants today. Even YouTube VR is the best compared to its peers, but it still has a lot of room to grow in terms of increasing the size of 360° video library and increasing streaming resolution.