HTC is banking on Steven Spielberg's latest sci-fi film to lure the broader public towards virtual reality experiences.

The tech company entered a partnership with Warner Bros to distribute virtual reality experiences for the studio's upcoming Ready Player One movie.

HTC Virtual Reality senior vice-president Rikard Steiber told Variety the partnership could be a break-through moment for his industry.

"This movie could be defining VR to the broader public," Steiber said.

Ready Player One is based on the Ernest Cline novel by the same title, hailed by many in the VR industry as a seminal piece of writing about virtual worlds.

"It is going to be an epic movie," said Steiber, who's had a chance to read the script.

Steiber argued that Ready Player One could help VR with what he called the "Matrix problem" - the medium is hard to describe to consumers who haven't used a headset yet.

"You have to take the pill to experience it," Steiber said.

As part of the partnership, HTC will distribute VR experiences through its Viveport platform for both the HTV Vive headset, as well as mobile devices.

Steiber said HTC is looking to make Ready Player One content available to mobile headsets in the US, hinting at bigger plans for mobile virtual reality.

Currently, HTC is operating a mobile version of its Viveport store within China, but Steiber said that it aims to be "device-agnostic" and target mobile VR platforms elsewhere as well.

"We are looking to bring mobile experiences around the world."

Reuters