Netflix Engineers Develop VR 'Blockbuster' Complete With Shelves And VHS Tapes

Netflix engineers developed a virtual video rental store dubbed Netflix Zone, which looks akin to a Blockbuster complete with shelves and VHS tapes.

During the firm’s so-called biannual Hack Day events, its designers and engineers come together to devise unique and somehow odd innovations. Netflix describes Hack Day as a way for its staff to “take a break from everyday work” to experiment with most recent technologies, team up with other people, be inventive and basically have fun.

In previous Hack Day events, Netflix engineers and designers have turned ‘50s TVs into smart screens that can run Netflix. They have also ported the video streaming service to the NES. The recent Hack Day was no different.

One of the hacks Netflix staff have recently worked on is the Netflix Zone, which users can explore with the help of a virtual reality headset — in this case, the HTC Vive headset.

Through this virtual video store that looks very much like a Blockbuster, users can choose from an array of movie selections. With the help of HTC Vive's hand controllers, viewers can grab a selected VHS tape from the store shelves.

As soon as the user picks a title for closer inspection and chucks it at a wall, screens will then drop from the store’s ceiling or emerge from the wall to offer the viewing experience, making it quite entertaining.

“As always, while we think these hacks are very cool and fun, they may never become part of the Netflix product, internal infrastructure, or otherwise be used beyond Hack Day,” reads the blog post that Netflix pushed out on May 24. “We are posting them here publicly to simply share the spirit of the event and our culture of innovation.”

All in all, the company’s product development staff managed to produce more than 80 hacks that range from internal tools, new product ideas, to enhancements in the firm's recruiting process. Netflix embedded in its blog post some of the well-liked hacks during the latest event.

Hit the play button below if you wish to have a sneak peek of the Netflix Zone.

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