DigitalSelf, a UK based start-up, got me on board to develop a first of its kind live streaming platform, through partnerships with venues they wanted to sell 360/VR tickets to live events such as concerts, sports and theatre. The proceeds would be shared with the venues, essentially giving the venues unlimited ticket sales. I thought this was an amazing idea with great potential. My role was to design the mobile and Meta Quest apps, develop their brand and build their design system.
Tasks
As this was a new service, I wanted to ensure I had explored any competitors in the market, to my surprise, I found one company providing this service, also in their early stages, but with a published app on the Meta Quest. This proved to be a valuable resource and a great way to learn how this service could be delivered.
From here I was able to discuss the project with the Director of DigitalSelf, keen on multiple technologies and very ambitious, he wanted to incorporate NFTs and Crypto purchasing later in the project cycle, it was a valuable meeting and gave me clarity on the direction of their service.
Actions
I began sketching some ideas for the mobile app using my ReMarkable e-ink tablet, as the mobile app was the first part to be developed. The app would receive 360 live streaming, allowing the user to use their touchscreen to look around the live venue.
With a good idea of how the app should work, I began building the basic wireframe prototype in Figma, this consisted of a basic layout and user flow with minimal design distractions, enough to convey my vision.
Once the wireframe and UX was signed off, I began designing the high fidelity components. Starting with the primitive design tokens and adding more specific semantic tokens along the way.
Each component was put through it's paces, testing to failure to ensure the design was robust and responsive in all circumstances. The final step was creating and applying the component level design tokens.
As DigitalSelf was a start-up, I had to handle the unexpected nature of the environment, there were a few added pieces of functionality the Director wanted to include, at this stage I was half way through the designs, but found a way to incorporate his ideas. The biggest being adding an AR Cameo style service, letting users request AR messages and performances by artists, that would give the impression of an artist performing live in their home.
As each new component was designed and handed over to the development team the app finally started to take shape and gave me the opportunity to move on to the Meta Quest app, this was built using the same process, branding and tools as the mobile app.
Results
The outcome of this project was a mobile and Meta Quest app that could be used to live stream events in AR, however the start-up unfortunately had many funding issues throughout the project and the final application was abandoned and never published on any app store.
I thoroughly enjoyed the project and the ideas behind the service, but the company was too ambitious for its small size, and pushed itself too far, too quickly. I expect and hope to see more services like this in the future, its a great idea and business model and I would definitely use a service like this.
