GoPro Brings Virtual Reality Surfing To Facebook

Lately, Facebook has really been going all out on the virtual reality front. Uploads of 360-degree video finally became available Nov. 12 for Facebook users with iOS, as well as compatible with Samsung's Gear VR headset, and today, the company announced the launch of Tahiti Surf VR, GoPro's 360-degree video, on the social media site.

Joining upload supports like Moto VR and Ski VR, Tahiti Surf VR will be available for both iOS and Android, and needs no additional hardware for solid 360-degree viewing. And in true GoPro camera six-camera spherical rig form, Facebook users will be able to drag the screen around to get a glimpse at posted footage from all possible angles to their hearts' content. Like almost all Facebook content, Tahiti Surf VR vids will also be added to general newsfeeds for optimized sharing and viral potentiality.

The recent VR onslaught isn't all that surprising, considering Zuckerberg's publicly stated zeal for virtual reality in the past. Facebook purchased Oculus Rift for $2 billion back in 2014, with plans to make the social media platform a more immersive experience, and the CEO has been outspoken with his opinions on the impact VR will have on future online interfacing.

"We're really entering into this golden age of video online, where that's becoming the primary way that people share and consume content online, but I don't think that that's the end of the line. There's always a more immersive and richer way in which you want to experience things," said Zuckerberg this past October, while elucidating the limitations of 2D video compared with VR.

"Every 10 or 15 years, there is a new major platform that comes along," the CEO concluded. "I do think virtual reality is going to be that."

Check out Tahiti Surf VR in action in the video below.

Via: PR Newswire