A research report commissioned by the Cultural & Creative Industries Skillnet has found a significant opportunity for Ireland to be a leading player in the global immersive technology market. According to global business intelligence platform Statista, that market was worth $65.5 billion in 2022 and is expected to grow to $936.6 billion by 2030. Immersive technologies include augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), spatial computing, and mixed reality (MR), collectively referred to as extended reality (XR).
“We wanted to understand the industry landscape and contribute to ensuring Ireland remains a global leader in the immersive technology sector now and into the future,” says Susan Talbot, skills and talent development manager with the Cultural & Creative Industries Skillnet.
The report points to healthy growth in the industry despite some significant challenges. The Irish Immersive Economy report 2022 showed that the Irish immersive technology sector was generating revenues of more than €43 million annually at the time. This has now increased by €92 million.
“There were two elements to the research,” says Camille Donegan, interim chief executive of Eirmersive, the industry body which produced the report. “The first was a survey of people in the industry and the second was round-table conversations with others in the industry looking at barriers to growth identified in the 2022 report, if they’re still there, and what can be done to address them.”
Many of the barriers remain, she adds. “Skills remain a challenge. It’s not just the obvious game engine technology skills that many immersive technologies are built on, it’s much wider than that. Micro-enterprises in the industry need access to the full range of business skills. Eighty per cent of companies in the industry are already exporting and that requires a certain amount of expertise.”
Technology skills are also in high demand, of course.
Funding and support for research and business growth is another issue. “There is very good sector-specific support for the industry across Europe and in the UK in particular,” she points out. “The support for prototyping is very good in those countries. That’s an advantage as investors and customers need to see something before they will put their money into it. Innovation vouchers tend to be academic-focused and aren’t necessarily suited to this sector. We need to build a better understanding of the funding needs of the industry.”
Access to hardware and software is also called out and, once again, the UK and Europe enjoy an advantage in this area. “There are specific labs that people can go to try things out in the UK and Europe,” says Donegan. “There are some facilities here but it’s hard to get in the door.”
Then there is the awareness challenge. “The first report in 2022 highlighted a lack of understanding of the cross-cutting technologies represented by the sector,” she notes. “Work has been done to address that and explain that the technology can be applied across all sectors. Training is just one example. It is being successfully used in wind energy training at present, for example. It is applicable to all sectors, pharma, healthcare, entertainment and so on. We have now moved past the novelty phase and are really into the adoption phase. Key to that is demonstrating the value of the technology.”
A long-term view of what these technologies can mean for the economy and society is needed, according to Mark Roddy, also of Eirmersive. “In Finland, the government is looking at a metaverse strategy out to 2035. The assumption is that it is a bit like the internet was back in 1995 and we need to understand the future potential of the technology now if we are to maximise its benefits for the future. The Irish government needs to do something similar.”
The Cultural & Creative Industries Skillnet has already taken action concerning the skills challenge identified in the report and the first meeting of a specially convened new industry advisory group takes place today. “Our primary concern is around the skills gap,” says Talbot. “The report recommended the establishment of a national skills advisory group involving diverse stakeholders and we have done that. Addressing the industry skills challenge is a process and a journey. This report is a continuation of work going on over several years. The advisory group will take that a step further and come up with recommendations for skills development for the industry in the years ahead.”
Donegan believes the Irish industry is at a potential inflexion point. “We have all the ingredients we need to follow the film and animation sectors and for Ireland to punch above its weight globally in immersive technologies. We need to strategically support the industry in the same way as we did those sectors. We can make Ireland a global leader in the supply of services in this space.”