Meta has already provided a way for users to watch their own content on Quest. However, navigating through a file system to view your media on a windowed panel lacks the immersive feel of a genuine home theater experience. Now, Meta is exploring ways to elevate this concept.
Mark Rabkin, the Vice President overseeing Horizon OS and Quest, shared in a recent X post that the company is actively working on creating a home theater environment for Horizon OS. This operating system currently powers Quest and is set to become the platform for a range of third-party headsets.
When asked why Meta hasn’t already developed such a feature, Rabkin responded that the team is diligently experimenting with elements like lighting and other effects to enhance the experience. They are also working on perfecting the audio to deliver outstanding sound quality.
This isn’t the first time Meta has ventured into theater environments. Back in 2014, they launched Oculus Cinema for Samsung Gear VR, which later evolved into Oculus Video for both Gear VR and Rift. This offered a more seamless way to view personal content and rent movies for device-based viewing. In late 2015, they also introduced Oculus Social, an early attempt at bringing people together, allowing up to five users to watch Twitch and Vimeo streams in various virtual theater settings.
While I’m steering clear of revisiting too much history—as there have been numerous discontinued home theater apps—it’s worth noting that Meta’s latest effort was in Horizon Home on Quest. Updated in 2021, it enabled multiple users to gather in your personal space to watch videos and dive into VR apps together. However, it fell short of offering the features typically found in a dedicated home theater app, like customizable environments or sophisticated playback controls.
Although the content available through these apps changed over time, they all shared a common issue: they created enough obstacles between users and traditional content that many turned to more open alternatives like Bigscreen and Skybox, as well as dedicated streaming apps like Prime Video, YouTube, Hulu, and Netflix.
That being said, Meta’s upcoming attempt at creating a dedicated theater environment might not integrate all these segmented apps into one expansive platform. Yet, providing a built-in and easily accessible way to enjoy personal content in an immersive setting might just do the trick.
