Microsoft hires Oculus marketing chief for mixed reality push

Microsoft has appointed Liz Hamren as corporate vice president of mixed reality marketing as the company begins to ramp up its efforts in the virtual and augmented reality spaces.

Hamren joins from Oculus, where she held the role of chief marketing officer, Venturebeat reports. She will report to Microsoft's head of marketing for Windows and devices Yusuf Mehdi, and lead teams that include VR expert Jeff Hansen and Surface marketing whizz Sandhya Thodla.

In an internal email, Mehdi described mixed reality as "one of the biggest bets Microsoft is making for the future of computing", UploadVR reports, hinting that its efforts in this space are gearing up to this Christmas.

Microsoft announced augmented reality headset HoloLens back in 2015, initially pushing in this direction rather than virtual reality, a technology in which almost all of its competitors have invested heavily.

However, back in October it announced it would also be pushing towards mixed and virtual reality with its new Creator's Update for Windows, which would coincide with the launch of several VR headsets from partners such as HP and Acer. Mixed reality support is being added to Windows this week, while Mehdi's email reveals the first Windows 10 Mixed Reality dev kits will be sent to studios by the end of the month.

Microsoft is due to host its next Build developer's conference in May and its usual Xbox press conference prior to E3 in June. Expect more mixed reality news from both events.