Inflight VR has brought in €2.5 million in funding, bringing the total raised to more than €4 million.

The Germany-based startup plans to use the injection to bring its technology to further customers in travel as well as generate data around content performance and user behavior.

The funding comes from existing shareholders Motu Investors and CBC Investments while two new investors also came on board including Stefan Lauer, a former executive board member of Lufthansa. 

Inflight VR says its technology provides a number of different avenues for travel companies to get a return on their investment including, it claims, a lower cost of operation than other inflight entertainment solutions and the potential to earn ancillary revenue via rental fees, advertising and product placement.

It has attracted eight customers in its first year of operations including Iberia and Singapore Airlines.

Inflight VR also says it believes VR is on the “verge of mainstream adoption” pointing to predictions from Business Insider that there will be 34 million “extended reality devices” in use by 2023 in the U.S.

Matthias Walther, chief marketing officer, says: “While there are many questions to be answered in terms of the application of the technology, content etc. it’s no longer a question of “if” but “how” VR will reach broad adoption. 

“With the new and improved devices like Apple’s smart glasses on the horizon for 2020 there will be a divergence (multi-device, multi-use case) before a convergence into one 'magical' device. The role of technology integrators like Inflight VR will increase in importance, specifically fro the B2B segment.”

Last week, British Airways announced it was trialling VR glasses for first class passengers on some flights between London and New York.