Webpage to 3D space provider ExitReality has soft launched today via a cross promotion with CKE Restaurants (Carl’s Jr and Hardee’s) that will see the product promoted to millions via the Carl’s Jr website and through a MySpace advertising campaign.
I originally sat down and spoke to the ExitReality team (the company has its HQ in London, but the dev team and CEO are in Australia) for TechCrunch back in April. At the time they explained that the product dynamically creates 3D spaces for social networking pages (no need to install anything on the site or for site owners to be signed up, the visitor only needs a plugin), but they held back on some of the other details. Here’s what they didn’t tell me the first time
- ExitReality can turn ANY webpage dynamically into a 3D space, meaning the product is not limited to social networks
- any rich media content, such as video or music, can be dragged into a space, and all items can be copied
- Their platform is built on open standards including Collada, VRML and others
- The open platform means that existing 3D objects built on the same standards can be easily included in any 3D space, including most objects from Google 3D/ SketchUp
- They have also incorporated a “virtual space search engine” that means anyone with their plugin can enter any 3D space on the web built on open standards. They already have over 3,000 spaces indexed, including some really incredible builds, instantly providing landmark content
Another interesting aspect is the way the platform works; unlike Second Life that relies on centralized servers, the ExitReality plugin renders the page based on the details of the page, so it doesn’t need to rely on centralized servers (the only aspect that would be lost in the case of downtime would be chat). Further as users interact on and around each page, those visitors are counted in local logs, so a website owner doesn’t lose traffic; in effect this is a visual layer the browser sees but with the original content at the original page.
ExitReality is describing today’s launch with Carl’s Jr as a “closed beta” but closed isn’t the right word. When it’s fully launched registration won’t be required to interact in a 3D space, and even then it will only be required if you wish to customize your own spaces. With today’s launch registration is required upfront to experience a 3D space, but registrations are unlimited with the proviso that they may be limited later if they cant support the downloads well enough.
For the CKE cross promotion, ExitReality has built a virtual Carl’s Jr Outlet and Carl’s Jr apartment (video above) where people can gather and interact. Every item within the space can be copied to a members own space, including a mechanical bull, a Burger Slayer game, as well as 3D widgets such as TVs, arcade game machines, furniture, and even a 3D living room or restaurant layouts to decorate their own pages.
If you want to give it a shot, click the button to the right to sign up and be taken to Michael’s apartment space based on the TechCrunch MySpace page (pics below). ExitReality is Windows only (both IE + Firefox) at this stage, but is believed to work in a virtual machine.
Former TechCrunch writer Duncan Riley now edits The Inquisitr, a daily dose of tech, pop and penguins.
Duncan, i know it’s a habit, but you’ve posted to wrong blog, didn’t you leave here?
You can also visit http://www.carlsjr.com or http://www.hardees.com and click the 3D Happy Star to try it out too. Enjoy!
Their work looks pretty cool
The 3D visuals are real nice, and I like carl’s jr. But, who the hell wants to interact with a fastfood restaurant online? All of them overuse the hell out of flash already (super gaudy). I’d much rather they give me free burgers, and stay of my internet.
There is always one critical problem with all these virtual worlds that eventually make them a ghost town. They made one feel isolated and lonely. Why did not these virtual worlds spend resources solving the isolation issues ? For example, why should virtual world make to reflect the real world where only human can talk ? How about creating something more interactive like Alice In WonderLand where tree, cars and object can communicate to human. In this way, it will be intriguing and gives element of surprise and interest. It always bewilder me that virtual world vendor could not see what is wrong with those system nowsaday. Solve the isolation problem and the traffic will went up…
Now this is something really innovative.
http://tekno-world.blogspot.com
This is really nice! Really love to check it out. It can turn any web page into 3D space? How can this be done? Amazing stuff!
Gosh, I thought this was a typo for Exit Realty. See what happens when you spend too much time thinking about real estate…
Im not buying it - now make it OS independent & UStream.tv support & voice chatting your getting closer
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wow, that looks fun, walking around, looking, walking around some more, uh ah
Hey Duncan, this is really cool! It’s like a personal Second Life.
Google sketch-up is easy to use so anyone can adapt to making object to bring in world. How will they be a be able to profit off of their IP once they bring it in world?
Big, empty virtual rooms. It looks as fun as VRML was in 1999!
VRML is THE acronym for failure when it comes to online 3D - but that was before the 2.0 generation. Maybe someone will be able to re-heat the left overs and serve them to a new ‘excited’ audience.
I’d like one double failburger to go.
Welcome to Carl’s Jr. Would you like to try our EXTRA BIGASS TACO? Now with more MOLECULES?
Carl’s Jr.: Fuck you, I’m eating.
No software to install…. except a plug-in.
Your avatar should get fatter and fatter the more you visit the fast food restaurants websites… people would go just to see how fat they get
This reminds me of Vivaty. Both are doomed from the start because they rely on a proprietary plug-in (and work only on Windows) for the entire experience. This is so 1999 (never mind the VRML and X3D history)…it’s not funny. They’re going to be obsolete within 12 months as open source, open standards such as PaperVision and Flash 3D get to market with a vengeance. Deadpool.
BTW: I totally agree about the Carl’s Jr thing. What kind of an idiot wants to experience Carl’s Jr as a 3D website.
@Duncan re:alieneor (1)
So are you back or what???
David
I guest post on occasion as I noted when I left, usually if it’s a story I’ve covered previously for TC. About once a week at this stage or when something interesting comes up
Exit Reality have a real challenge with the platform to take it past ‘new factor’ to real benefits for site users, site owners and advertisers.
In saying this I actually see massive potential 3d web environment, but to a certain degree I do feel that traffic to a site is more important than ever before (as people can see it), to get around the ‘cold & lonely’ factor.
Site owners now have a real challenge to create environments that offer something more to users other than just being in a 3d web space. Once we get past the gimmicks I believe we will start to experience real innovation far beyond what we have seen on the web so far.
I am the director of a brand agency (http://www.immere.com) and we are already investing time and resources in exploring the potential of the Exit platform. To put it bluntly if we didn’t see real benefits to both users and advertisers we wouldn’t bother.
So what are Exit Reality’s chances of being the standard 3d web platform? Well you have to be in it to win it ….. good luck to them.
Exitreality is based upon
x3d/vrml which are open standards.
It does a great job of blurring the line between 2d and 3d webpages.
Easy for a newbie to participate.
ANd if you’re an x3d/vrml builder,
a person with ExitReality will be
able to visit your worlds in
both single or multiuser mode.
Check out my usage of
exitreality:
http://www.international3d.com
It’s the blaxxun (BlackSun) Contact plugin rehashed. Same preferences panel, same TCP ports. Nice re-work I guess. Check out Cybertown or the website link for more of this.