After years of effort, the new Disney+ application has added immersive new elements. However, the company believes that this is just a small step towards a new entertainment medium with rich possibilities. Last June, when Apple unveiled its "Spatial Computing Headset" Apple Vision Pro at its WWDC conference, a special guest also attended the event: Disney CEO Bob Iger. His presence was not surprising, considering the long-standing friendly relationship between the two companies. Additionally, Disney prides itself on being an early adopter of new technologies, dating back to Walt Disney himself quickly embracing film innovations such as sound and color. During the live stream, Iger presented a video expressing Disney's support for Vision Pro. The video showcased several spatial computing experiences that the Apple headset could potentially achieve, from a home version of Disney World's Main Street Electrical Parade to a 3D perspective of a basketball game. And there was one specific piece of news: Disney+ streaming service would launch simultaneously with Vision Pro. With its dual 4K displays, precise eye tracking, gesture input, and 3D VisionOS environment, Vision Pro is clearly the result of Apple's years of effort. Less obvious is the fact that the company had already started assisting Disney in planning its presence on the headset long before most people knew it was just an interesting rumor. Jamie Voris, Chief Technology Officer of Walt Disney Studios, said, "We have been collaborating closely for several years. Given the nature of the product, the partnership, and everything, it has been very confidential, even within our own company." As explained in an article by Wayne Ma in The Information in 2022, the roots of Apple's headset project can be traced back to 2015 when the company hired a Dolby executive named Rockwell. Soon, he quietly investigated the appearance of Apple's augmented reality device. Eventually, Voris became one of the people who knew about this project. He explained, "Mike and I have known each other for a very long time, doing different jobs, and we've had many conversations over the years." "When he went to Apple, I didn't know what he was doing. But we would have conversations, talking about how excited we were about mixed reality and spatial computing. At some point, we started thinking, 'Well, maybe there's a reason to have deeper conversations.' And that's when we formed a partnership." Disney's enthusiasm for the $3,499 headphones is not easily recognized by every third-party developer. The relatively small number of native applications available at launch indicates that many developers are taking a wait-and-see approach. Among the major streaming services, Disney+, Max, and Pluto TV are ready with native versions. Other services like Amazon Prime Video, Paramount+, and Peacock have iPad applications that can run on the headset, which is a decent workaround. Meanwhile, Netflix, Spotify, and YouTube can only be accessed through the Safari browser on Vision Pro, which is the least convenient option for users. For Disney, taking Vision Pro seriously is not just a short-term business calculation. Instead, it sees the dawn of a new entertainment medium. Aaron LaBerge, President and Chief Technology Officer of Disney Entertainment and ESPN, said, "The fact is, this is just the beginning for these types of devices and experiences." "We are a storytelling company, and this is a platform that allows us to tell stories in different ways. That's why we're so excited about it." So, what has Disney gained in the short term by redesigning the Disney+ application for VisionOS? First, it can provide a true spatial interface for the application, with a floating icon on the left side of the main window. It also adds a prominent space specifically for Disney's 40-movie 3D library, which is a rich entertainment collection on Vision Pro that can be played at home in a way that 2D content can never achieve. But so far, the most interesting aspect of Disney+ on Apple Vision Pro is immersing oneself in four virtual environments. Utilizing Vision Pro's ability to deceive your eyes into thinking they are seeing a theater-sized screen, it places you in settings such as the old-fashioned movie palace inspired by Hollywood's El Capitan, the Monsters, Inc. scare floor, the Avengers' Manhattan headquarters, or the land speeder Luke Skywalker sees on his home planet of Tatooine. Each of these virtual settings surrounds you with fascinating 360-degree rendering details, showcasing Vision Pro's ability to create 3D effects. However, the company is just beginning to meet the ambitious standards set by Iger at the Vision Pro launch event, where he referred to the headset as "a platform that will bring Disney to fans in ways we've never done before" and spoke of creating "profound personal experiences." Voris and LaBerge did not disclose any specific details, but they told me that there is more to come. "This product touches every corner of our company, from the studio to the team that manages our streaming services, to our mobile developers," said LaBerge. This headset will also "change our entire production and post-production process. It will change the way we create content, the way we operate our environment. It's significant."