One of the big strengths of the HTC Vive VR headset is that it uses
SteamVR as its main content pipeline. Steam is a mature, well-stocked
gaming platform with a huge community, giving the Vive a significant advantage over the Oculus Rift in these early stages of the VR revolution.
But VR isn’t all about games, and SteamVR isn’t the best fit for
non-game developers who want to offer their own VR creations for the
Vive. Soon, they’ll have a new place to do so: The Viveport, an app
store that will focus on non-gaming content like video, art, educational
content, travel, shopping, and experimental projects.
Viveport launched earlier this year in China, and the app marketplace
will be available globally starting this fall. HTC is trying to woo
developers to register for the platform,
access the appropriate plugins and SDKs, and help develop new apps for
Viveport. Like your plain ol’ 2D app ecosystem, the Viveport SDK will
support paid downloads and in-app purchases.
Accord to Rikard Steiber, HTC senior vice president of virtual
reality, Viveport isn’t meant to replace SteamVR, which is a good thing.
It’s just meant to cover content other than games. “We want to shine
the light on different types of VR applications,” he says.