YouTube have made some incredible updates as it’s now possible to live-stream 360-degree videos and audio can also now work spatially so you can hear the sound around you as you explore the 360 setting.

Virtual reality is becoming more and more commonplace with VR headsets launching around the world and new tech being developed every day. YouTube introduced support for 360-degree videos last March, putting you inside the video. Now YouTube are taking their own VR experiences to the next level with 360 adapting audio and the ability to stream videos live in 360-degrees, so you can truly be in the moment.

To celebrate a year since launching 360-degree support and now introducing this massive feature to the update YouTube, they teamed up with Coachella to live-stream some performance in 360-degrees (why they decided to reveal this after the weekend ended is your guess). YouTube have live-streamed Coachella performances for a few years now, bringing the giant music festival to viewers around the world.

360-degree

As YouTube said when they first revealed they were looking into live-streaming 360 videos, the technology is expensive and difficult to get right. To help make it more freely available YouTube have been working with various software companies like VideoStitch and Two Big Ears so that their software works with 360-degree videos, live streaming and spatial audio. Though if anyone can make it work it’s Google. They also announced they’ll be adding the technology to live-stream 360 videos with spatial audio at all YouTube Spaces around the world.

YouTube’s chief product officer, Neal Mohan wrote in their statement:

Growing up as a kid, my favorite basketball player was Magic Johnson. I wanted nothing more than to be able to watch him play in person, but unfortunately I never got the chance. Whether it’s a sporting event or a concert or even a family gathering, all of us have had the feeling of wanting to be somewhere we couldn’t.

But these days, virtual reality and 360-degree video can help get you one step closer to actually being at those places and in those moments. Today, we’re taking immersive video even further with 360-degree live streaming on YouTube.

What excites me most about 360-degree storytelling is that it lets us open up the world’s experiences to everyone. Students can now experience news events in the classroom as they unfold. Travelers can experience faraway sites and explorers can deep-sea dive, all without the physical constraints of the real world.

And today’s kids dreaming of going to a basketball game or a concert can access those experiences firsthand, even if they’re far away from the court. What were once limited experiences are now available to anyone, anywhere, at any time.

Are you ready to never miss a moment again?