Full Motion Video Is Brought To Real Estate Two companies are introducing a couple of new video products to the real estate industry, hoping brokers and agents are ready to upgrade from still digital photos to full motion video. VideoHomeTours.com already has a working relationship with the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and one of the nation's top independents, Baird & Warner in Chicago, to put full motion video on Web sites. The other new product is called "CyberMail AV VIDEOemail" from Cybertainment, based in Richmond, Va. CyberMail allows an agent to send video by e-mail with realistic download times on the other end. Both technologies appear to be the next generation in real estate imaging, succeeding even the relatively new technologies of 360-degree photos, as offered by the now-merged Bamboo.com and IPIX.com. Unlike wrap around photo technology, however, neither of the new technologies are interactive, in that the consumer cannot direct the path they take through the house. Using IPIX and bamboo.com imagery, consumers can decide what doors to go through and whether to turn left or right. With VideoHomeTours a photographer ("videographer") is hired by the listing agent to come out with a digital video camera and film the house. The process takes about two hours and, depending on what the listing agents wants to feature, may cost anywhere from $135 to $400. The agent can narrate the tour, or allow music to be added as background. VideoHomeTour President Brian Balduf said once the images are in the camera, the agent has a choice of methods to deliver them to the consumer. "They can put the tour on their Web site, or they can put it on a video tape that the customer can pop into his VCR, we can put it on a CD-ROM," Balduf said. "Agents use this as a listing tool. (Video) is an obvious differentiator from still photos. You pop this in a VCR and it's like a commercial for your home." He added, however, that some agents and even office managers are seeing opportunities with the CD-ROM. "You can get about 40 listings on a single CD-ROM," Balduf said. "You can just hand them out to a customer and let them see all sorts of homes in similar price ranges." CyberMail AV VIDEOemail is a software program that comes with its own digital camera. Agents or their assistants can film the home and download the video to the computer in their office. At the core of the system is technology that compresses the video from 900 to 1, which makes it efficient to send video via e-mail to a prospective buyer. "And anyone with an e-mail package on their computer can view it," said spokeswoman Melissa Stoltz. "You only need to have the special software on one end (the agent computer) for it to work." The CyberMail software costs $160. VideoHomeTours can be reached at www.videohometours.com. CyberMail may be reached at: www.cyber-tainment.com. | 
