560 The Reunion (1/2)

Chapter 560: The Reunion

Translator: _Min_Editor: Caron_

To use immersive virtual reality in the world of e-commerce was the next step for Future Technology after VR MMORPG.

Imagine being able to shop without leaving home or going on a shopping spree without moving from the computer… oh no, the person in front of the helmet would no longer have to worry if the clothes bought online would fit because you could ”take” the clothes out from the shopping cart and directly ”put it on” your body to try them yourself!

With the introduction of VR shopping, it meant that the only advantage of physical stores would cease to exist. Physical storefronts compared to e-commerce stores without an actual location lacked the advantage of saving on rent costs. Now that the VR shopping experience was brought to the same level, it could be foreseen that once it was adopted by the mass market, it would bring disruptive changes to retail and even real estate markets.

Technology with such a bright future was obviously not going to be ignored by the e-commerce giants.

For example, VR shopping, or the concept known as ”buy+,” was initiated by Ali at the beginning of 2016 but because of the restrictive nature of technology, Ali's VR shopping experience had a lackluster effect, far less than promoted.

It was impractical to design an interactive VR experience for every store due to the work required, and it also greatly increased the number of stores that could register at a VR mall.

Also, VR glasses could only bring a limited experience to customers. With just images alone, it offered no difference compared to shopping through a screen. But if they used high tech 3D movement capture technology to replicate the physical dimensions of the products, it would increase the cost. Would customers really purchase VR glasses with a price tag of over 1000 USD just to shop? Perhaps yes, but rich people only accounted for a small portion of sales.

Therefore, buy+ required a medium that had a high market penetration rate that could also maximize the shopping experience.

The Phantom medium happened to satisfy both conditions.

The high sales set the foundation for a massive user base. Immersive virtual reality technology would provide a comprehensive experience to users. Because of this, Ali chose to contact Jiang Chen immediately after the business forum, hoping to partner up in the ”VR + e-commerce” strategy.

But Jiang Chen didn't immediately reply to Ma Yun who called him personally because he still had to discuss this with Xia Shiyu. He wondered if they should partner up or take care of the retail aspect in-house.

Could Future Technology ditch Ali and do e-commerce themselves? After discussion, Jiang Chen and Xia Shiyu both reached a consensus that while it was theoretically possible, there was no practical reason to do so. Future Technology had no experience in the e-commerce market, and it would be a lost cause if they spent a large amount of time and energy to start in the e-commerce division.

Just like building an aircraft carrier, it wasn't necessary to build every single screw themselves.

With an absolute advantage in technology, Future Technology only needed to focus on developing the channel while the content could be created by Ali, JD, Amazon, and eBay, who all had a wealth of experience and resources.

As for how the partnership would take place, that was the purpose of Jiang Chen's visit to Wanghai.

The next morning, Liu Haotian arrived at the mansion as promised.

When he saw Jiang Chen walking out of the mansion glowing, he guessed what happened last night. He only smirked without saying anything and opened the door for Jiang Chen. After Jiang Chen set the destination on the GPS, Liu Haotian took Jiang Chen on his way.

There were a lot of enterprises that invited Jiang Chen to discuss a ”VR + e-commerce” relationship - both domestic and international players.

Based on the negotiation strategy discussed with Xia Shiyu, Jiang Chen didn't look for Ali first but rather, he sought out Ali's international competitor, Amazon.

Amazon first asked Future Technology to make development tools and licensing available for virtual reality, and the e-commerce application would be designed by them.

It wasn't the right time to make development tools available. Based on their proposal, it was equivalent to Amazon getting rid of them. If ”VR + e-commerce” became extremely successful, it would have nothing to do with Future Technology.