NBC, Verizon Launch AR Experience for `La Brea’

La Brea
(Image credit: NBC)

NEW YORK—NBCUniversal Content Distribution and Verizon have announced a first-of-its-kind augmented reality experience on Verizon set top boxes for NBC’s hit series “La Brea” that will allow viewers to interact with the La Brea sinkhole to reveal classic objects from the television series, including the iconic Wilshire Boulevard Street sign and a baby rhino. 

Fans ultimately will be rewarded with an exclusive deleted scene from the series.

“Innovative experiences and breakthrough technologies like AR are critical to driving deeper fan engagement on partner platforms,” said Matt Schnaars, president, NBCUniversal Content Distribution. “We’re grateful for our partnership with Verizon and our work creating immersive experiences for fans to interact with our premiere entertainment programming.”

Customers can access the "La Brea" experience on their Verizon set top box by tuning into channel 941 using their remote control or via the channel guide. From there, users can scan a QR code from their mobile device to launch the experience.

The "La Brea" experience was brought to life through Trigger XR, an award-winning XR developer studio and creative agency.

NBCUniversal Content Distribution and Verizon previously partnered on Olympic Tentpole Apps for the Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022 Olympic Games. The bespoke content destinations featured Olympic videos on demand, discovery and navigation features, personalization by sport, and up-to-date standings by sport.

"Verizon and NBC are changing the way fans consume entertainment with never-before-seen types of AR experiences," said Erin McPherson, Verizon chief content officer. "We're thrilled to bring next gen storytelling to Fios viewers and excited to push the boundaries for our consumers."

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George Winslow

George Winslow is the senior content producer for TV Tech. He has written about the television, media and technology industries for nearly 30 years for such publications as Broadcasting & Cable, Multichannel News and TV Tech. Over the years, he has edited a number of magazines, including Multichannel News International and World Screen, and moderated panels at such major industry events as NAB and MIP TV. He has published two books and dozens of encyclopedia articles on such subjects as the media, New York City history and economics.