PropTiger acquires AR startup 3DPhy to enhance 3D capability

Online real estate platform PropTiger has acquired Gurgaon-based augmented reality and 3D visualisation startup 3DPhy for an undisclosed amount to bolster its 3D capabilities.

3DPhy that operates in the field of virtual and augmented reality and 3D visualisations, will help PropTiger make home search experience more immersive, the company said in a statement.

With its virtual walkthroughs, 3DPhy enables builders and brokers showcase multiple properties over phones, laptops, tablets or head-mounted devices.

"With mobile devices overtaking desktops, the real estate sector has become one of the prime segments where people want to have the ability to search anywhere and anytime, and that is a big priority for us," said Dhruv Agarwala, CEO of PropTiger.com.

3DPhy creates 360-degree panoramas and virtual tours to help home buyers assess the size, shape, space, and dimension of properties.

When a buyer calls up a 3DPhy-enabled broker, the broker takes a head-mounted display (HMD) and a smartphone to the buyer's home. The broker then connects the HMD, an optical device, via Bluetooth to his phone. Once the buyer wears the device, he can take a virtual tour of the property. For properties under construction, the startup also gives monthly status updates which can then be shared with buyers.

3DPhy started off as a 3D cataloguing firm for e-commerce companies with clients such as UrbanLadder, Happily Unmarried and FabFurnish, but today real estate is where most of its clients are coming from.

Novaviz Technology Pvt Ltd, which runs 3DPhy, was founded by a group of IIT Kharagpur alumni—Amit Shekhar, Rajeev Kumar, Uttam Kumar and Raghvendra Polinki—in 2014.

Several online real estate portals offer 3D virtual tours of properties. Housing.com has Slice View which offers interactive exploration of the project, along with integrated booking options. CommonFloor has Retina, a virtual reality initiative which lets users view listed real estate in 3D.

Last year, PropTiger had acquired Bengaluru-based OoBI Media Solutions Pvt Ltd which operates a digital interaction design startup under the Out of Box Interaction (OoBI) brand.

News Corp, which holds a significant stake in PropTiger, also owns the parent of this news website.

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