Scuba diving in Cebu cited as most viewed content in LG Uplus VR platform

SEOUL -- A scuba diving series showing sea creatures in the open waters of the Philippine island province of Cebu was chosen as the content watched the most viewed content in 2020 through a virtual reality content application launched by LG Uplus, a mobile carrier in South Korea. More and more people want vicarious satisfaction with virtual reality because traveling abroad is virtually impossible due to COVID-19.

Cebu, one of the top tourist destinations in the Philippines, has many well-known diving spots. LG Uplus (LGU+) said on March 2 that U+VR, a VR content app, saw a 27 percent increase in the usage of mobile data in 2020. In the average number of monthly viewers by category of content provided by the app, travel and healing increased by 204 percent, followed by movies and performances with 144 percent.

"More and more customers are loving U+VR content as much as 5G subscribers are growing," LGU+'s 5G service head Choi Yoon-ho said, adding his company would provide more realistic content. The company has tried to popularize its VR entertainment service using 5G technology.

Entertainment content using VR headsets are being developed rapidly in South Korea webbed with 4G, 5G and free WiFi wireless networks. While conventional VR headsets require a computer or a device to connect to, new standalone headsets or ones that use smartphones are completely wireless, allowing users to enjoy games, films and other video content anywhere, anytime.

In 2010, LGU+ partnered with a luxury hotel in Seoul to offer a special holiday package featuring virtual reality headsets connected to a cloud network full of entertainment. "Hocance," a combination of hotel and French word vacance meaning holidays, has gained popularity due to COVID-19.