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Within (company)

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Within Unlimited, Inc
FormerlyVrse
Company typePrivate
IndustryVirtual reality
Founded2014; 11 years ago (2014)
Founders
HeadquartersLos Angeles, California
Key people
Chris Milk (CEO)
Aaron Koblin (CTO)
ProductsWITHIN App
Websitewith.in

Within Unlimited, Inc, or commonly Within,[1] is a technology company based in Los Angeles that creates, acquires, and distributes 360-degree video, AR, and VR experiences and products across web, mobile, console, and headsets.

History

Originally named Vrse,[2] Within was founded in 2014 by Chris Milk, and Aaron Koblin, creator of Google’s Data Arts team.[3] The company has produced and distributed some of augmented and virtual reality's most seminal's works, including Clouds Over Sidra, in partnership with the United Nations (2015), Lambchild Superstar (2017), co-directed by Milk and OK Go's Damien Kulash,[4] and the children's augmented reality reading app, Wonderscope (2018). In April 2020, after 2 years in development, Within released Supernatural, an in-home fitness, health, and wellness service for virtual reality, which combines real-life trainers with rhythm mapped exercises set in beautiful locations. In 2020, Within was named one of FastCompany's Most Innovative Companies[5] and Supernatural was named "Best App" in Fast Company's 2020 Innovation by Design Awards. In 2017, Within announced it had raised a $40 million Series B round of funding led by Temasek and Emerson Collective.[6] In 2016, the company announced it had raised a $12.56 million funding round, lead Andreessen Horowitz, which also led their seed round.

In October 2021, Meta Platforms agreed to buy Within for an undisclosed sum.[7] In July 2022, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission sued Meta to block the acquisition arguing that "Meta could have chosen to try to compete. Instead, it chose to buy."[8][7] In February 2023, the FTC would lose its case against Meta in federal court, allowing Meta to acquire the company. [9][7]

Investors

On June 16, 2016, Within rebranded from Vrse and raised a $12.65 million series A round led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from 21st Century Fox, WME, Tribeca Enterprises,[10][11][12] Annapurna Pictures, Vice and Freelands Ventures.[12] Current investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Temasek, Emerson Collective, 21st Century Fox, Raine Ventures, WME, Live Nation, Vice Media, Tribeca Enterprises, Annapurna Pictures, and Legendary Pictures.

Installations & Events

In 2016, Within (known as VRSE at the time) showed roughly 1,200 attendees a synced 360-degree video collage at a TED Talk.[13]

Awards

Within was named[14] the #1 VR app for iOS by Apple Insider, featured[14] as "Best New App" on iTunes and is the most downloaded and highest rated[15] cinematic VR app for Google Cardboard.

Within VR films were selected[16] for the Tribeca Film Festival and chosen[12] for the Sundance Film Festival, respectively, in both 2015 and 2016. Within film, "The Displaced", won[17] the Most Next Award at the 2016 AICP Awards[18] and the 2016 Cannes Lions Grand Prix in the Entertainment category.[19] Within Founder Chris Milk’s SNL40 VR special won the Best Online Film & Video Award at the 2016 Webby Awards. Milk’s "Clouds Over Sidra" won the Interactive Category at the 2015 Sheffield Doc/Fest Awards.[20] In 2020 Within was named one of Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies.[21] Within's Supernatural won "Best App" in Fast Company's 2020 Innovation by Design Awards.[22]

References

  1. ^ Janko Roettgers (2016-06-16). "VR: Chris Milk's Within Raises $12.5M from Fox, Legendary, Liz Murdoch". Variety. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  2. ^ Watercutter, Angela (2016-06-16). "The VR company Vrse is changing its name to Within, and about to spend $12.56 million of VC money". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 2019-01-03.
  3. ^ Franklin, Oliver (2014-11-17). "LA filmmaker mixes immersive technology with film | WIRED UK". Wired.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  4. ^ "LAMBCHILD SUPERSTAR: Making Music in the Menagerie of the Holy Cow | 2018 Tribeca Film Festival". Tribeca. Retrieved 2020-10-12.
  5. ^ "The 10 most innovative virtual and augmented reality companies of 2020". Fast Company. 2020-03-10. Retrieved 2020-03-10.
  6. ^ Roettgers, Janko (2017-07-26). "Chris Milk's VR Studio Within Raises $40 Million Series B Round of Funding". Variety. Retrieved 2020-10-12.
  7. ^ a b c Bartz, Diane (2022-07-27). "U.S. sues to stop Facebook from buying virtual reality firm Within". Reuters.
  8. ^ McCabe, David; Isaac, Mike (2022-07-27). "F.T.C. Sues to Block Meta's Virtual Reality Deal as It Confronts Big Tech". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2022-07-28.
  9. ^ {{cite news |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/01/ftc-loses-attempt-to-block-meta-acquisition-of-within.html |title=F.T.C. Sues to Block Meta’s Virtual Reality Deal as It Confronts Big Tech |date=2023-02-01 |work=CNBC |first=Lauren|last=Feiner
  10. ^ Jordan Novet (2016-06-16). "Virtual reality startup Vrse raises $12.56 million, changes name to WITHIN | VentureBeat | Deals | by Jordan Novet". VentureBeat. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  11. ^ Carolyn Giardina (2016-06-16). "Virtual Reality Startup VRse Raises $12.56 Million; Rebrands as 'WITHIN'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  12. ^ a b c "Chris Milk's Vrse the latest VR firm to raise money, this time from Fox and WME". Los Angeles Times. 2016-06-16. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  13. ^ "1,200 TED Attendees Experience VR Simultaneously". 20 February 2016.
  14. ^ a b Hughes, Neil (2015-08-01). "The best virtual reality apps for iPhone, compatible with Google Cardboard". Appleinsider.com. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  15. ^ "The best VR content for Google Cardboard". Gizmag.com. 2015-11-11. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  16. ^ "The Complete Lineup for Experiential Storytelling at the Tribeca 2016 Festival Hub | Tribeca". Tribecafilm.com. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  17. ^ "Year 2016 | From the Archives of the AICP Awards | AICP Awards". Aicpshow.com. 2016-05-16. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  18. ^ "Awards". AICP. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  19. ^ Nudd, Tim (2016-06-24). "The New York Times VR Film 'The Displaced' Wins the Lions Entertainment Grand Prix". Adweek. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  20. ^ "Sheffield Doc/Fest: Sheffield International Documentary Festival". Sheffdocfest.com. Retrieved 2016-11-19.
  21. ^ "The 10 most innovative virtual and augmented reality companies of 2020". Fast Company. 2020-03-10. Retrieved 2020-03-10.
  22. ^ "Innovation Awards Finalists Named". PsycEXTRA Dataset. 2004. doi:10.1037/e532882006-003. Retrieved 2020-10-12.
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