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Wimbledon bringing in VR, though not for live matches

Wimbledon for the first time is using virtual reality at this year’s event, though the technology will be available only at the tournament’s on-site museum and will not be used to show matches.

The owners of the grass-court spectacle, which begins its 2016 run today, considered using VR to show matches but decided the technology was not advanced enough to do so.

“As far as live, we explored it quite a bit, and I think that when we do something it has got to be for the consumer and for the fan,” said Alexandra Willis, head of communications, content and digital at the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club, which owns Wimbledon. “It doesn’t seem to us like the technology is 100 percent there.”

The VR display at the museum will feature historical footage of Wimbledon. It also will include some current footage shot during the tournament, including players walking onto Centre Court.

The identity of the VR content provider was not available. Samsung headsets will be used for the display.

VR to date has made few inroads into tennis. The BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., this year had an on-site display that did feature matches. The company that provided that service, LiveLike, had also planned to work with the French Open, but that didn’t happen in the wake of political turmoil with the French Tennis Federation, which organizes the event.

It is not believed that any other tennis events use virtual reality, so Wimbledon would become the second to do so.

— Daniel Kaplan

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