text: 03:15 PM - 04:10 PM
  In a world where the COVID pandemic has deprived the public of live music and where artists have had to invent new ways of communicating online with their audience, it is not difficult to imagine that the future of concerts could be through virtual worlds.
  The catalyst for this massive market opportunity is rooted in how habits have changed in 2020. During COVID, everyone has become a digital native. Musicians are looking for new ways to reach their audiences and vice-versa. As social platforms with the built in mechanisms for engagement that concert goers crave, games presented an opportunity for a new type of virtual music experience as an extension of the live music circuit.
  As we enter into this rapidly emerging virtual concert market, games and music are intersecting more and more where just as we’re defining what the metaverse is, we’re also defining what virtual concerts are as these two industries converge.
  In this one of a kind panel, we hear from Mavericks at the forefront of the gaming and music industry, and from the venture capitalist perspective to better understand where the cross section of these industries is at, and what it means for the future of these industries, their respective stakeholders and you.
  It’s when technology is in the hands of the artists that we see the most exciting future that stimulates innovation, conversation, and audience-first designs that are leading towards a vibrant 1:1 digital twin of the music industry in the Metaverse. Whoever gets this next move right in this space is going to win big.
  10:00 AM - 10:25 AM
  A detailed look into the making of Fictioneers’ and Aardman’s latest location-based AR experience, Wallace & Gromit: Fix Up The City. Hear from Ryan Measel, CEO and Co-Founder of a location-based AR platform, Fantasmo, who will talk about how creating a digital twin of the city for authoring the content, enabling occlusion, localizing devices, and overcoming the challenges of embedding AR features into cities in a new and pioneering way.
  10:30 AM - 10:55 AM
  How do you experiment with XR in the Immersive and Location-Based Experience Space? Join Meow Wolf's CTO Barbara Ford Grant as she shares the history of Meow Wolf's POV on XR, and how Meow Wolf has integrated XR through a variety of real-time interactive technologies that allow participants to further engage a dive deep into our narrative experiences, including RFID gamification, AR simulations, and multi sensory "memory storms," all the while aligning XR with a mission and commitment to connect to our community.
  11:00 AM - 11:25 AM
  XR gaming brings a new level of immersive interaction, and multiplayer experiences can create the sense of amazing social presence. Chicken Waffle has built some of the top social XR content in the world, and has launched a new Indie XR Creator Fund to help innovative developers bring their content to market! Additionally, Chicken Waffle has been collaborating with some amazing location-based entertainment (LBE) partners like SPREE Interactive to bring new cutting-edge XR content to their locations with multiplayer arenas and gaming centers. This session will cover advanced development tips and publishing solutions for creating interactive cross-platform multiplayer XR experiences.
  11:50 AM - 12:15 PM
  Ingress is the first AR game Niantic produced prior to becoming an independent company, and it continues today with a thriving community of players around the world. It also has always been a place where Niantic developers, producers and engineers pioneer new technologies and game mechanics to advance the story and engage players. Ingress producer Brian Rose and AR software engineer Anthony Maes will share how the team is using the Niantic Lightship ARDK for real-time mapping and meshing combined with in-game incentives to crowdsource millions of AR scans, and push the boundaries of what’s possible in this battle between the Enlightened and the Resistance.
  01:45 PM - 02:40 PM
  Now is the time for brands who partner with sports leagues, musicians and other entertainment venues to invest in a proactive and scaled XR gameplan to connect with their consumers who desire more immersive fan engagement. The panel will explore new ways for brands to leverage innovative XR experiences to enhance the fan experience; from using Web AR to give fans access to behind the scenes experiences, to immersive up close experiences with world-famous athletes, musicians and celebrities - these connected experiences are only the beginning of what's possible.