Google has pulled the plug on any and all Google Play Movies and Tv from all Daydream VR and the platform itself.
This is one of the stages of Google slowly letting Daydream down. Users will still be able to view movies and shows that it owns or rented, but they will need to purchased or rented through the smartphone itself, or their computing software. This doesn’t come as a shock for many, as the newly released Google Pixel 3A doesn’t support Google Daydream, and the new Samsung Galaxy S10 doesn’t either.
Google has always said that they won’t be releasing a competitor for the Oculus Quest this calendar year either. We didn’t expect them to, but they didn’t leave much room for speculation. This year hasn’t been very kind to Google Daydream hardware and software, as sales and usage is down more than ever.
We know Google has a bad reputation of stating and ending projects very quickly, but we hate to see that same approach taken to virtual reality. Even while the masses are still deciding if they like a new hardware or software by Google, they often pull the plug before the idea has a chance to reach a good number of people to get the right sample size.
The newer version of Google VR controllers are in production, and it will be interesting to see if those get scrapped or not. This could be a big telling if Google plans to stay inside of VR or not. This is not the end of Google in VR, but it is certainly starting to feel that way.
Oculus Video will continue to resent Google products although they could certainly be a great service to the Daydream. While the Google service of shows have been pulled from their hardware, Oculus plans to stay on course with their options.
Oculus has recently taken streaming services off of the original Rift, but plans to add them to the Oculus Quest in the coming weeks. This is due to the company saying that the Rift and Rift S are primarily used for gaming, rather than viewing videos or experiences. The Oculus Go will continue to be the biggest player for Oculus in the TV and movie world. That hardware was made to be a media consumer, not a heavy player for gaming.
