IMAX completes first phase of $50m virtual reality fund

IMAX Corporation and IMAX China Holding, Inc. have completed the first phase of a $50 million virtual reality fund between IMAX and other strategic investors to help finance the creation of at least 25 interactive VR content experiences over the next three years for use across all VR platforms including in IMAX VR™ centres.The group will target premium, event-style productions with its Hollywood studio and filmmaker partners that complement IMAX's film slate, as well as gaming publishers and other leading content developers.In addition to IMAX, other strategic investors include Acer, one of the world's premium hardware and manufacturing companies; CMC Holdings, previously known as China Media Capital, a leading media and entertainment investment and operating group; Enlight Media, a leading entertainment-content-focused corporation in China; The Raine Group, a global merchant bank focused exclusively on technology, media, and telecommunications; Studio City, an investment company responsible for the founding of the China national showcase zone for TV and films; and WPP, the world's largest advertising and marketing services group."We will be leveraging our collective relationships with world-class filmmakers and content creators to fund VR experiences that excite and attract a larger user base to capitalize on opportunities across all VR platforms including IMAX VR," said IMAX Corp. CEO Richard L. Gelfond.IMAX is in the process of launching its first pilot IMAX VR centres in Los Angeles and at ODEON & UCI Cinemas Group's Printworks multiplex location in Manchester, England. The company is also targeting additional test facilities in China, Japan, the U.S., the Middle East and Western Europe in the coming months.