Object Consulting, Microsoft Australia and Tourism NSW unite in landmark development

Funding announced for Australia’s first media-rich tourist info platform

Sydney, June 1, 2011 - Object Consulting today announced it has gained funding to develop a new mobile channel for distributing media-rich digital content to Sydney tourists. The application – which harnesses tourists’ smartphones and the next generation of Microsoft Surface – will be built in collaboration with Tourism NSW and Microsoft Australia.

Funding is being provided by the Department of Trade & Investment, Regional Infrastructure & Services, via its Collaborative Solutions - Mobile Concierge grant program for innovative ICT that strengthens tourism’s embrace of the digital economy. The project will mark the first commercial implementation, in Australia, of the new Microsoft Surface.

KNOWHERE, is a mobile concierge application that gives tourists an engaging, media-rich way to research tourist attractions. It provides the  ability to shortlist data into a personalised, geotagged itinerary that can be uploaded to the visitor’s iPhone, Android or Microsoft Windows®Phone 7 device, with convenient booking agency links and maps.

KNOWHERE – Surface-to-mobile information, bookings and maps

The next generation of the Microsoft Surface has been created in partnership with Samsung, to bring the Surface experience to a new, thin design with a powerful LCD screen. The Samsung SUR40 for Microsoft Surface will allow tourist information to be presented on Microsoft Surface’s interactive technology that offers an immersive environment and multi-touch experience with the ability to recognise fingers, hands, and objects..

Using the KNOWHERE application on Microsoft Surface, tourists will be able to create a personalised itinerary which can be uploaded to their smartphone for later offline viewing. Details will include links to an online booking service, as well as geotagging and links to maps so tourists can navigate from one venue to the next with ease.

It builds on Object Consulting’s existing KNOWHERE pilot platform, built for Microsoft Surface, which has already proven core features such as serving information according to user preferences, as well as fully harnessing the device’s capacity for retaining rich information and graphics, while users drill down through masses of information.

KNOWHERE also addresses a specific challenge identified by Tourism NSW – of improving the visibility of long tail (that is, unique, local) events. As tourists spend time on the Microsoft Surface – and the data is tailored to their personal preferences – visitors will uncover the ‘gems’ that make their visit unforgettable.

Funding will see Mobile Concierge piloted in Sydney

With the announcement of funding, Object Consulting will commence developing the expanded KNOWHERE platform.

The project will be piloted at Tourism NSW’s key Visitor Information Centres in Sydney, where Microsoft Surface products (either wall or table mounted) hosting the KNOWHERE application will be installed. Following an initial three-month pilot project, Tourism NSW may elect to extend the pilot to more Visitor Centres and, potentially, to other commercial venues.

The project is one of 11 funded by the NSW Government, announced by the Deputy Premier and Minister for Trade and Investment, Andrew Stoner at CeBIT.

“We understand these projects have the potential to collectively generate over 400 jobs, $170 million dollars in revenue, and over $90 million dollars in exports over the next three years,” Mr Stoner said.

Object Consulting’s Executive Director, Gil Thew comments, “While tourist information apps already exist, they are fairly limited in their capabilities.”

“KNOWHERE takes tourism research to a new level. Tourism NSW brings a rich data store of NSW tourism events, Microsoft has contributed specialist expertise, while Object Consulting has contributed its prototype application and will lead development on the fuller KNOWHERE application.”

Denise Holehouse, Government Industry Market Development Manager, Microsoft Australia adds, “The next generation Microsoft Surface, Samsung SUR40, is thinner and faster than before - its 10cm profile makes it ideal for situations where you want to combine touch-driven navigation with powerful, information and graphics rich data. We’re delighted that Tourism NSW is the first to present this innovative technology to Australia’s tourism sector.”

More KNOWHERE details

•  This will be the first major implementation of the next generation Microsoft Surface in Australia. While the technology has been announced, it is not yet available to the public. Object Consulting - an Australian Microsoft Surface Premium Partner – and Microsoft will be working together to expedite delivery of the devices to Tourism NSW.
• Microsoft Surface created in partnership with Samsung brings the Surface experience to a new, thin design with powerful vision-based capabilities. The Samsung SUR40 for Microsoft Surface delivers an interactive experience that is powered by Windows 7 with features including:
  • Pixelsense, Infrared sensors, replacing cameras in the earlier model, lets the screen see fingers, hands and objects placed on it.
  • Slim but tough, it is just 4” (10.16cm) thick and uses the biggest piece of Gorilla Glass (toughened to withstand shock) ever bonded to an LCD screen.
  • 2.9 AMD Athlon II X2 processor and a Radeon HD 6700M graphics card.
• Features of the expanded KNOWHERE application will include:
  • Access to The Australian Tourism Data Warehouse (ATDW) with more than 8,000 information sets on accommodation, attractions, tours and events in NSW.
  • Tourists will be able to research information on the Microsoft Surface, and generate an itinerary that can be uploaded (via WiFi) to their iPhone, iPad, Android or Windows Phone 7 device.
  • Because the data is then stored on the phone, visitors will be able to retrieve it even if their phone does not operate on the GSM network. (Some 80% of visitors bring their mobiles with them on their visit).
  • Information will be linked to a booking service provided by Tourism Exchange Australia (TXA), so that customers can make or change bookings and ticket purchases directly from their mobile phone.
  • Iformation will be geotagged and linked to maps so that visitors can navigate their way to and between attractions.
• KNOWHERE will support social networking via interaction with Facebook / Twitter / Flickr and foursquare.
• The KNOWHERE production program includes a five-month development period prior to system testing (currently scheduled for late 2011) prior to final implementation.
   

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About Object Consulting
Object Consulting delivers high quality, leading edge enterprise business solutions through the innovative use of component technologies.

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Media Enquiries:

For additional information, please contact:
Tracy Pendergast, Pentica PR: 0411 034 868 or via e-mail tracy@pentica.com.au on behalf of Object Consulting Pty Ltd