FISE: unprecedented immersiveness in its coverage

La XR Sports Alliance (XRSA), I'm coming, Qualcomm Technologies y HBS join forces to bring to the FISE World Series (Montpellier, May 13 – 17), one of the most prominent urban and action sports circuits in the world, unprecedented coverage marked by technology and immersion.

The experience follows the entire festival from the point of view of a assistant to capture the atmosphere and energy event, through immersive shots, exclusive meetings with athletes and behind-the-scenes access. The proposal combines 180° stereoscopic immersive video, images taken with drones y 3D features in a single editorial vlog format, designed to place the viewer at the center of a live sporting event focused on disciplines such as BMX Freestyle, skateboarding, inline skating and parkour. This structured experimental implementation is designed to generate knowledge for the sector regarding immersive production, streaming and multiplatform distribution, fan engagement and immersive sponsorship.

As the market shifts toward glasses-shaped devices, a key objective is to compare the fan-perceived quality of 180° immersive content between mixed reality (MR) headsets and augmented reality (AR) glasses. In this way, the immersive experience will be developed for mixed reality headsets Meta Quest and the next generation augmented reality glasses.

The deployment is an initiative of XRSA, an organization that aims to accelerate time to market and commercialization of extended reality (XR) sports services through collaboration among its members. The conclusions drawn from the implementation in FISE will be shared with all members of the organization.

Michael Lantz, executive director of Accedo Group, highlights the value of this deployment as testing ground for new experiences that will reach the consumer in the near future: "FISE is a natural partner to test how immersive formats can expand the live event experience, reach new platforms and create new commercial value. By generating structured, comparable and real-world evidence on what works, what doesn't and what is really needed to produce and distribute immersive sports content at scale, this implementation will help immersive sports move beyond the demonstration phase"

From Plugs, Kendall Goodden, senior director of global alliances, considers the initiative a “fantastic opportunity"to discover"what works, what works” and lay the foundation for the future of the immersive experiences in action sports: "At FISE, we want to bring our content to the platforms and environments that our young, tech-savvy audience is already starting to explore, while making the live event richer and more connected for fans who are there in person. That means introducing digital layers that offer people new ways to follow the action, interact with the athletes and feel closer to the experience as it unfolds."