The Virtual Reality Industry Forum (VRIF) has announced the election of a new Board of Directors and Officers. VRIF further announced that version 2 of its Guidelines is publicly available from its website. The new version adds recommendations on live VR360 production and distribution, the use of text and fonts in immersive experiences, watermarking of 2D framed content in 3D environments and enhanced-quality viewport distribution. Guidelines V.2: VR going live The second version of VRIF’s Industry Guidelines for interoperable virtual reality experiences is available from the Forum’s website (link). As the number of live events delivered in VR360 format increases significantly, VRIF’s new guidelines aim to help content providers achieve the best possible quality while reaching a wide variety of devices, including both headsets and “flat” displays such as tablets and phones. At IBC 2019 in Amsterdam, VRIF’s Vice President Chris Johns will talk about the Forum’s Guidelines and new activities in a Future Zone talk on Sunday 15 September, at 10:20 CEST. VRIF will also facilitate a session on 5G and immersive media on Saturday, 14 September at 14:15 CEST in Room E102. New Board of Directors As a result of recent Board elections, Mauricio Aracena (Ericsson) was appointed as VRIF’s new President, while Chris Johns (Sky) and Ozgur Oyman (Intel) will continue their roles as Vice President and Treasurer, respectively. The new Board of Directors is further comprised Thierry Fautier (Harmonic), Jan Ellsberger (Huawei), Justin Ridge (Nokia) and Tom De Koninck (TNO). Mauricio Aracena said: “Our role continues to be helping the industry to adopt best practices and suitable technologies that enable mass adoption of high-quality immersive consumer experiences. This can only be achieved in a continuous discussion with technology providers and stakeholders who create, distribute and consume content.” Upcoming Activities VRIF is currently developing the requirements for its next Guidelines release, planned to be available in the first quarter of 2020. Mauricio Aracena, President of VRIF said: “Our members have identified several key areas for the expansion of immersive experiences. New features on our roadmap for 2019 and beyond include volumetric content production and distribution, cloud VR/AR and edge computing, as well as enabling social VR experiences.” These areas are also highlighted in a recent VRIF publication in SMPTE Motion Imaging Journal (LINK). “We see great opportunities for the industry to evolve to more advanced immersive services that will be attractive to consumers as well as easily accessible. We invite all interested parties to join VRIF and be part of this exciting road,” said Mauricio Aracena.