Examining The Opportunities And Threats Of Using VR Technology In Electronic Tourism In Iran

Today, the emergence of digital technologies has significantly changed the tourism industry, and virtual reality (VR) is considered one of these modern technologies. Despite its great potential, virtual reality technology has not yet been widely used in Iran's tourist destinations. Therefore, this research aims to examine the opportunities and threats of using VR technology in electronic tourism in Iran. Considering the importance of the tourism industry in the economy of countries and the impact of VR technology on the active organizations in this industry, the present research aims to identify and prioritize the opportunities and threats of using VR technology in the Iranian tourism industry. This objective has been achieved using a mixed research method in two qualitative and quantitative parts. In the qualitative part, the grounded theory method was used, and in the quantitative part, the inferential analysis method was employed. The qualitative sample included 10 experts, managers, and professors, and the quantitative sample included including university professors, managers of the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts, and Tourism Organization of Tehran Province, and managers of travel agencies. Based on the results, the identified opportunities are ranked as economic, technological, social, and political, respectively, with the variable of experiencing the destination before travel being the top priority among economic opportunities. The threats are ranked as social, economic, and technological, respectively, with the top priority among social threats being the limitation of friendships and intimacy that occur in traditional tourism.