Valve’s Steam store is the undisputed leader of PC game distribution, though the marketplace is also a portal for buying VR games, software, and even traditional movies. Through a partnership with Seattle-based startup Pixvana, Valve is also launching a VR video section aimed at bringing many of the benefits of distributing a 360-degree video on Facebook or Google’s YouTube to PC users consuming content through Steam.
Steam’s 360 Video Player is launching in beta today, integrating Pixvana’s SPIN VR video streaming technology for VR videos. The end result should be a “one-click” solution for watching 360-degree content, using a Rift or Vive headset to check out the video in VR. Soon, they will also add the ability to use a mouse to look around a video on a flat 2D screen.
“Pixvana’s SPIN SDK has been a great asset in our efforts to empower VR content creators and provide an integrated solution for experiencing linear VR content on Steam,” said Valve’s Sean Jenkin in a prepared statement.
The 360 Video Player is built using Pixvana’s software development kit (SDK) for playback and streaming of…