India is a big market for technology products and this market leads over other parts of the world. Our lifestyle has been changed and every part of our daily life is connected with technology either it can be in the form we work in the offices or we get entertained. Smartphone has completely revolutionized the way we communicate and work today. But smartphone now is also being considered as best source of entertainment. With the introduction of VR Headset, this industry has become very aggressive worldwide. In India its adoption is not too much but it is expected to grow rapidly in coming months. Key players see Indian market as a future market that has the potential to become a very huge market for this device.Moreover this device is very affordable and many companies have already introduced it in India and they are very much happy to receive overwhelming response. DT interacted with leading players to know more about this market.
New device launches, an expanding array of content for both consumer and enterprise users, and lower price points will propel the worldwide augmented and virtual reality headset device market at a breakneck pace. According to data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Augmented and Virtual Reality Headset Tracker, total headset device shipments will reach 99.4 million units in 2021, up nearly 10-fold from the 10.1 million units shipped in 2016. This results in a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 58% across the five-year forecast period.
Rajesh Doshi, Director, Zebronics India Pvt Ltd. says, “For a new emerging technology VR is doing great. We introduced one of the first affordable VR headsets and received a good response from the market.There are lot of opportunities in the VR headset market, there is a lot of scope for innovation in the products with the continuous updates that are happening in terms of content as well as software, there is an even bigger scope for this sector in regards to software/ hardware which will expand VR focused technology growth.”
As per TechSci Research report, “India Virtual Reality Market by product type, by end-user, competition forecast and opportunities, 2011 – 2021”, virtual reality (VR) market in India is projected to register a CAGR of 55.3% during 2016 - 2021. Sudip De, Director, Doel International Pvt Ltd, says, “We believe VR is going to be the next in thing in India. Especially the VR (All in Ones), where you have internal storage which provides easy transfer and can load content through Bluetooth, Wi- Fi, OTG or Micro SD Card. It can also have a live streaming from You Tube. VR vendors should now focus on getting varied content because the adoption level of VR is increasing substantially with the products such as head-up display, head-mounted display, etc., among various end users including defence, real estate, automotive, consumer electronics, etc. There will be a time when loaded content will be a craze for VR and it’ll surely drive growth in the country’s VR market.”
There are two main types of VR devices: ‘full feature’ and ‘mobile’. The former incorporates high-resolution screens and are likely to cost from Rs 20,000 to Rs 50,000 plus. Gaurav Tondon, Head Marketing, Portronics says, “These headsets are majorly used in gaming sectors, apart from gaming these VR headsets are also used in medical and automotive industry. Use of VR headset technology is high in military and law enforcement, advertising, automotive industry.The ‘Mobile VR’ category uses a high-end smartphone’s screen into a special case, enabling the headset to fit more-or-less snugly on the user’s head. More is the growth of smartphones and tablets, more is the growth in VR gaming. The quality of visual effects delivered by VR headset is a major concern. The growing smart phone penetration, and developments in 3D technology are expected to provide opportunities for VR headset market.”
Whereas Praveen Valecha, Regional Director, TCL India says that the current VR headset market is still in its nascent stage, with a great potential for growth. “The VR headset shipment already reached $3.4 Million last year, with more and more players entering the market. Currently, more than 11 vendors are shipping VR headsets in India, with the numbers poised to increase even more. Opportunities galore for the VR Headset market in the country with segments like healthcare, marketing, education and retail seeing a steady increase in application of VR. Moreover, fields like gaming and real estate have already seen an upward trend in the application of VR headsets,” he adds further.
Fueling Factors
Sharing more on the growth factors, Sudip reveals, “Currently entry level VR headsets are being bundled with mobile handsets as a giveaway. This in turn is creating a mass awareness. People are getting to know about the technology and its usage. People are using split videos for the entry level headsets to get clarity in the 3D format.”
“There are a plethora of factors that have contributed to the growth of VR in India, including the emergence of e-commerce as the leading channel for growth for consumer electronics. For instance Amazon has a dedicated Smart Living Store and Flipkart has a dedicated category for Virtual Reality. Our global strategy of shifting towards Internet of things resonates perfectly with this paradigm shift. Moreover there has been an ever increasing demand for virtual reality technology among mobile users as well, with the launch of various entry level VR headsets in the country also responsible for driving the VR headset market,” confirms Praveen.
“Software, services and VR enabled content are a few factors that will play a crucial role in the growth of this market with the hardware on the booming end in the hands of the consumer. VR has a potential not just in the gaming sector alone, it’s known to produce new models, methods and a new way of communication and interaction in almost every sphere, says Rajesh.
According to Gaurav, Benefits with the emergence of 360° video will accrue to sectors like tourism, real estate, training industries, virtual tour operators, product demos and simulations at exhibitions etc.
Challenges for the Market
Challenges always come with opportunities. In the VR market, the players also need to address certain challenges. “We believe VR headsets need to be sold as an independent unit. Currently they are being given as an additional accessory along with Mobiles. Also, the biggest challenge is availability of world class digital 3D content for the viewers which can hold their interest for long and keep them entertained,” says Sudip.
Pointing out one of major issue, Gaurav says, “We do expect VR impact on content viewing habits of people will grow as VR content quality improves and with availability of good cameras capable of capturing VR content.”
Producing content for consumers is seen as challenge for players too. Praveen adds, “Despite the unprecedented growth and a massive potential for further development, the VR headset industry still has some challenges to overcome. The Indian market, albeit full of opportunities, is a tricky one. A lack of VR content combined with the low awareness combined with high cost of trial has restricted growth in this segment. We believe that prices for VR have reached a tipping point. We are committed to create content for VR in house to ensure that we take leadership in the space.”
Lack of awareness also seen as major concern for vendors. Rajesh says, “VR is a relatively new technology, educating the channel and customer about this technology is tough and complex. As I’ve mentioned earlier the, software and content is also a challenge. This is a very niche segment, once the technology becomes mainstream more people will gain a hold of this.”
Distribution Plans
Effective distribution network always help in making any brand successful in the Indian market. “In India, the flow of goods and services reaches to our ultimate consumers through National Distributors and Regional Distributors. We address both the B2B space as well as the e- Commerce space for sharing our products to our customers,” reveals Sudip.
Zebronics VR headset are available in retail stores, having more than 50000 direct and indirect channel partners across India.Rajesh adds, “We have no concerns when it comes to sales. We believe in delivering the best quality therefore ensuring trust of our partnership with the dealers for successful association and decent margin.Our strategies are customized according to local needs and demands. We have so far launched two models in the affordable price point and planning to launch more in the mid segment soon, including the AR gun.”
Whereas Portronics has also come with aggressive plan to push these products through their strong online and offline distribution channels.
TCL has collaborated with Advanced Computers as national distributors in offline sales, in order to provide consumers with actual first-hand experience of the product. “We are firm in our belief that, offline product experience can drive online sales. We are working on an offline to online module (O2O) along with forging key partnerships with ecommerce players to best serve this market,” concluded by Praveen.
