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Google Street ViewGSV17MP2SV

Will Matterport Publish All Spaces to GSV?4461

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DanSmigrod private msg quote post Address this user

Google Street View: This Matterport Space created by We Get Around Atlanta was converted to Google Street View by MP2SV before Matterport asked MP2SV to stop converting Matterport Spaces to Google Street View because it said it violated the Matterport Terms.

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Hi All,

I wonder if Matterport will publish all existing Matterport commercial spaces to Google Street View – automatically.

When Matterport introduced CoreVR, the default setting was all existing 250,000 tours automatically converted and available in Virtual Reality (VR).

Since Matterport now asks us to verify the Street Address, it seems like it would not be hard for Matterport - using Google's API of known business addresses – to match the street address, convert and publish all Matterport commercial spaces to Google Street View – automatically.

I'd like to think that they will NOT do this: in part because this is a revenue generating opportunity for Matterport Service Providers that charge monthly or annual recurring revenue (as does We Get Around Atlanta) for some of our Matterport Spaces 3D Tours, but I could also imagine a content licensing deal between Google and Matterport (because Google's goal is to map the world of outdoor - and now indoor - spaces.)

Which strategy will win out?

Do you think that Matterport will automatically publish all commercial spaces with verified addresses to Google Street View to kick-off its announcement at the Google Street View Summit (10-11 May 2017) in Tokyo next week (like they did with Matterport CoreVR) or simply announce that it is now easy, fast, seamless (and affordable?) to publish Matterport Spaces 3D Tours to Google Street View?

I am looking forward to attending the Summit – and reporting back to the We Get Around Network Forum Community. Be sure to register for the free WGAN-TV LIVE Stream.

Best,

Dan
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jfantin private msg quote post Address this user
Dan, Matterport cannot publish anything automatically because even though they can claim that they own the rights over the technology that created the models, they do not own the rights to publish places that are owned by other people without a proper authorization.

If they were to publish anything automatically to GSV I invite you and other MSPs to consider setting up a class action lawsuit against our MP friends. But I anticipate this will never happen.

Best regards.
Jorge
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@jfantin banking on that. The creator of the content holds the cards and should be wise with the way they put their contracts together. This is a race for content. Make an offer good enough to a client and you will hold the keys to where that content is displayed. Think long term, especially in verticals away from real estate. That sounded like something from a fortune cookie sorry.
Post 3 IP   flag post
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DanSmigrod private msg quote post Address this user
@jfantin

Hmmmmmmmm.....

I could imagine Matterport saying they own the derivative works (and defining Google Street View as a derivative work).

I could also imagine Matterport offering Pros an opt-in plan and doing either a revenue share ( "Opt-in Win-Win" ) or paying a rate of "$X" ( "Opt-in Win-Win" ) based on SQ FT (essentially, Matterport becomes the aggregator, syndicator and sales engine for those that Opt-in.

I could also imagine that they are reading this - hadn't given any of this any thought and saying that make sense - and not do anything without taking the pulse of the Community first.

@Baxter

Yes. Content is King. Content is worth $$$. There are many more opportunities for generating revenue with our content that any of us could imagine. It gets more exciting everyday. (I read this in a fortune cookie.)

Dan
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Matt19 private msg quote post Address this user
I'm up to speed on google street view now! thank you!
Post 5 IP   flag post
jfantin private msg quote post Address this user
Dan,

I don´t see that coming. It is not the same as with VR.

With VR they made the conversion but it was our decision to decide if we wanted our clients to get access to it and if that was going to be free or not.

I see Matterport saying: here you have this GSV possibility, the conversion cost is X dollars and now you go to your client and ask him if he/she wants to publish it.

Or perhaps Matterport will realize that offering the conversion for free adds value to a system that is under attack by other competitors, so instead of reducing prices they add value so the price/value relationship is ahead of its competitors'

On the other hand, publishing a commercial site without authorization could be a hell of a trouble in legal terms for Matterport. Not only from us but also from our clients, Some are big companies that take care of how and when their images are exposed, and we all know that Google is not particularly good at curating SV content in the web. They just add spherical panoramas and virtual tours one after another and not always in the right manner. Some companies are not particularly happy with that.

