Picsolve, the world’s number one photo and video capture partner for world-class visitor destinations, today announces the purchase of Belgium-based start-up Panora.me to fuel future innovation.
The collaboration, which marks the creation of Picsolve’s first innovation and creativity hub, Picsolve Lab will bring together world-leading market expertise to drive the continued development of cutting-edge capture innovations.
The acquisition marks a year since the exclusive strategic partnership with Panora.me was announced. In this time, the two companies have jointly delivered capture innovations for customers including the Epic Selfie, which has just been installed at the Coca-Cola London Eye, and the Super Selfie, which is benefiting partners including Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida and LEGOLAND® Florida Resort.
Introducing Picsolve Lab
With the creation of Picsolve Lab innovation Centre, a dedicated team of visionaries will be responsible for researching and developing new capture innovations that will revolutionise visitor experience. A key differentiator within the marketplace, the Centre will ensure Picsolve remains a world-leader in photo and video capture and can continue to deliver the best solutions for its partners.
David Hockley, CEO at Picsolve, said: “We are excited for Panora.me to become the heart of capture innovation at Picsolve. The acquisition will superpower our research and development capability ensuring we continue to exceed visitor expectations. In the creation of Picsolve Lab, a bespoke initiative that is unique in the marketplace, we demonstrate our commitment to global growth through continued innovation. I’m excited to see what new technologies our dedicated experts within the newly formed Picsolve Lab team will deliver.”
Raphaël de Borman, Founder at Panora.me and head of Picsolve Lab: “In the year since we started working with Picsolve, we’ve been able to deliver capture innovations including Epic Selfie and Super Selfie which have proved extremely successful for our partners. Our alignment of vision and drive to innovate within the market makes Picsolve a great fit for us. We will help fuel Picsolve’s expansion into new markets, and further strengthen our position as a force to be reckoned with in photo and video capture.”
All new product innovations created by the Picsolve Lab team will be integrated within Picsolve’s new digital platform. Picsolve’s digital platform has already been deployed at 20 destinations across the globe.
Panora.me’s successful events business - which saw the company provide its Super Selfie technology to support partners with over 50 brand activations at events and within city locations across 16 countries - will also continue to be managed under the Picsolve Lab team.
First Epic Selfie installation at Coca-Cola London Eye
At the first destination to go live with the latest technology developed by Panora.me, visitors of the Coca-Cola London Eye will be able to capture an Epic Selfie prior to boarding the iconic London landmark. This new feature captures guests as they queue for the popular attraction against a green screen and creates a high-quality, shareable video that zooms out from the capsule to show the spectacular London Eye and surrounding landscape. Guests will then board one of the famous London Eye capsules and take flight 135m over the city skyline, providing even more chances to capture epic moments of their experience.
Capture innovations delivered through Panora.me partnership
Since partnering with Picsolve last summer, Panora.me has helped deliver two new capture technologies to the marketplace. The Epic Selfie, announced at IAAPA Asia Expo, is an evolution of the Super Selfie, allowing attractions to capture visitors and transport them into a world beyond the realms of possibility.
The Super Selfie is a panoramic, supercharged take on the ‘Selfie’, which takes a stunning backdrop of any destination and combines it with a selfie of the visitors. The result is a video that starts with a close-up of the visitors and dramatically zooms out to reveal the panoramic scenery behind them. Since the international rollout of Super Selfie, several brands have realised the benefits of providing this unique content to visitors, with latest installations of the technology now at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex and LEGOLAND® Florida Resort.
The Picsolve Lab team in Brussels are continuing with this momentum as they develop the next piece of capture innovation.
