The analyst firm, IDC, has announced that virtual reality (VR) headsets could see double-digit growth of 46.2% in 2021. The growth will follow a decline of 6.7% in 2020 due to supply chain disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Over the longer term, IDC believes the VR market will grow rapidly with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 48% from 2020 to 2024 with consumer and enterprise customers increasingly spending on the technology. Until now, devices have been a bit expensive and the software limited; as prices come down and services grow, demand from consumers is also expected to increase.
Commenting on the technology’s growing appeal, Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC’s Mobile Device Trackers, said:
“While gaming remains at the forefront of consumer VR, other use cases such as virtual concerts and virtual workouts are also starting to resonate with buyers. Meanwhile, many enterprises continue to ramp up their use of VR with training, collaboration, design, and manufacturing use cases driving momentum. We expect the commercial segment to grow from 38% of the worldwide market in 2020 to 53% by 2024.”
According to IDC, Standalone VR, Tethered VR, and Screenless Viewers have all declined in 2020 but for very different reasons. One of the main players in Tethered VR is the PlayStationVR but as consumers look to the PS5, interest has waned. Screenless Viewers have declined because they lack content and aren’t very professional.
IDC didn’t explain why Standalone VR declined but it said with the discontinuation of Facebook’s Oculus Go, the company could lose market share at the entry-level to competitors.
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