Methods and systems for minimizing pixel data transmission in a network-based virtual reality media delivery configuration

An exemplary virtual reality media provider system ("system") manages data representative of an immersive virtual reality world ("world") and receives a request from a media player device ("device") for the device to receive a pixel data transmission representative of a particular scene of the world by way of a network. The device includes a head-mounted display screen worn by a user to view the particular scene as the user experiences the world. The system identifies pixel data representative of a set of pixels that constitute the particular scene and provides a minimized pixel data transmission representative of the particular scene to the device by transmitting a viewable pixel data subset corresponding to regions of the display screen predetermined to be viewable by the user and abstaining from transmitting an unviewable pixel data subset corresponding to regions of the display screen predetermined to be unviewable by the user.