UK virtual reality firm woos Apple

A small UK software company has come up with ingenious QuickTime-based virtual reality (VR) software that has attracted very strong interest from Apple.

The company, called Clementine, is based in Bristol and is run by Matt Kane, a 21 year-old veteran of the computer business. Apple sent software experts over to the launch last week in Bristol of a showcase website at www.VRbritain.co.uk.

"It's basically a means for managing VR content on the internet, based on Apple QuickTime software," said Kane. "We've developed a new way to manage the huge amounts of information contained in programs like QuickTimeVR smoothly and easily."

VR sites are nothing new - there are already over 1000 dedicated sites to browse - but most existing sites, especially over a 56k modem, are slow to download and give jerky, unrefined images.

Clementine technology allows quick access to high-resolution immersive environments, and the ability to make the content interactive. The test site, aimed at the tourism and property sector, allows virtual visitors to meander around both Bristol and Bath from the comfort of home. Points of interest can be clicked on and further information pops up on screen.

A key factor is that Clementine has set up its own dedicated servers running the new software. "We can stream it very quickly. It's almost instant on anything faster than a modem. QuickTime is much faster than Java-based alternatives," said Clementine spokesman Mike Karwowski.

"We think this is light years ahead of anything else in the world and the Apple representatives at the launch agreed," he added. "It's like the difference between a silent film and a modern day Hollywood epic."

According to Kane, Apple was impressed that the Bristol outfit is able to make their software more viable. Closer links between the two companies are in prospect as a result. "Our people are talking to their people. The relationship now is one of partnership, and they are showcasing our stuff on their site," he said.

Set up last September, Clementine now employs seven people. Future prospects include the possibility of embedding live-streamed video within a VR environment.

The company is also working on more ambitious environments using QuickTime 5, and even closer links with Apple making use of later versions are rumoured.