USA Today Network has partnered with YouTube and flagship sponsor Toyota for the debut of VRtually There, a new weekly show billed as the first-ever branded news experience presented in virtual reality.

The innovative show will allow journalists from the Gannett-owned USA Today Network— which currently is headlined by USA Today and 109 other local media brands like the Arizona Republic and Indianapolis Starto dive deep into their stories to deliver immersive and original VR content.

The USA Today Network joins other news organizations like The New York Times, ABC News, Getty Images and Reuters as old-guard media institutions that are pushing the limits of journalism and storytelling in VR.

VRtually There should be of particular interest for brands who are seeking to connect with VR-hungry consumers in the digital publishing landscape. The “cubemercial” is being touted as the industry’s first VR ad unit created specifically for the medium.
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Toyota is featured in the first cubemercial by promoting the 2017 Camry with 60 seconds of branded VR content through the Australian wilderness. “We believe in creating amazing experiences for our guests, so we’re excited to help launch USA Today Network’s innovative VR show, bringing incredible virtual reality experiences to its audience,” said Lisa McQueen, media manager for Toyota. “The Network’s approach to bold storytelling and use of new mediums aligns with our brand and our creative approach.”

Emmy Award winning director David Hamlin will serve as executive producer VRtually There and will attempt to pioneer new ways to reach USA Today Network’s 110 million unique monthly users.

Niko Chauls, director of emerging technology at USA Today Network, joined [a]listdaily to discuss why their new VR vertical is an enticing fit for brands.

Why was it critical for USA Today to deepen its commitment to VR with VRtually There?

USA Today Network is setting the standard of innovation, allowing its journalists to have a new opportunity to tell their stories, share news and information and deliver engaging content to its audience through VR with the launch of the first weekly VR news shows. We’ve been a leader in VR as a publisher and with its increase in adoption, we felt the time was right to launch a weekly show for our audience. For instance, we’ve been able to bring stories to life through VR such as our Des Moines Register’s story “Harvest of Change,” or showing viewers what it’s like to be a “Blue Angel.” This is something we’ll continue to encourage our writers to do, and bring to life across the Network.

How does VR change journalism for storytellers across the world in the digital publishing landscape?

VR is giving our journalists across the entire USA Today Network a new way to tell their stories, and we will see this in the industry as well. We feel VR has allowed our journalists to be more creative with the stories they choose to tell. For instance, in one episode, a journalist stitched together photographs and audio from man’s last exploration on the moon during Apollo 17. Our journalist decided to bring historic photos back to life and tell this story in a new way with VR, which is just one new way storytellers can use VR. We can expect to see several new ways as VR continues to evolve.

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How will you measure success of VRtually There?

We will be looking at several metrics—specially on consumer engagement—but we also see this as an experiment for us in VR. We want to make sure we tailor what we’re creating in VR makes sense for the medium and brings new and innovative experiences for our readership. We’ll of course look at things such as a viewer, new viewers and completion views. For advertisers, we will provide various consumption metrics and information about whether their ads were viewed with sound and in full ‘VR’ as opposed to ‘360-degree video’ mode on non-VR devices.

VRtually There provides new advertising opportunities for brand partners with the introduction of your “cubemercial.” How will you be marketing the cubemercial?

When we launched VRtually There, we touted that we launched the first ad unit native to VR and we hope brands recognize our innovation in the advertising industry. We’re bringing brands a new way to share their stories and join us on this exploration into VR which is something we aren’t taking lightly, but rather, being very thoughtful about.

Why should advertisers and marketers begin incorporating 360-degree video and VR into their business strategy?

360-degree video and VR has been on the uptick over the last year, with new headsets and devices allowing consumers to view content in 360 across devices. While it’s important for brands to be where the consumers are, it’s more important that they incorporate 360 and VR into their marketing strategies when the story makes sense to be told in 360 or VR, and not because they feel they should or need to.

Follow Manouk Akopyan on Twitter @Manouk_Akopyan