William Hill bets on virtual reality racing
bit.ly
1 October 2015
bit.ly
Anyone who has been to a racecourse will understand the excitement when the horses pound towards the finish line.

But this promotion code thrill of the ride is something that numerous clients who bet in shops or online do not experience.

Bookmaker William Hill is eager to recreate it with virtual truth innovation.

The UK's Gambling Commission said that it would be keeping an eye on innovations such as virtual truth to make sure that they did not excessive gambling.

Using virtual truth headsets, integrated with GPS racetrack information, it is providing customers the possibility to see the race from the jockey's perspective.

"Currently you put a bet and very little takes place in between that and the outcome," said Crispin Nieboer, William Hill's director of development.

"We wish to bring clients closer to the sporting action, to experience the thrill of the ride."
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To evaluate the possibilities, the team at William Hill laboratories constructed a 3D mock-up of Kempton Park racecourse and gathered live information, through GPS trackers fitted on horses, during a training race at the course.
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Combining the data produced a virtual race users can see via either Google Cardboard or an Oculus Rift.
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The innovation is not yet available to the general public however was on show at an open day at the firm's technology lab in Shoreditch.

Users initially select the horse they desire to race on. Accompanied by live commentary, wearers can turn and look at other horses along with triggering a data display about the horse's heart rate, stride and race position.

William Hill prepares to include more courses and live races next year.

"Currently there are some spaces in the data so the horses unexpectedly speed up in a live race, but we want to have a proof-of-concept system all set by Christmas," said Mr Nieboer.
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The plan is to introduce the service as part of the William Hill app.
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"Users can pick the yohaig code alternative to enjoy the race as a basic video or they can be the jockey," Mr Nieboer said.

It might likewise be available in some betting shops, said Mr Nieboer, while Google Cardboard headsets were likely to be offered complimentary at racecourses.

It is approximated that in the UK about 350,000 individuals have a gaming dependency, with over ₤ 7bn invested yearly.

The expansion of online wagering has been blamed for making it simpler to gamble and some feel services such as virtual truth could contribute to the problem.

The market is controlled by the UK Gambling Commission, which stated that it "monitors development in the betting market in order to ensure operators continue to comply with the yohaig code conditions of their licences".
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"Operators are needed to guarantee that they use betting in a responsible way, which will include offering tools to allow clients to handle their betting activity as well as having policies and procedures in location to identify possibly bothersome behaviour and connect with clients who show that behaviour," a spokesperson added.

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