A virtual-reality industry organization is setting up the “Neuronet,” a new network
for real-time virtual reality and gaming data. The Neuronet will eventually evolve
into a public network for emerging cinematic and immersive VR technologies. It will
be separate from the Internet, which was not designed to support the data
transmission requirements of real-time VR data, and it will use a different set
of domain names.
Applications that will be able to reach their full potential on the Neuronet
include virtual worlds like Second Life, The Sims, Everquest and World of
Warcraft, which are attracting millions of followers; new game systems from
Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft that are offering near-lifelike character
renditions; and virtual-business applications that are being developed by companies
like IBM and Sun Microsystems. The Neuronet's bandwidth and its real-time VR
and gaming data transfer protocols will support the needs of these VR
trailblazers.
Though much of the infrastructure and programming for the Neuronet will be
outsourced to companies in the telecommunications and virtual-reality industries, the network will
be governed by an international not-for-profit organization, the International
Association of Virtual Reality Technologies, whose members are involved in
virtual-reality research or business development.
The first-generation Neuronet is slated to go live in 2007, and consumer-accessible
applications will follow as early as 2009.
