Microsoft on Thursday enhanced its Virtual Earth online mapping service with Photosynth technology that melds pictures to create 3D views of places and spaces. The move allows businesses or government agencies to provide virtual tours of locations displayed online with 360-degree views.
US space agency Nasa and British tourism business VisitBrighton put Microsoft’s new Virtual Earth offering to work prior to the public launch.
VisitBrighton is using Virtual Earth 3D imagery to entice tourists with displays of the city’s attractions. Photosynth can be used for immersive virtual tours of real estate for sale as well as letting people interactively browse aisles of stores presented at Virtual Earth, according to Microsoft.
Photosynth software analyzes digital photographs and generates 3D models by "stitching" the photos together to create seamless views. These models, dubbed "synths," are viewed using Microsoft’s Silverlight technology.