Sotheby's International Realty First Real Estate Brand to Launch Augmented Reality App: Introducing Curate by SIR
by Natalie Hernandez
Originally published on March 20, 2018 | Extraordinary Living Blog
Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty(sm), powered by roOomy, Revolutionizes the Homebuying and Selling Experience for Sales Associates and Consumers
Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates LLC today announced the launch of Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty, a mobile augmented reality (AR) app that will bring a home's virtual staging images from 2-D perception into augmented reality.
"Buying a house is not only a significant financial decision, but is also deeply personal and emotional. Introducing an augmented reality component to the homebuying experience takes the consumer on a personal journey that allows them to see a house transformed into a home, their home, through the magic of technology." – John Passerini, global vice president of interactive marketing, Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC
The app was built with ARCore, Google's AR Software platform, and is powered by roOomy, the leading virtual staging technology platform specializing in 3D/AR/VR content creation and application development. Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty allows consumers to visualize a house as their own before purchase, thereby curating the homebuying experience. Working closely with Google in the run up to ARCore's release, the Sotheby’s International Realty® brand is the first real estate brand to launch and implement a virtual staging AR app, transforming the homebuying and selling experience for sales associates and consumers.
“ARCore enables augmented reality capabilities on 100 million Android devices across the ecosystem, bringing new possibilities to today’s mobile phones. We’re thrilled to work with the Sotheby’s International Realty brand on this experience, which can help redefine the way real estate is sold.” – Adrienne McCallister, senior director, Google AR Business Development
Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty is taking virtually staged images from a flat, 2-D screen into the house itself through the power of AR. The app also features a curated selection of AR interior designs, ranging from modern living rooms to traditional dining rooms that provides the consumer with the opportunity to immediately swap among these styles, something physical staging could never accomplish.
"Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty solves visualization problems without making costly, time-intensive and cumbersome changes to the physical space." – John Passerini
Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty is available now for download in the Google Play Store. The app was built with Google's ARCore, which can run on 100 million Android devices worldwide. The Sotheby's International Realty brand will launch Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty for iOS this spring through a continued partnership with roOomy.