If I were Matterport I would think about the best way to increase the value perception of my product/service while minimizing potential conflicts.
Post 6 IP   flag post
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@jfantin

Based on your (great) insight, I am now convinced that:

1. Matterport will NOT automatically published to Google Street View
2. Matterport WILL charge for Google Street conversion and publishing
3. Matterport WILL offer free conversion and publishing for "X months" to get from existing Matterport Pros AND to help increase camera sales, processing, hosting and ancillary revenue
4. Matterport WILL extend the "X months" free when the date gets closer

I would prefer if Matterport offered Google Street View conversion as a subscription – a Plus plan - so that our clients do not come back to us and say, "but Matterport only charges you X more to create a Google Street View from "our" Matterport Spaces 3D Tour and you are charging me way more than that."

Dan
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I can't see the derivative angle working and I don't have Matterport down as a revenue sharing business or indeed paying us for anything. Nothing wrong with that, just an observation over time.

I do hope they follow the path @jfantin just laid out. Much more profitable in the long term to gain the market share via having a superior product.

Absolutely no need for Matterport to charge for any GSV related service. Automate it under the correct terms and conditions and get on with building the next brilliant feature.
Post 8 IP   flag post
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@Baxter

I am all for Matterport making Google Street View conversion and publishing free for Matterport Service Providers.

Since I would be surprised if they did not charge for this service, I was planting a seed about the "Opt-in, Win-Win" options (above) since Matterport reads every word of the Forum

Dan
Post 9 IP   flag post
Frisco, Texas
Metroplex360 private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by jfantin
With VR they made the conversion but it was our decision to decide if we wanted our clients to get access to it and if that was going to be free or not.


'conversion' was really just a separate player. I'm not convinced that anything was actually done to our models.

Matterport won't autopublish anything. There are too many reasons why this wouldn't make sense to where I'm not even commenting on it.
Post 10 IP   flag post
jfantin private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Metroplex360
'conversion' was really just a separate player. I'm not convinced that anything was actually done to our models.


I think that there were minor chenges (some spots were not placed into the VR version, so navigation was not exactly as in the original, but probably not a real "conversion".

Quote:
Originally Posted by Metroplex360
Matterport won't autopublish anything. There are too many reasons why this wouldn't make sense


Totally agree.

Quote:
Originally Posted by DanSmigrod
Since I would be surprised if they did not charge for this service


Yes, they probably will charge something. I wouldn´t say it is the best strategy but it is one of the possibilities and to some extent the possibility of having a finished virtual tour "SV ready" with no additional effort after scanning and processing the space with your Matterport Camera has value if you consider the time it takes to place and connect each pano in the Street View platform.
Post 11 IP   flag post
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VTLV private msg quote post Address this user
This Just In!!! Google buys majority shares in Matterport Stock.



Rumor is Google didn't like the direction Matterport Marketing went advertising cameras to real estate agents. Google vows to bring Google Street View indoors after a failed Iris campaign.

Current Matterport Service Providers are offered a 500 share Google stock option to current Matterport Service providers who upload 500 Virtual Tours into Google Maps between May 10th and April 1st, 2018.

I wish. lol
Post 12 IP   flag post
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@DanSmigrod I see, didn't read between those particular lines! Whatever they decide they will need to stick with that decision.

@VTLV Sharing is the future sir! Love it.
Post 13 IP   flag post
Frisco, Texas
Metroplex360 private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by jfantin
Yes, they probably will charge something. I wouldn´t say it is the best strategy but it is one of the possibilities and to some extent the possibility of having a finished virtual tour "SV ready" with no additional effort after scanning and processing the space with your Matterport Camera has value if you consider the time it takes to place and connect each pano in the Street View platform.


