StarVR, a VR device joint venture between Acer and Sweden-based Starbreeze, started trading on Taiwan's emerging stock market on April 23. On the first day of trading, StarVR's share price rallied nearly 40% to close at NT$96 (US$3.24).
StarVR is a VR head-mounted display (HMD) device developer, supplying its solutions mainly to enterprises and the entertainment market.
StarVR had revenues of NT$1.71 million for March, down 68.57% on year, while the amount for first-quarter 2018 reached NT$1.86 million, down 80.53% on year. For 2017, the company had revenues of NT$129 million, up 756.11% on year with net loss of NT$31 million or EPS of negative NT$1.10.
For the VR/AR markets, device shipments to the consumer sector are more than those to the enterprise sector, but devices for the enterprise applications have a lot more production values, said StarVR chairman Jerry Kao.
Kao citing a research firm's figures pointed out that by 2021, enterprise VR devices are expected to account for less than 30% of the overall VR shipments, but contribute 80% of the market's overall revenues thanks to enterprise VR devices' high ASP.
Currently, for the enterprise VR market, StarVR are pushing two major business directions: one is the location-based entertainment type of applications such as Dubai's VR Park and Japan's Sega Game Centers. This type of business usually adopts profit-sharing business models, allowing StarVR to see continuous income.
The other one is enterprises from industries including automotive, national defense and medical care, and clients from these fields usually purchase or rent their VR systems, noted Kao.
StarVR will continue to improve its HMD device and will upgrade the display's refresh rate from 60Hz currently to 90Hz and will add Tobii's eyeball tracking technology into the device.
StarVR stock price rose on its first day of trading
Photo: Digitimes file photo
Article translated by Joseph Tsai
