NBA, NextVR announce season’s virtual reality schedule

NBA Digital and NextVR, the Official League Pass VR Partner of the NBA, today announced a schedule of 27 live games in virtual reality for the 2017-18 NBA season.

The NBA League Pass VR schedule on NextVR will feature all 30 NBA teams within NextVR’s signature immersive 3D VR experience, tipping off during a free preview on Oct. 21 with the Dallas Mavericks at the Houston Rockets.

Debuting this season, NextVR will introduce the NextVR Screening Room.

This new product will allow subscribers to watch any NBA League Pass game on a virtual movie theater-sized screen. Every game night, fans can immerse themselves in a 360-degree VR environment with the opportunity to select up to 13 NBA games to livestream on a massive virtual screen.

NBA League Pass is part of NBA Digital, the NBA’s extensive cross-platform portfolio of multimedia assets jointly managed by the NBA and Turner Sports, and features nearly 1,000 out-of-market live games.

International NBA League Pass subscribers will have access to every single NBA game during the 2017-18 season through the NextVR Screening Room, in addition to the 27 immersive VR productions.

After last year’s first schedule of weekly live NBA games in VR, NextVR will debut new product features including live volumetric telestration, live infographics and dynamic stats inserted into the virtual scene, and user-selected point-of-view for the 27-game schedule. These advancements will add to last year’s innovative productions highlighted by dedicated announcers, pre- and post-game analysis, in-arena entertainment and behind-the-scenes features.

“Following a groundbreaking first season of NBA games in VR, we will introduce new product features, including real-time graphics floating like holograms within the field-of-play, deliver sharper images, and introduce more VR devices to fans,” said David Cole, NextVR CEO in a statement. “We are continuing to advance the realism and fidelity of our NBA broadcasts and these new features will deliver the most immersive live basketball experience to date.”

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“By committing to a schedule of VR games, we’ve been able to listen to fan feedback in real-time and deploy improvements on a weekly basis,” said Jeff Marsilio, NBA vice president, global media distribution. “The fan response has been overwhelmingly positive, and we look forward to seeing their reaction to this year’s new VR capabilities.”

Games will be available as part of NBA League Pass, whether purchased through a third-party distributor or directly through the NBA.

Fans will be able to authenticate their accounts by providing their NBA League Pass login credentials (obtained at NBA.com or through the NBA App) through the NBA League Pass VR section of NextVR’s app. Currently, there are seven dates (Oct. 21, Oct. 24, Dec. 16, Jan. 16, Jan. 21, Feb. 24, March 15) during NBA League Pass free preview windows when fans can find out what it’s like to be in the best seat in the house with NextVR.

Complimentary on-demand content within the NBA League Pass VR section in the NextVR app will feature game highlights and full-game replays of each virtual reality game.

Fans with a Samsung GearVR headset or Google Daydream, along with a compatible smartphone, can download the free NextVR app from the Oculus Store or the Google Play Store respectively. Microsoft Windows Mixed Reality users can also experience games in VR beginning Oct. 17.