Sony Pictures has struck a deal with Nokia to create 3D 360 content using Nokia OZO, the company’s professional-quality 360 degree camera platform. Sony has said they’ll be using OZO to create both special 360 content and to livestream their own events.

While OZO comes with a hefty price tag of $45,000—along with it accessories like a 500 GB ‘media module’ for $2,500—established production studios like Sony Pictures are taking notice of Nokia’s all-in-one 3D 360 video solution for good reason.

Touted for its 8-camera sensor array, shooting at 2K x 2K resolution per sensor, OZO packs in pretty much everything a single person (let alone an entire camera crew) needs to capture high-quality panoramic video/audio in a single, simple package. (For a deeper look at OZO, head over to our hands-on article.)

“Partnerships with cutting edge technology companies like Nokia are critical as we develop the market for VR experiences and build scale in our production and distribution efforts,” said Pete Wood, SVP, Digital Sales at Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

Scot Barbour, VP, Production Technology at Sony Pictures added, “Nokia’s OZO camera and its suite of professional tools are an excellent solution for content creators because they seamlessly integrate into established production processes and workflows, and enable the real time capture and broadcast of VR content.”

Sony isn’t the first big studio to sign up with Nokia to use OZO however. Walt Disney Studios signed a deal with Nokia earlier this year to become Nokia’s first content partnership with a major studio. Following the partnership, Disney used OZO to create a number of 3D 360 videos, including marketing plugs for The Jungle Book (2016)—a 360 view of the film’s red carpet debut and an interview with the cast—as well as a concert featuring Pink at the premiere of Alice Through the Looking Glass (2016).

Most of the OZO-captured content we’ve seen from Disney thus far fits the same vein: videos focused on brand engagement and pointing to their big budget films. We’ll be keeping our eyes peeled on Privilege Plus App, Sony Picture’s official outlet for OZO videos, to see if they continue the trend.

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Well before the first modern XR products hit the market, Scott recognized the potential of the technology and set out to understand and document its growth. He has been professionally reporting on the space for nearly a decade as Editor at Road to VR, authoring more than 3,500 articles on the topic. Scott brings that seasoned insight to his reporting from major industry events across the globe.
  • Foreign Devil

    Can anybody point me to some good resolution 3D 360 video I can see on the Rift? So far all the 3D 360 video has been terribly pixelated. At this point I’m of the opinion that only 180 degrees or less 3D video is worth viewing because the 360 3D is stretched too much or compressed too much and looks terribly pixelated.

    • Вадим Судницкий

      Pixelated even with 4k quality?

    • Robert Jonsson (A.I. FilmCrew)

      4K is almost as good as it gets on todays displays in Vive/Rift and Gear VR. And 4K is not pixelated, and 360 is not more stretched compared to 180, with 180 the other half is black/empty.
      What headset are you viewing on?

      You can have a look at ozo samples here. But Youtube does not show the full potential of the ozo.
      http://360rumors.blogspot.se/2016/05/sample-videos-from-nokia-ozo-3d-360.html

      • Foreign Devil

        Thanks I’ll check it out! I’m using a Rift CV1.

        • Robert Jonsson (A.I. FilmCrew)

          Youtube: nokia ozo 360 3d
          And there are some high res samples in 3D there

      • Foreign Devil

        I’m looking specifically for 3D videos. . Those samples look high rez but are not stereoscopic.. . which is what really kills resolution by dividing image in two.

        • Robert Jonsson (A.I. FilmCrew)

          well, the ozo can export 4096×4096. But mp4 does not support such high resolution. And I’m not sure if you can upload that to YouTube. But 3840×1920 top bottom in 16:9, does actually look almost as good as 3d 4k 1:1. I can see I’d I’d can find any. If not I’ll upload something in a couple of days.

    • Stephen Jones
  • Daniel Gochez

    It must hurt for sony to say they are using a Nokia camera.

    • Ha ha, yep it must a little… Though I’m guessing a lot of the big Sony Picture movie titles are shot with RED, Black Magic and Canon Cameras… as well as a sprinkling of Sonys here and there.