eyecandylab and LG Uplus are First to Fuse TV-based Home shopping with Augmented Reality

San Francisco and Munich(24 Oct 2019)

eyecandylab and LG Uplus, the leading 5G service provider in South Korea, are taking home shopping to a new level with their newly launched cooperation: With the launch of "U+ AR Shopping", they are realizing Augmented Reality for home shopping channels for the first time worldwide, thus bringing the shopping mall home.

Viewers of GS Shopping and Home&Shopping, two of South Korea's largest home shopping channels, will now benefit from better product presentations. These include detailed 3D scans that allow selected items to be placed in the real-life living environment.

All this happens live during the show. The basis is the access to the augmented reality shopping app "U+ AR Shopping", which is available for Korean users to download. The basic is the augmen.tv Live TV platform that can recognize any television set or video screen in the room and follow the program. It identifies the content and synchronizes the information exactly to the events in the program. Within seconds, viewers discover everything important about the presented product and can try it on virtually or place it in the living room. If the article appeals, users can order it directly from the screen via their mobile phone and receive an additional AR discount. 

Higher conversion, fewer returns

Thanks to the large-scale cooperation between eyecandylab and LG Uplus, home shoppers receive much more information about a product. This information is displayed on the smartphone app and arranged around the screen in AR mode. This makes it possible for potential buyers to better assess the article they are interested in before purchasing it. The advantages of using Augmented Reality make products more tangible and generate higher sales. As users have a much greater basis for decision making when ordering, it automatically leads to fewer returns and thus an increase in turnover for companies.

Customers are interested in further product information

A recent study by eyecandylab in the US market also confirms the high level of interest in further information on products: 31.5 percent of consumers would like to learn more about products that are currently visible on the screen, and 23 percent can imagine buying products immediately. The results also show a willingness to conversion of up to 74 percent.

"As the leading provider of innovative services in 5G, we are thrilled to offer relevant use cases to our consumers," said Keeman Seoh, Vice President Strategic Alliance & Global Partnership Unit of LG Uplus. "eyecandylab's technology is a perfect differentiator and we are looking forward to taking the next step to extend our leadership position."

"We are thrilled to be working with LG," said Robin Sho Moser, CEO of eyecandylab. "Home shopping is a perfect channel to demonstrate the benefits of augmented reality to consumers in everyday life. At the same time it supports companies in their sales.” 

Augmented Reality offers many application possibilities

In addition to home shopping, the use of augmented reality offers advantages in many other broadcast formats. The application possibilities are manifold and almost unlimited: For example, both consumers and companies benefit from additional product information for soap operas, series, films and shows. Companies such as TV stations, production companies, but also their (advertising) customers can use advanced technology to bring the product range closer to the viewers. In addition to the exciting visual experiences, it provides an interesting added value for viewers to try out products virtually and to be able to buy them without media discontinuity. The seamless integration of the products up to the point of purchase in Augmented Reality significantly reduces the barriers to purchase.

"The concept is also interesting for the German market, where media companies are actively looking for new approaches to interacting with viewers and, at the same time, monetization opportunities. The first talks with German home shopping channels are already taking place", continues Moser.

The study "The power of video-triggered AR" is available on request here.

Source:

* eyecandylab. THE POWER OF VIDEO-TRIGGERED AR. U.S. Market Study 2019, September 25, 2019.

About eyecandylab

eyecandylab’s outstanding technology augmen.tv brings augmented reality to video. The startup was founded in 2017 and has worked with customers like VIACOM, NBCUniversal, SoftBank, LG Uplus, WWE, adidas, and other major global players.

eyecandylab is originally based out of Munich, Germany and is now present in the US with offices in New York City and Los Angeles.

For more information, please visit https://augmen.tv/eyecandylab 

About augmen.tv

The augmen.tv platform provides AR solutions, using moving images for marker purposes with its unique, patent-pending TELEMARK technology. The technology can be incorporated in any existing app of media companies who wants to enhance their broadcast with an interactive layer. Customers who provided engaging experiences using the augmen.tv platform saw an increase in viewer retention and sponsorship opportunities. 

About LG Uplus

LG Uplus is the communication arm of LG Group and South Korea's top telecommunication carrier. It rolled out world's first 5G service in Korea in April, a market with more than 1.8 million 5G subscribers.