AltspaceVR

AltspaceVR was an American social virtual-reality platform founded in 2013 by Eric Romo and launched publicly in May 2015. Its central idea was to make virtual reality a shared social environment rather than a purely individual gaming or simulation medium. Users entered the service as avatars, visited three-dimensional spaces known as worlds, communicated by voice and gestures, and participated in activities with other people who were physically elsewhere. The platform’s worlds could be created by users or maintained by AltspaceVR. They served as meeting places for informal conversation, community gatherings, presentations, performances, classes, and organized events. A discovery system highlighted featured and popular worlds, while event listings directed users to scheduled activities. AltspaceVR hosted a broad range of programming, including business conferences, entertainment, magic shows, VR church gatherings, LGBTQI+ meetups, and large community events. In 2020 it also hosted BRCvr, a virtual Burning Man-related experience. AltspaceVR was designed primarily for VR headsets, supporting devices associated with SteamVR, Oculus, Windows Mixed Reality, and other platforms at different points in its history. It also offered desktop applications for Windows and Mac, and previously supported certain mobile and mobile-VR devices. Hardware support changed as older platforms such as Google Daydream, Oculus Go, and Samsung Gear VR were retired or deprioritized. Microsoft acquired AltspaceVR in 2017 and incorporated it into the company’s Mixed Reality organization, alongside products and technologies such as HoloLens. After the acquisition, AltspaceVR continued to operate under its own name as a social VR service. The platform remained focused on community events and shared virtual spaces while Microsoft developed a wider mixed-reality strategy. Some concepts and elements associated with AltspaceVR later appeared in Microsoft Mesh. In January 2023, Microsoft announced through the AltspaceVR homepage that the service would close on March 10, 2023. The shutdown ended AltspaceVR’s operation as a public social VR platform. The brand’s later rights and possible revival have been associated with SideQuest, although any successor service and relaunch plans should be distinguished from the original platform, which is defunct.

AltspaceVR was founded in 2013 by Eric Romo as an effort to create a persistent social environment in virtual reality. The service launched in May 2015, during an early period in the development of consumer VR hardware. Its premise was that people could share a sense of physical presence in a three-dimensional environment even when separated geographically. Users appeared as avatars, moved between virtual locations, and interacted through voice communication, gestures, and activities organized inside the platform. The basic structure of AltspaceVR consisted of worlds. Some were built by users, while others were created or maintained by the platform’s developers. Worlds could function as private meeting rooms, public social areas, performance venues, classrooms, conference spaces, or themed community environments. Users could locate them through menus, teleporters, featured listings, and popularity rankings. Events were separately listed so that users could attend scheduled talks, gatherings, performances, and other programs. This event-centered model helped AltspaceVR develop beyond a conventional social VR hangout. Its programming included business conferences, entertainment, magic shows, VR church activities, LGBTQI+ meetups, and other community events. The service also supported large-scale virtual gatherings, including BRCvr in 2020, a virtual event connected with the Burning Man community. These uses demonstrated both the appeal and the operational challenges of hosting social activity in immersive environments, including the need for moderation, accessible hardware, stable networks, and a sufficient population of active users. AltspaceVR supported a range of VR devices over time. Its compatible hardware included SteamVR headsets such as HTC Vive and Valve Index, Oculus Rift and Rift S, Oculus Quest and Quest 2, and Windows Mixed Reality devices. It also had versions or support for older platforms including Samsung Gear VR, Oculus Go, and Google Daydream, although those platforms were later discontinued. Desktop applications for Windows and Mac gave users a non-headset access route, and an Android application was available in an earlier period. Microsoft acquired AltspaceVR in 2017. The platform became part of Microsoft’s Mixed Reality division within the company’s Cloud and AI organization, alongside the broader HoloLens and mixed-reality product ecosystem. Microsoft kept AltspaceVR operating as a distinct service rather than immediately replacing it. Its technology and ideas also contributed to Microsoft’s wider work on shared virtual environments, with some elements later appearing in Microsoft Mesh. The platform’s operating model changed during its later years. In May 2022, AltspaceVR removed all developer-maintained worlds, leaving the service more dependent on user-created spaces and scheduled events. In January 2023, Microsoft announced that AltspaceVR would shut down on March 10. The closure ended the original service after roughly eight years of public operation. Microsoft directed its mixed-reality attention toward other initiatives, including Mesh, while AltspaceVR ceased to be an active platform. Later reports associated SideQuest with acquiring rights to the Altspace name and considering a successor, but such a project would represent a separate post-shutdown development rather than a continuation of the original Microsoft-operated service.

