Aerial View gives you programmatic access to cinematic videos built with the same 3D map source used by Google Earth–and it’s now generally available. By accessing pre-rendered videos or creating new ones, developers can quickly create immersive experiences at scale for any U.S. location. Since the Preview release in May 2023, companies across industries have used Aerial View to help their users get to know an area virtually to make educated, location-based decisions.
Real Estate
In real estate, companies are using Aerial View to allow potential buyers and renters to virtually discover details about a property and its neighborhood, such as proximity to a park or a freeway. Apartment List, a rental marketplace, implemented Aerial View to give its renters a bird's eye view of properties and the surrounding neighborhoods.
We’re excited Aerial View gives Apartment List renters an immersive visual experience, allowing them to explore and discover the distinctive features of properties and neighborhoods in vivid detail. As we continue to enhance our product, features like this help make Apartment List the most tech-savvy way for renters to out-smart the market. Sr. Director of Engineering at Apartment List
Incorporating Aerial View into their experience has helped Apartment List increase user conversion and engagement rates. They report that users who engage with Aerial View contact a property 2x more than when users engage with 3D tours of the apartment unit.
Apartment List using Aerial View to show the 3D bird’s eye view of an apartment building
Music and Entertainment
In entertainment, brands are using Aerial View to create engaging fan experiences. For Elton John’s farewell tour in 2022, Rocket Entertainment deployed Aerial View to create an immersive experience to share Elton’s connection to Los Angeles with his fans by bringing his favorite local places to life with pre-rendered Aerial View videos.
We used Aerial View to showcase cinematic videos of Elton’s favorite places around L.A., such as Dodger Stadium, Amoeba Music, The Troubadour and more. The results of our L.A. map experience were amazing - it drove 143 engagements per tweet, and we saw a 14% increase in Rocket Club subscribers compared to prior brand activations. Head of Digital at Rocket Entertainment
Elton John’s “Rocket View,” uses an Aerial View video of Dodger Stadium to bring the iconic location to life for his fans
Untapped opportunities
Aerial View videos can unlock a new level of context and understanding for businesses in a variety of other industries. In travel, companies can provide tourists with immersive 3D tours of hotels, vacation rentals, resorts, and the surrounding areas. In retail, companies can use Aerial View to give customers a better feel for their retail locations and direct them to other experiences like pop-up shops or partner locations. Across all industries, companies can create interactive experiences with hover state to improve engagement and conversion.
Getting started
Now that Aerial View is generally available, billing will reflect a tiered pricing model that’s based on the number of times your video is shown to end users. If you’re ready to get started, head over to the Cloud console. Because it’s not always easy to measure the business impact of new user experiences, we've worked with early adopters to create a best practices guide for measuring Aerial View’s impact on your business. When you’re ready to think about measurement, check it out.
If you want to go beyond cinematic videos and build custom 3D visualizations, learn more about Photorealistic 3D Tiles, now available in Preview.
For more information on Google Maps Platform, visit our website.
