When Quad/Graphics Inc. announced earlier this year it would be equipping 500,000 special newsstand versions of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue with virtual reality viewers, it may have seemed a little bit like a gimmick.
But for Tim Fox, director of custom products at Quad/Graphics, the SI viewer was just a starting point. He sees potential for any number of the Sussex-based printer’s thousands of clients. In particular, he said Quad has received a lot of inquiries from clients tied to travel. Whether it is for resorts, hotels, national parks or communities, Fox said there is a lot of value in allowing a user to be in the location before he or she travels there.
A company like Milwaukee-based Harley-Davidson Inc. could use virtual reality to show how a motorcycle is made, bring potential buyers into a dealership from the comfort of their home or virtually take them along on a motorcycle ride.
“You could have a virtual experience as if you were the gasoline moving through the engine,” he said.
Fox also sees uses in health care, agriculture, real estate and education.