• 2023

  Service discontinued

  [1]AltspaceVRen.wikipedia.org

  Microsoft announced the shutdown in January, and AltspaceVR ceased operation on March 10, 2023.

• 2022

  Developer-maintained worlds removed

  [1]AltspaceVRen.wikipedia.org

  In May, AltspaceVR removed worlds maintained by its own developers, increasing the importance of user-created spaces.

• 2020

  BRCvr virtual event

  [1]AltspaceVRen.wikipedia.org

  AltspaceVR hosted BRCvr, a virtual Burning Man-related event.

• 2017

  Acquired by Microsoft

  [1]AltspaceVRen.wikipedia.org

  Microsoft acquired AltspaceVR and incorporated it into its Mixed Reality organization.

• 2015

  Public launch

  [1]AltspaceVRen.wikipedia.org

  AltspaceVR launched in May 2015 as a social VR platform centered on avatars, shared worlds, and live events.

• 2013

  Company founded

  [1]AltspaceVRen.wikipedia.org

  Eric Romo founded AltspaceVR to develop a shared social environment based on virtual reality.

A community-oriented social VR environment focused on shared presence, user-generated spaces, and live virtual events.

• Social virtual-reality platform · 2015

  AltspaceVR

  AltspaceVR was the brand’s core service. It allowed users to enter shared three-dimensional environments as avatars, communicate with other participants, visit user-generated worlds, and attend scheduled events. The service supported both informal social interaction and organized programming such as conferences, performances, community meetups, and educational or religious gatherings. It was available on multiple VR platforms and through desktop applications during different stages of its life. The original service was discontinued on March 10, 2023.

• User-generated virtual spaces · 2015

  AltspaceVR worlds

  Worlds were the principal spaces within AltspaceVR. They could be designed for conversation, events, performances, collaboration, or themed exploration. Users accessed them through menus, teleporters, featured listings, and popularity rankings. Although some worlds were originally maintained by AltspaceVR’s developers, the platform removed all developer-maintained worlds in May 2022 and increasingly relied on its user community.

• 2020BRCvr

  International

  AltspaceVR hosted BRCvr, a virtual Burning Man-related experience that used the platform’s shared worlds and event capabilities to provide an online communal environment.

  Outcome. The event demonstrated AltspaceVR’s ability to support large community-oriented virtual gatherings.

  Source

• 2023

  Closure of AltspaceVRStrategy

  Background

  Microsoft was consolidating its mixed-reality efforts around newer collaboration initiatives, including Microsoft Mesh.

  Action taken

  Microsoft announced in January that AltspaceVR would close on March 10, 2023.

  Aftermath

  The original AltspaceVR service became defunct, while Microsoft continued to emphasize other mixed-reality products and platforms.

  Source

• 2022

  Removal of developer-maintained worldsStrategy

  Background

  AltspaceVR had used both official and user-created worlds as destinations for social interaction and events.

  Action taken

  In May 2022, the platform removed all worlds maintained by its developers.

  Aftermath

  The service placed greater emphasis on user-created spaces before its eventual shutdown in 2023.

  Source

• 2017

  Microsoft acquisitionM&A

  Background

  Microsoft was expanding its mixed-reality portfolio and acquired AltspaceVR, an established social VR platform.

  Action taken

  Microsoft brought AltspaceVR into its Mixed Reality organization while allowing the service to continue under its existing brand.

  Aftermath

  AltspaceVR remained operational within Microsoft’s mixed-reality strategy, and some related concepts later appeared in Microsoft Mesh.

  Source

• 2023

  Microsoft announces the shutdown of AltspaceVR[1]AltspaceVRen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Microsoft announced in January that AltspaceVR would discontinue service on March 10, 2023.

• 2017

  Microsoft acquires AltspaceVR[1]AltspaceVRen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  Microsoft acquired AltspaceVR and placed the platform within its Mixed Reality organization.

1. 1AltspaceVRen.wikipedia.org