Richard Koman, newsfactor
In announcing the new technology, Microsoft said it has created "an entirely new visual medium." In a video posted on Microsoft's site, Gary Flake, a technical fellow at Microsoft, said, "Photosynth, more than any other technology that I can think of, points us in the direction of what's to come. Photosynth will mark the beginning of an important transition in photography and the Internet."
To create "synths," as Microsoft calls Photosynth's creations, users take between 20 and 300 overlapping photos. The Photosynth software analyzes the collection for similarities and uses that data to estimate where a photo was taken and "recreates the environment ... as a canvas on which to display the photos," according to a release.
From Research to Product
Microsoft expects the technology to boost MSN, where it plans to make synths an integral part of the network. MSN will feature synths of popular destinations and notable events, the company said.
Brady Forrest, a former Microsoft Live Search executive and chairman of several O'Reilly Media conferences, wrote on the O'Reilly Radar blog that the release of Photosynth "as a product is very significant for Microsoft." Redmond has struggled to convert innovation in its research group into products, while Google has effectively integrated research and product development. Photosynth is "the first successful transition" using Microsoft Live Labs to bridge the gap between research and product, Forrest said.
Business Apps Down the Road
Forrest predicted that Microsoft will leverage Photosynth to boost Microsoft's Virtual Earth mapping product. "Photosynth will have achieved its promise when these two paths are merged and our synths are being used to populate their 3-D world," he wrote.
That's just part of the potential of the technology, Blaise Aguera y Arcas, who created much of the seamless-browsing technology in Photosynth, told Microsoft watcher Mary Jo Foley. For starters, Microsoft will release a software developer kit to allow third parties to extend the technology, but no date has been set.
While Photosynth is being rolled out as a consumer toy, Microsoft sees substantial applications in the business world. Shopping experiences that are "extremely visual" are one application, Aguera y Arcas said. Microsoft's press site also featured videos showing Realtors and even NASCAR drivers are using the technology.
Good for Business
Charles King, principal analyst with Pund-IT, believes the technology could have substantial appeal to businesses. "I could see this as being a popular and powerful tool for commercial organizations trying to appeal to online users," especially travel, tourism and photojournalism, King said.
Photosynth's combination of software and online services isn't "classic software as a service," King said, but it does show a more compelling path for Microsoft to leverage technology to attract more online users. Thus, it will be an important addition to MSN.
At the same time, Microsoft is hitting the right note by not making Photosynth an MSN-only technology. By making it available for any Web site or blog, the company will be able to attract key partners. "You want to see 'Powered by Microsoft' on those companies' pages," King said.
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