By now, Facebook’s efforts into improving their standing in the video space should be no secret to anyone. They’ve been aggressively making moves that put them closer and closer to YouTube in terms of offered content, and while there is still a large gap between the two, Facebook is not letting that stop them from doing what they need to do to make a dent. With feature launches like Live Video which started appearing in the mobile app with its own tab recently, Facebook is giving users more ways to enjoy video through the service. Facebook has also acquired companies like Oculus which, while geared towards VR, also opens them up to 360-degree content supported on the Oculus Rift headset. 360-degree video is an area of video which Facebook has been exploring more of, having also just released schematics for a 360-degree camera rig that people can build in hopes that it will draw more creative content to their platform.
Today, news of Facebook’s latest acquisition has been posted up the official blog of the company they just purchased. The company is called Two Big Ears, and they specialize in creating immersive audio which Facebook will no doubt be integrating into their own video offerings at some point. As part of the acquisition, Two Big Ears is making some of their products available for free, including the pipeline for cinematic VR and 360 video, their authoring tools, and the encoder and rendering engines, a move that Facebook is betting will bring more content creators to the platform.
Facebook has not shared information on what the acquisition cost them, but whatever they paid was obviously worth the investment for them as they continue to push towards VR and 360-degree content. Two Big Ears states that they will also be integrating their 3Dception for Games product into their work with Oculus, and will be working with them to create “best-in-class” VR audio experiences. With Two Big Ears on board, Facebook’s 360 videos and VR content through the Oculus Rift headset should end up sounding better than before as the company seeks to become a bigger leader in this area of content.