Fact Check: 4 Misconceptions of 360 Video

Over the past year or two, there has been a renewed interest in Immersive Experiences -- VR, AR and 360 Video. Access to technology and an increase in adoption, especially through our mobile supercomputers, are to thank. (But notice how most conversations re: immersive experiences start with "technology" and save this for later.)

The interest in AR (Augmented Reality) has been sparked primarily by the mass adoption of the Pokemon Go phenomenon, while the VR interest has been sparked through the gaming industry with Unity or Unreal Engine building these virtual worlds.

But 360 Video's interest has been primarily sparked by amateur photographers who are capturing live-action video from their fancy 360 camera. This presents a blessing and a curse for 360 Video. And I'm here to give you the straight dope.

Blessing & Curse

The blessing is that more people are aware of 360 due to the sheer number of 360 posts in Facebook and YouTube. But the curse is that a majority of the 360 content is terrible. Let’s face it, some dude placing their 360 camera underwater while snorkeling is only cool to a certain point (maybe 10-20 seconds cool). This doesn’t help the cause for 360, nor does it provide the most positive experience that 360 can provide.

The Misrepresentation of 360 Video

Now, I'm not going to rehash the hundreds of other articles that provide more examples of how brands and marketers are using AR/VR/360 Video. You can find those with a simple search.

Instead, I'm here to debunk some things I've seen written - things that are being grossly misrepresentative of what 360 Video is and what it can actually accomplish.

It started long before this, but a recent article from MarketingProfs.com - "How Augmented and Virtual Reality are Changing Things for Marketers" - was the straw that broke the camel's back for me.

In it, the author said the following:

"Another application type, the 360-degree video, is often confused with AR or VR. However, 360 video is a video of an actual (real life) scene that is taken with multiple cameras/lenses pointed in every direction at the same time. The effect is to give the viewer the option to "turn" in any direction and see the action unfold from that perspective, in real-time.

The user can pan across the video using the mouse (or touching the screen on a tablet or phone) while the action continues. There is usually no interactivity in this kind of video, other than the user's changing the viewing perspective. The storyline follows the same linear path, but can be experienced differently, depending on which direction the viewer chooses to view at any point in time."

Time to Get the Facts Straight

I've underlined and bolded the items I am about to pick apart and debunk. So here goes ... the 4 misconceptions of 360 Video:

1. "360 Video is a video of an actual (real life) scene." Wrong.

360 Video can be ANY video that is then wrapped around the viewer, giving them a centered POV of the 360 environment. It does NOT have to be live-action. In fact, our studio is creating custom environments leveraging 3D illustration, animation and motion graphics. Furthermore, creating environments vs. shooting them allows a brand to build ANY environment they want their customers to experience.

2. "The effect is to give the viewer the option to 'turn' ...". Option?

So in other words, people who do 360 Video basically allow the user to navigate wherever they want? So like in UX for desktop/mobile web experiences, you simply give a user an "option" to navigate around? Hell no. You guide them through proper UX practices.

Same thing goes for 360 Video. If you do it correctly, like we do, then you provide a 360 viewer with visual (and audio) interests to get them to look where YOU want them to go. Of course, they have "options". But my point is you guide the viewer and don't settle for them to get lost in the experience.

3. "No interactivity in this kind of video ...". Partially wrong.

I will give him this ... he did say "usually". But I'm calling this one out as well because in 360 Video you can have interactivity. You can place queue points in your environment just as you can in true VR worlds. And with those coded properly, you can transport to other environments or have objects brought TO you (vs. interacting with objects with wands in true VR). We've solved for this and happy to say it's just as cool. It just takes a creative way to solve for the lack of wands (ie. HTC Vive).

4. "The storyline follows the same linear path...". 100% INCORRECT!

There is NOTHING "linear" about a properly-executed 360 Video. And if it does follow a linear storyline, then why in the hell are you doing 360? That's the straight dope.

We do 360 Video with storylines that can and will take the viewer in all directions ... with reasons why the viewer should be looking up, down, left, right, behind them and in front of them. And coupled with the above bullets, we create storylines for all 6 directions. There's nothing linear about that.

Creativity > Technology

So now that I've hopefully provided you with some facts, I'd love to talk more about how 360 Video can work within your marketing efforts. It goes well beyond the boring experiences we've seen so far of a guy on a surfboard or a panoramic image in the park. And it also goes well beyond the technologies that exist.

(Remember what I said at the beginning?)

360 Video requires creativity over technology - not only from the "art" aspect, but also from a creative mindset aspect. The tech is here and easy to get. But what isn't easy is the way to CREATE them.

I am proud to say that we've solved so many issues that have plagued brands (and their viewers) with shoddy, boring and maybe even nauseous experiences. And even prouder to say we are working with brands to create some dynamic 360 storylines, with accompanying strategies to round out their promotional efforts.

Find a Partner Who Knows 360

So don't listen to the naysayers. Embrace VR. Embrace AR. Embrace 360 Video. They each have something amazing to offer. But like so many other mediums before ... do not try to cram a square peg into a round hole.

Especially with VR and 360, you need to first consider if it even makes sense to have your story told in this perspective. Many times, it won't make sense. Consult with a professional who knows the space and someone who has your best objective in mind, not theirs.

And then let's get creative.