Samsung is ramping up awareness of its virtual reality capabilities among millennials by hosting a series of on-site activations at music festival Lollapalooza, including enabling attendees to leverage its branded gear to live-stream performances from the main stage.

The electronics company is amplifying music fans? experiences at the annual festival by introducing several on-site activations grounded in virtual reality, showcasing the technology?s outreach potential at live events. Festival attendees will be able to interact with Samsung Gear 360, live-stream musical performances using the Oculus-powered Samsung Gear VR headset and vie for a chance to win perks and upgrades from Samsung Pay-enabled vending machines.

?While we have vivid imaginations, demos of VR products bring the make believe to life,? said Jeff Hasen, founder of Gotta Mobilize and author of The Art of Mobile Persuasion. ?I experienced that recently with a Vive session.

?The issues now are the high price points and relatively lack of content. It's not reality to suggest a demo will do all the selling that is necessary.?

VR-powered connections
Samsung is planning to establish a strong presence at this year's Lollapalooza music festival, which takes place in Chicago from July 28 to 31. Attendees owning a Samsung Galaxy mobile device will receive VIP access to the Galaxy Lounge, where they will be able to enjoy a better view of the Samsung Main Stage.

The Galaxy Lounge will play host to several exclusive pop-up performances, meet and greets and surprise appearances. Samsung?s latest technology will be the focus of each experience.

Consumers will also be able to purchase Samsung Gear 360 cameras, with which they will be able to create their own virtual reality videos. Samsung will have a limited quantity of these devices available for purchase for $349.99.

The consumer electronics brand believes that Lollapalooza is an optimal event at which it can spread the word about its products and services while simultaneously connecting with music fans via mobile and VR technology.

Festivalgoers will be able to take advantage of VR-Palooza, an interactive experience that enables them to live-stream their favorite musical performances via an Oculus-powered Samsung Gear VR headset. They may also choose to participate in a slew of 360-degree VR experiences, such as skateboarding and 4D VR surfing.

Jazzing up mobile payments
Additionally, Samsung is placing a spotlight on its mobile payments platform, Samsung Pay, by installing several NFC-equipped vending machines around the music festival. Samsung Pay users will be able to interact with the machines and potentially be rewarded with upgrades and perks, such as exclusive products and festival gear.

This will likely help Samsung reach one of the target audiences ? millennials ? for its digital payments service. 

The brand has been ramping up support for Samsung Pay usage with several music-themed campaigns as of late.

With consumers becoming more comfortable using mobile payment platforms for everyday purchases, MasterCard recently invited New York residents to buy items from a specific café with Samsung Pay in exchange for tickets to a Cold War Kids, Capital Cities or Years & Years concert (see story).

Samsung Pay has enjoyed a fruitful start so far, with users having processed more than $500 million in payments during the platform?s first six months of availability (see story).

?Mobile payments have different use cases and issues,? Mr. Hasen said.