Whether you are on land, in the air, or out at sea, GoPro’s recent explosion onto the market has made quite a splash in enabling people to immerse themselves in creative and unique video content. Founded in 2002 by Nick Woodman, these high-definition camcorders have caused companies to rethink how they market content. Now with it’s success, GoPro is quite literally expanding its horizons, capturing 360 degrees of video through an action camera maker company called Kolor.
What Kolor brings to the table is quite unique: it helps users combine multiple photographs or videos into a panoramic or spherical content, which allows for the user to feel fully ingrained in the experience. Not only can the user enjoy their content on their mobile phones and on the web, but they can also view it in a virtual reality environment. This means that video is compatible with headsets such as the Oculus Rift, Google’s Cardboard, Microsoft’s HoloLens and the Samsung Gear VR. This in itself, allows for users to now create their one interactive panoramic video content, something that was only reserved for videographers and technologists until this time.
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Turnaround time for video content can be within as little as a few hours, which opens many doors to companies looking to get their hands in this immersive experience.
For sports fanatic fans, this is a dream come true, with leagues and teams hopping on board with the technology. We’ve all seen the amazing footage come from GoPro’s partnership with the NHL, now just imagine content come to life. Based on the GoPro 360Heros website, companies such as NASCAR, the United States Navy, and the University of Michigan have already been involved with the process.
Just think: What if on a snowy day in Green Bay, you could virtually see everything going on from the first row? The snowflakes falling from the sky while the roar of the crowd occurs would really immerse users into a real NFL experience. Or think about this: What if you had a GoPro in the middle of an NBA huddle, with that 360 degree technology you could look to your left and see Lebron James and look to your right and see Kevin Love, all in this virtual space.
Thankfully for teams like this, there are social media managers who help enable content that can help bring this to fruition. But even for a fan to show from a corporate partner or fans perspective, this virtual reality technology can take a tailgating experience to the next level. For example, let’s say Bud Light had a tailgating experience. If you had a 360 degree camera next to the major hot spots, a truly unique experience could be shown through this virtual reality system. Or let’s say that your son is away at college, if he was able to capture the moment being in the student section at the Big House to show to his family and friends over his holiday break, everyone would be so immersed in the authenticity of that experience.
But besides all of these potential opportunities, what’s so great about this acquisition is that Kolor now has the platform to showcase their technology, while GoPro gets to continue to build onto its authentic brand. In just the first quarter, GoPro revenue jumped 54% year-over-year to $363.1 million, and its profit more than doubled to $16.8 million. As the Kolor and GoPro partnership continues to grow, soon enough we may see drones featuring 360 degree content to showcase right in the comfort of our own homes.