Under this circumstance, the value is tremendous. It takes me at least 2 hours to build a tour with 80+ panos in Street View. Aligning and positioning is never perfect regardless of how meticulous you are.

MSPs have in the past paid me the rates at mp2sv.com for conversion -- minus a 40% discount if you are a We Get Around Basic, Standard or Premium Member. If you consider that this price point was fair and the MSPs were able to recoup -- dare I say -- profit -- from the service -- then my price points should establish a theoretical value!

$59 - Up to 40 Panos / $149 - Up to 100 Panos

That tour that Dan posted above was over 300 panos

Quote:
Originally Posted by Baxter
Absolutely no need for Matterport to charge for any GSV related service. Automate it under the correct terms and conditions and get on with building the next brilliant feature.


I do not agree. Matterport in essence would be taking the same journey that our friend @Alin and the @PanoSkin team have gone on in creating a platform that connects content to Google's publishing API. In addition to this, there will be constant maintenance, troubleshooting, customer service and support. White papers would be created, marketing would be done in order to both sell more cameras and to promote enlisting MSPs. I would imagine that an entire department has been created to handle the needs in supporting this massive platform. This is BIG.

Consider how much was done with CoreVR -- same thing. White Papers, marketing materials, additions to workshop, customer support, demonstrations, etc. The actual tech behind CoreVR might be something a very clever programmer could implement -- but that's only a fraction of launching a new offering.

So the question would be -- is it worth it? Matterport could decide to just charge to stitch and release panospheres from our tours and they could partner with our GSV services -- or they could build their own platform from scratch.

How much would you pay for Matterport to publish a tour to Street View?
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Honestly, I would pay nothing if there's no human involvement in the process. If you need constant support in place for before, during and after conversion then all angles weren't covered when building the thing. Something like this shouldn't need that level of support. Ref marketing, MSPs are your marketing team if you get your offer right. Don't be fooled into thinking this is only good news for MSPs. Google didn't get involved with Matterport for no reason. Google should in fact be paying the 3D content creator for the tour. Instead we're getting blindsided into handing it over for free with a great big smile on our faces. All very clever stuff and all while Google starts to offer live availability of places directly from the results page. Go figure. So many people's backs will be crippled from constant bending over one day. But it's easier to get your bread from the supermarket not the baker's.
Post 15 IP   flag post
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DanSmigrod private msg quote post Address this user
@Baxter

Hopefully there is an opportunity for MP2SV – Multi-Pano 2 Google Street View - to offer a "white glove" value-added, Matterport-to-Google Street View Service.

Dan
Post 16 IP   flag post
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DanSmigrod private msg quote post Address this user
Hi All,

Matterport sent the following eBlast today (10 May 2017) announced Matterport to Google Street View coming Summer 2017.

Dan

--



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Is the partnership (whatever partnership actually means) between Matterport and Google (via GSV) better for the 3D pro or is it better for Google, Matterport and the end user?

This completely depends on whether you're a long-term thinker or a short-term thinker.

Who benefits short-term?

Arguably the 3D pro (MSP) who is able to shout it from the rooftops that they can offer clients a simple GSV conversion to potentially get their offering in front of more eyes.

Who benefits long-term?

Matterport and Google. Matterport gets an unsightly amount of hosted models that need paying for each month. Google gets their hands on all of our 3D content for free. There are only so many places an MSP can scan in their location before work starts drying up in verticals outside property.

What's more profitable for the MSP?

It has to start with a change in perspective. Yes, you may be able to make some quick bucks by marketing off the back of Matterport's GSV announcement. But if you allow that 3D content to be shared with Google for free, you've opened it to the world and will never have the chance to make future revenue from the respective 3D content.

This is what we're doing and you may want to follow because it's undoubtedly more profitable in the long-term...

The new perspective needs to be focused on licensing. We're scanning anything and everything we can get our hands on and we're doing it at a reduced rate (enough to cover our costs).

