Mobile manufacturer HTC and online retailer Alibaba have joined forces to demonstrate a new mobile retail channel in the form of a virtual reality browsing experience that enables users to experience products and purchase them in VR.

The Buy+ mobile VR channel is the first application to date that allows the completion of actual retail transactions fully in VR, and could represent the next step in luxury retail, and the blending of real and digital experiences.

“We are glad to cooperate with Alibaba to enable the first mass demonstration of a complete VR shopping experience and are honoured that they have chosen Viveport M as the preferred download partner for the Buy+ mobile application,” said Alvin W. Graylin, China regional president for Vive HTC.

HTC Vive and Alibaba have previously announced strategic partnerships focused on cloud services and VR, as well as video services through its Youku subsidiary, and todays demonstration represents another level of cooperation between the two firms.

“Its been a pleasure working with the VR market leader HTC Vive on multiple VR-related projects,” said Zhuoran Zhuang, head of VR programs at Alibaba. “We are continuously exploring on the next generation of shopping experiences via innovative technology, and looking forward to deeper collaboration with our partners to deliver even more immersive commerce experiences.”