Connecting Generations: Telefónica and Meta’s Initiative Bridges the Digital Divide for Elderly Users

(IN BRIEF) Telefónica and Meta have partnered to promote mixed reality experiences for the elderly as part of the Fundación Telefónica project ‘RECONECTADOS, la tecnología no tiene edad’ (CONNECTED, technology is ageless). Their collaboration involves organizing workshops on the use of immersive metaverse technologies to provide accessible and personalized mixed reality experiences for older individuals. These experiences cover various digital skills and include virtual art visits, leisure activities, digital social interactions, and cognitive development exercises. The collaboration aims to bridge the digital divide and ensure that seniors can fully engage with the evolving digital world through virtual reality and immersive technologies.

(PRESS RELEASE) MADRID, 12-dec-2023 — /EuropaWire/ — Telefónica (BME: TEF), a Spanish multinational telecommunications company, and Meta have come together to support and promote access to mixed reality experiences for elderly individuals through the Fundación Telefónica project ‘RECONECTADOS, la tecnología no tiene edad’ (CONNECTED, technology is ageless). This strategic alliance aims to facilitate access and engagement for senior citizens through immersive metaverse technology workshops.

The initiative’s primary goal is to provide older individuals with accessible and personalized mixed reality experiences that foster connections, entertainment, and learning. Telefónica and Meta have worked in close collaboration to offer user-friendly mixed reality content through Meta Quest 3 devices tailored to the specific needs of older users. To enhance the experience for individuals with reduced vision or motor difficulties, accessibility features like voice assistance and interaction have been integrated.

The mixed reality content has been thoughtfully selected to cater to seniors’ needs and preferences during in-person workshops. These workshops cover a wide range of digital skills, including virtual art visits, leisure activities, digital social interactions, and cognitive development experiences. All these experiences are accessible through the Movistar Immersive Experience application, a metaverse space for sharing, discovering, accessing new audiovisual content, playing games, and learning about Telefónica’s products and services.

Telefónica and Meta have lent their support to Fundación Telefónica’s ‘RECONECTADOS, la tecnología no tiene edad’ program because they share its objective of using digital skills to bridge the gap between older individuals’ experiences and the ever-evolving technological landscape. RECONECTADOS is a comprehensive and free program focused on promoting digital literacy among older individuals. It includes online training, resources for their immediate environment, and weekly in-person training workshops held at the Espacio Fundación Telefónica in Madrid.

Jose Luis Zimmerman, Director of Public Affairs at Meta, emphasized Meta’s commitment to enabling everyone to benefit from immersive technologies and the unique connections they offer. He expressed Meta’s delight in supporting this collaborative project with Telefónica, specifically targeting individuals who may not be familiar with these new technologies. “Our goal at Meta is to enable everyone to benefit from immersive technologies, which open up endless possibilities and allow for a much closer and unique connection with our family, friends and the things that matter to us. That is why we are delighted to support this project with Telefónica, which also puts the focus on those people who are not familiar with these new technologies, so that they can be part of this future that is already here and can live experiences that would otherwise not be possible”.

Chema Alonso, Chief Digital Officer of Telefónica, highlighted Telefónica’s long-standing commitment to ensuring technology access for all users. He stated that this collaboration aims to facilitate seniors’ full immersion in virtual reality, allowing them to reap the benefits of these technologies and stay connected to the ever-evolving digital world. “Telefónica has always been committed to ensuring access to technology to provide the best experience for all users. With this collaboration, we want to continue this commitment by making it easier for seniors to fully immerse themselves in virtual reality, so that they can benefit from all that it has to offer and not be left out of the ever-evolving digital world.

This partnership builds upon last year’s announcement when Telefónica and Meta committed to exploring innovative ways to drive connectivity and technology innovation in the metaverse, empowering the maker community to develop new use cases.

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SOURCE: Telefónica S.A