Get the deal right and the place you're scanning will never need to even consider going with another 3D provider in the future.

Why do this?

In return for our discount, we are able to add to the contract that we own the license for that content. We let the client have the tour for their own website and marketing purposes but if the client wants to share that tour on any other listings or bookings sites they need our permission first as license holders of that content.

It is not in the interest of MSPs to allow a free-for-all of their content. The only benefit in the short-term is perhaps an upturn in jobs in verticals away from property. But once they're done, they're done.

Take a small hit initially on the price of the job but you hold the keys to the license.

By holding the license, when other listings and bookings sites get on-board with our tours they will either 1) have to pay you for use of it or 2) pay to send their own person out to create a tour of the place they want to list in 3D, which I firmly believe they will not do - it's too much of a huge undertaking.

Together we are a work force that a large bookings or listings site could never replicate or compete with. You hold the cards as the creators of 3D content. It's imperative to switch your perspective from getting excited about titbits regarding this site or that site supporting our tours and start to realise that your success depends on your perspective and not theirs.

3D is going mainstream and none of us would have invested so much money in our equipment and venture if we didn't believe that.

Be smart with your content before it's too late to use it as a continuous source of revenue rather than a one-off source of revenue.

It's now a race for 3D content. Google getting involved with Matterport should be all the proof you need that this is indeed the case. Please "don't hand over the farm in return for a few cows" as @DanSmigrod has put it before about a separate subject. And he's totally right with his analogy. Dan knows his stuff.

I truly believe that, by following this example, we may end up one day creating tours completely for free because so much more wealth can be generated from our content over time than as a one-off payment. Sounds scary right? It's not. It's sensible business practice to secure your position in the market for a long time to come.

I propose an international central hub (or our own community listings and bookings site) where we list all of our respective 3D content in one-place for the world to explore the places we've captured. Other listings and bookings sites or anywhere else can contact the respective MSP responsible for the 3D content they want via this central hub and arrange an adequate price to purchase the license of it. It would be up to the individual MSP what they considered an adequate price.

I envision this almost as a trade union for MSPs to secure our futures and all start working off the same page for the good of all of us together as a community.

I don't want to pooh-pooh the whole Matterport/GSV news but it's really not necessarily in our interests long-term to hand over our 3D content to Google for free. Or in fact hand it over to anybody for free.

You might read this and think it's nonsense but who knows what is going on behind the scenes to make what I've just written possible.

The Matterport/GSV announcement now makes licensing a serious subject to think about.
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Frisco, Texas
Metroplex360 private msg quote post Address this user
@Baxter what is better for the customers we serve?
Post 19 IP   flag post
Viewing private msg quote post Address this user
@Metroplex360 What is better for you?
Post 20 IP   flag post
jfantin private msg quote post Address this user
@Baxter, I will need more time to digest and analyze your ideas, but in principle I like the strategic aim of your post.
Post 21 IP   flag post
Viewing private msg quote post Address this user
Thanks @jfantin - it seems to make sense considering the size of the community and volume of content we produce together.
Post 22 IP   flag post
DanielDI private msg quote post Address this user
I like that option...
Post 23 IP   flag post
Frisco, Texas
Metroplex360 private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Baxter
@Metroplex360 What is better for you?


Ecstatic customers.
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@Metroplex360 Your level of work and innovation suggests that you already have ecstatic customers.

There's nothing wrong with wanting to secure our long-term futures together as a community of 3D tour providers.

I'm not arguing that the GSV news wouldn't give MSPs a short-term boost.

But not all of us have the level of technical abililty you do to ensure we could move into other fields once the work dries up eventually. Which, realistically, it has to one day bud.

There are a finite amount of places an MSP can scan in their respective location.
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@DanielDI Me too. We're all photographers essentially so I see this working similarly to the Getty model. Except you also have the opportunity to make revenue via bookings on places you uploaded a listing for... hotels, villas, private rentals, restaurants, attractions etc.
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