Live Nation, Hulu And Virtual Reality

“We have these magical two hours happening, and we have access to the environment, whether on stage or backstage interviews,” Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino told Bloomberg.

“We’ve been on a quest to take those two hours-plus and start bringing those to life online, on TV, and any screen we can monetize.” NextVR.png Live Nation reportedly wants to expand its advertising revenue, which tends to have a higher profit margin than concerts. The deal with Vice is set to distribute television shows through the company’s television channel, Viceland. The two companies also formed Live Nation TV in 2014, which created video content related to Live Nation Artists.

Hulu will not only be able to stream the content broadcast on Viceland, but Live Nation has a deal to invite the masses onstage through virtual reality concerts with the company’s streaming service. Hulu CEO Mike Hopkins announced at Hulu Upfront May 4 that its total subscribers have climbed to nearly 12 million, which provides a large audience that might be interested in digital backstage passes.

Virtual reality is also on the menu with Live Nation’s partnership with NextVR, also announced May 4. Having already experimented with streaming sports and political events using its immersive technology, NextVR gains access to a wealth of hot tickets through its partnership with Live Nation and aims to broadcast “hundreds of performances.” NextVR has an app that can be downloaded for free through the Oculus app store, but it requires Gear VR, which is available for purchase for $99 through Oculus.