gim·mick /ˈɡimik/ noun
☞ a trick or device intended to attract attention, publicity, or business
☞ synonyms: publicity stunt, contrivance, scheme, stratagem, ploy; shtick
“the trivia contest was a gimmick to sell more newspapers”
“Why Curved TVs Aren’t Just Another Gimmick” – Gizmodo – 2014
“The Curved TV Gimmick Might Finally Be Dead” – Gizmodo – 2017
“Why I Don’t Read Gizmodo” – Sinard, coming 2018
360 VIDEO PRODUCTION
Is 360 video (video whose image is a sphere) a gimmick, like 3D or curved TVs? Yes, it is. But so what? Marketing (and buying) decisions are based on gimmicks – something – [almost] anything to attract attention.
Ever hear of Pet Rocks? Now THAT was a “pure” gimmick (in that the product WAS the gimmick). Scantily clad women at a Trade Show – gimmick. Money tornado booths – gimmick. Free keychains, chocolates or pens – gimmick. Iambic pentameter and/or Taco Tuesday – all gimmicks.
So when you find yourself thinking, “360 video is a gimmick,” so was the zoopraxiscope (arguably the world’s first motion picture camera(s)). And the rest, as they say, became money.
The real question is, how can 360 video be used in a way to support a proposition, tell a story, market a product? THAT is the question; and very few people know the answers.
But oh my friends and oh my foes, I do.
Businesses planning on creating Virtual Reality should know their audience and purpose before they start, as delivery through domes, smartphones or VR head mounted displays require differing techniques, planning and costs for content creation, distribution and affect. Contact VR-MAX for additional information.
Stay Tuned.
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