Cinedigm teams with Nreal for augmented reality streaming

Cinedigm has reached a deal with Nreal to offer three of its streaming channels through the Nreal Light augmented reality headset.

Bloody Disgusting TV, Realmadrid TV and CONtv will now be available to watch via the Nreal Light AR goggles, which the company said can produce a virtual HD screen of up to 220 inches. The Nreal Light was announced in September and launched in the U.S. in December through a partnership with Verizon. The glasses are priced at about $600 and work by connecting with an Android device.

"Cinedigm is committed to embracing the best and most innovative technologies that entertain our audiences in compelling ways," said Tony Huidor, chief technology and product officer at Cinedigm, in a statement. "We are proud to be a U.S. launch partner of Nreal. This partnership provides a direct path for us into the emerging metaverse through the ongoing evolution of AR & MR technology. This close relationship with Nreal will allow us to stay at the cutting edge of where we anticipate entertainment technology to be in the very near future. We have every confidence that our viewers will embrace these new immersive experiences while Cinedigm continues to focus on expanding the video viewing experience via this rapidly evolving technology."

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"Our partnership with Cinedigm in the U.S. comes at an exciting time, as we're building out a holistic AR experience for consumer audiences. For the first time, fans can now engage with Cinedigm's streaming content through Nreal's AR glasses, on a 220" virtual HD screen," said Nreal co-founder Peng Jin in a statement. "The addition of a native streaming TV app in AR is a big step toward realizing the promise of augmented reality by enhancing our viewers' experience. We are very proud to partner with Cinedigm to create this innovative offering. Moving forward, we aim to continue expanding our partnerships as we enter an exhilarating new era of development."

In October, Nreal announced a partnership with video platform provider Accedo to enable DRM-protected content to stream in AR through Nreal’s SDK. The companies partnered on FutureTV, an interactive design reference built on ExoPlayer, an open-source media player from Google used to validate DRM compliance.