Oculus Rift Aiming For Subsidized Cost, Could Be Free With Subscription

The Oculus Rift is making waves with virtual reality gaming, and while only developers can get their hands on the new headset, the general public will be able to grab an Oculus Rift for themselves at some point in the future, but at what cost exactly. The developer kit is priced at $300 right now, but the company would love for their product to be free up front.

Speaking with Edge Magazine, Oculus CEO Brendan Iribe says that the company is pondering over different business models with the Rift, including a strategy where gamers wouldn't have to pay anything up front for the VR headset, but would pay some kind of subscription cost every month or every year.

Iribe notes that "the lower the price point, the wider the audience." The company has "all kinds of fantasy ideas" and said that they would "love" if the headset wouldn't cost anything. Iribe says that the Rift definitely won't be free at the beginning when it first launches to the public, but over time the headset could see a lower and lower subsidized cost.

Iribe also points out that the company is "targeting the $300 price point" with the product's official launch to the public, which is the price point as the developer kit is right now, but he says that "there's the potential that it could get much less expensive with a few different relationships and strategies" in the future.

The Oculus Rift raised $2.4 million on Kickstarter last year, and the company recently received $16 million in funding last month from venture capitalists Spark Capital and Matrix Partners in order to fund the Rift's mass public launch. There's no official release date for the headset just yet, but we should be expecting it rather soon.

SOURCE: Edge