A new study has suggested that the number one obstacle for virtual reality right now is a lack of compelling content.

The survey – a joint study by Upload and Perkins Coie – surveyed 650 AR/VR startup founders, executives with established technology companies and investors.

The survey results suggest that respondents believe that a lack of compelling content is the biggest obstacle to mass adoption of AR and VR technology, while cost was also identified as an issue.



Of those surveyed, 37 per cent said that an inadequate content offering is the biggest challenge to face to the emerging industry, while reluctance to embrace AR/VR innovation in the mainstream was second with 23 per cent and technological limitations was third with 20 per cent.

Research by Goldman Sachs suggests that US$3.5bn (€3.1bn, £2.7bn) has been invested into AR and VR in 2014 and 2015, with AR/VR startups experiencing 347 per cent increase in funding in the first quarter of 2016 compared with the final three months of 2015.

Investment into AR/VR remains relatively small on the whole, with 88 per cent of investors granting funding anywhere between US$0 (€0, £0) and US$5m (€4.5m, £3.8m) over the past year. Investors however have suggested increased interest in the market, with 22 per cent saying they expect to invest somewhere between US$6m (€5.4m, £4.6m) and US$10m (€8.9m, £7.6m) in the next year – a range selected by no respondents in the previous 12 months.

The study also revealed that investors are planning to make most investment into content over the course of the next 12 months, and that the vast majority of respondents (89 per cent) agreed with the statement, “In the next two years, VR and smartphone manufacturers will place a focus on developing mobile VR solutions.”

To read the full survey, click here.