Oddcast Launches Widget Version of its Interactive Video Technology

New York-based interactive marketing company, Oddcast, announced Wednesday that it has released an embeddable widget version of its 3D VideoStar technology. 3D VideoStar, which is offered on a white-label basis and which has powered marketing campaigns for Fox, Verizon, Cheez-It and Breyers Ice Cream among others (it launched in March, 2008), is billed by the company as allowing end-users to upload any two-dimensional image of their face and then have it automatically mapped onto any existing video scene--for example, from a movie, a TV show, or a TV commercial--and rendered in what the company describes as "full 3D, providing lifelike tracking movement within the video" (note: to be clear, the company is, of course, not referring to "true," stereoscopic 3D).

The rendered image automatically lip-synchs with any dialogue in the scene, and the technology also allows users to add speech to characters via a computer microphone, an uploaded MP3 file, a phone call, or text-to-speech. In addition, Oddcast allows users to share their creations with friends via email or Web publishing options, and also provides a reporting tool to its clients. Working examples of 3D VideoStar can be seen (and experienced) at: http://www.oddcast.com/clients/batman/, at http://www.oddcast.com/clients/fox/, and at http://www.trekyourself.com/