Digital Publishing
1 min read

Lessons from 360-degree video experiments at Euronews

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Duncan Hooper, editor of digital platforms at Euronews, explained that over the past few months, the international news organisation has been experimenting with 360-degree technology using just the resources, video skills and staff already available to them.

“We wanted to do it within our existing structures, and if we were going to fail, fail cheaply,” he said.

“We are not the New York Times – we aren’t going to send a million [Google] cardboard readers to our audience. We want to make two videos a week, and do them inside of our current workflow.”

Euronews, which has over 300 journalists working 24/7 in 13 languages on air, online and on social media, wanted to produce video that would work across its global audience.

Since June, the organisation has shot videos in 13 different countries, from Uzbekistan to Serbia, so far publishing a total of 34 360-degree videos, with the majority produced in the last two months, on feature pieces and news stories.

For example, Euronews have shot 360-degree video from a hot air balloon over the French Alps, action from the red carpet of the Cannes Film Festival, and interviews with inhabitants from the city of Stanytsia Luhanska in eastern Ukraine to show life on the frontline in Ukraine.

“We use the Samsung Gear 360 camera, which fits in your pocket. We didn’t want them to take a big GoPro rig and give them so much extra work. The quality suffers slightly but we are a news channel and we need to be able to get things out within a day at least.”

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