Facebook has developed a way to make movie advertisements interactive by using your smartphone’s camera. (Courtesy of Tech Radar)
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Movie posters in the future are going to be awesome if Facebook’s new augmented reality (AR) technology takes off. Currently in closed beta, Facebook has developed a way to make these advertisements interactive by using your smartphone’s camera.
It’s called AR target tracking, and it’s a feature that’s exclusive to Facebook’s in-app camera tech. Boot it up and your camera will scan what’s in front of you, and is able to identify images, logos, signs and more in the real world. Once it detects a match, you’ll be treated to unique AR presentation that better bridges the gap between a poster and a fully-fledged teaser trailer.
Facebook could eventually tie-in AR content to any and all posters that get pinned around the globe. But for now, it’s trialing the tech on two recent films, A Wrinkle in Time and Ready Player One.
A widespread approach to AR
Augmented reality, as well as virtual reality, are always best viewed through the latest smartphones. However, Facebook is making a point to include as many devices in its AR endeavors as possible by optimizing its algorithm for low-end devices as well.
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As such, AR target tracking will work on Apple phones going back to the iPhone 5S, and Android phones from no earlier than 2012.
The developer tools for creating AR target tracking assets will be released in the coming months. We’ll likely hear much more about it at F8 2018, Facebook’s annual developer conference.
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