Experience-Driven Showcase [24]au "Hello, New World." A new kind of freedom lies in the palm of your hand.
From August 28th to 30th, KDDI's special event "Hello, New World. warp cube" was held at Tokyo Midtown in Roppongi. It offered a 10-minute 360-degree virtual trip to some of the world's most breathtaking landscapes. Reiko Goto from Dentsu Inc. Event & Space Design Bureau, who managed this event, reports.
Edited and Compiled by: Aki Kanahara, Dentsu Inc. Event & Space Design Bureau
Experience Value That Moves the Heart
In an era where "experience" is becoming an established powerful marketing technique, opportunities to consider what kind of experiences move people's hearts are increasing.
The new au brand campaign "Hello, New World." introduced here aimed to powerfully convey the brand's values by offering unprecedented new experiences.
Among its initiatives, the "Hello, New World. warp cube" installation at Tokyo Midtown was conceived as a symbolic experiential device. It allowed visitors to directly experience the very essence of au's brand, embodied by its slogan "New Freedom."
A New Experience Space Warping You to the World's Most Spectacular Views
Inside the massive cube, with each side exceeding 6 meters, the floor, walls, and ceiling are entirely surrounded by high-definition LEDs. By operating a smartphone within this space, the visuals interactively transform, allowing users to soar through breathtaking world views they've never seen before.
A roughly 10-minute virtual trip: soar over Mount Fuji, traverse jungles, dive beneath the sea to fly through fireworks, and gaze down upon pink Lake Hillier from above. When all participants synchronize and raise their smartphones together, the experience warps you rapidly to the next breathtaking view. Along the way, there are surprises like receiving a phone call on your smartphone from a woman appearing across the sea within the visuals.
During the final weekend of summer vacation, despite unexpected autumn rains, many families and visitors came, and we were grateful to sell out all numbered tickets every day. We received many delightful comments from guests like, "Wow! It really feels like flying through the sky," "It made me want to go on a trip," and "I didn't know you could do this with a smartphone!"
The Joy and Challenge of Creating an Unprecedented New Experience
The 360-degree footage for this warp cube was shot using drones at World Heritage sites and other locations around the globe. Multiple 360-degree cameras mounted on drones captured the scenes, which were then corrected, processed, and edited using Japan's most advanced special editing techniques—a process that took an incredibly long time.
On top of that, we had to make these 360-degree videos operable within a smartphone app. There were many challenges we could only tackle by trial and error—like how human perception would react, empathize, or reject the unique sensation of floating, as if your feet were leaving the ground.
Some things became clear only after trying them, while other discoveries turned out to be the exact opposite of what we had imagined. We didn't overcome every challenge in this project, but I'm confident that if given another chance, we can push much further.
It's not technology that moves the heart,
but the new experiences it enables are what truly move the heart.
As a member of the Experience Technology Department, I constantly gather information on cutting-edge technology. Yet, I increasingly realize that merely chasing technological information alone is insufficient.
Technology can break boundaries and expand human potential, but if you can't use it or master it, it holds no value.
The "warp cube" project I introduced this time incorporates many technologies, but each individual technology isn't particularly novel.
What truly matters, I believe, is the idea of how to use that technology. New ways of using these technologies, new combinations... It is the new experiences born from such ideas that move people's hearts.
For me, this project was one that allowed me to return to that fundamental truth.
"New freedom." It might already be here, right now.
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Author
Reiko Goto
Dentsu Inc.
Since joining the company, I have worked in both the Sales and Solutions departments, serving as both a producer and a planner for over 10 years in each role. I have particularly extensive experience working with automotive manufacturers, accumulating diverse expertise. My motto and goal is to continuously pursue new challenges, unconstrained by job titles or designations.
