(1888PressRelease)
September 28, 2009 - iPhone applications are all the rage right now and progressive tourism destinations are clamoring to stay ahead of the curve. A new generation of tourists increasingly expects information to be available on-demand and in the palm of their hand. Unfortunately, developing a Smartphone application from scratch can be time consuming and cost prohibitive. BarZ Adventures, the leading provider of GPS video tour guide systems, is now offering a software solution that automates the application development process, and brings the world of Smartphone tour applications within reach of any venue.
Mobile Media Engine™ is a subscription software platform that allows destinations to create their own Smartphone tour using video and audio/image media files. Mobile Media Engine was first created to produce guide applications for the Apple iPhone® and iTouch®. Tours are made available for download via the iTunes® App Store. Support for additional Smartphones, such as the Palm® Pre™ and Google® Android™, will be added in the future.
The online Tour Builder interface allows venues to upload media files and link them to locations on a Google Map™ or custom venue map. Auxiliary information such as hours of operation, phone numbers and websites can also be linked to points of interest. Content can be easily updated as needed through the Tour Builder.
“Smartphones are the wave of the future in tourism. Consumers are more than ever looking for information to be delivered on-demand, to the palm of their hand and on their own devices. Mobile Media Engine gives any organization the ability to meet this demand by offering a guide application to the market quickly and economically,” said Wm. Lee Little, founder and CEO of BarZ Adventures Inc.
The final tour app delivers video, audio, still images and text content relative to map locations and can be used to deliver interpretive content and visitor information, such as the contact details and hours of restaurants and facilities. The potential uses are varied and vast; for example, colleges and universities can use Mobile Media Engine to provide campus tours to potential students, while convention and visitor bureaus can deliver historical information, cultural tidbits and location-based advertising to support their regions. Other tourism segments that could benefit from the technology include zoos, aquariums, historical societies, state and national parks, scenic byways, botanical gardens, theme parks, attractions and shopping malls.
BarZ Adventures worked with the Austin Convention & Visitor Bureau to create a historic GPS walking tour of downtown Austin, Texas. This tour, originally available on the GPS Ranger® which can still be rented from the Austin Visitor Center, is now available as a Mobile Media Engine iPhone application. BarZ’s Tour Austin is the first Mobile Media Engine app now available on iTunes and can be downloaded free of charge.
BarZ has secured several other launch partners for the Mobile Media Engine software, including Cal Poly State University in San Luis Obispo, CA. Cal Poly, known for their early adoption of innovative technology, was the first university in the nation to offer GPS video tours last year using BarZ’s GPS Ranger device.
“We are excited to provide iPhone campus tour options to prospective students using the state-of-the-art Mobile Media Engine application. The system goes hand in hand with the GPS Ranger tours already on offer, allowing us to repurpose the video tour content to be accessed around the clock from iTunes and downloaded to the user’s device of choice,” said James Maraviglia, Assistant Vice President of Admissions, Recruitment & Financial Aid, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
End-users download the Mobile Media Engine App Player from the online App Store. They will then select from a list of tours to be activated on their player. Once the player is downloaded, and a tour selected, the map and tour content information streams to the user’s device through Wi-Fi or cellular networks. A full download version will also be available for venues with limited cellular coverage or for those who would like to offer this option. The GPS antenna in the Smartphone tracks the visitor’s location and as he approaches a point of interest, a menu will list the POI and media content in close proximity. All tour content can be accessed on-demand through the map or through a comprehensive media list. The content list can be sorted alphabetically or by user proximity to the locations.
The Mobile Media Engine service can be used to support any size venue, large or small, and multiple subscription plans are available to fit any need or budget. BarZ Adventures also offers “work for hire” media content creation services to assist with the tour creation process.
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